Beyond Infinite Dreams

Chapter 1: Only Human

Disclaimer: I do not own Highschool DxD. I do own the plot and concepts that I will use in the story.

Hyoudou Issei was of the mind that if anything didn't go your way for a particular day, he was always reassured by the fact that fate would try much harder to make another day much worse. He didn't manage to get a particular wink of sleep last night going home from work at 4 in the morning.

Not to mention the fact that his bicycle was stolen yet again and so he had to walk to his apartment. It didn't end there as he ruffled through his pockets and bag to search for his keys when he remembered they were in the apartment itself. Issei referred back to the wonders of stress relief through continuous head banging on his wall, his landlady came along however and was gracious enough to open the door for him and would remind him for the umpteenth time not to forget his keys.

"Issei-chan, why are you always forgetting your keys?" The old lady smiled good-naturedly. She had grey hair and wore a dark blue kimono with snow patterns, she had striking blue eyes and a warm smile to her.

He honestly wondered which deity sent the old woman because she was always there to help him out.

"Sorry, Reiko-obaa-san. I'm just really tired. How's Olivia-chan?" He asked.

"Still sleeping, I caught her waiting for her big brother." Issei smiled sadly at that tidbit of information.

"Don't be so hard on yourself, Issei-chan. She loves her big brother very much."

He muttered his thanks before dragging his legs inside with the old landlady reminding him of the rent that was due next week. His stomach grumbled in anger demanding to be fed and he robotically tried his best to enjoy the ramen cup for his late dinner/early breakfast. Once done, he stealthily made his way inside his little sister's room being careful not to disturb her. Issei's eyes settled on the small girl clutching the toy dragon. Issei's fingers stroked Olivia's hair and she snuggled deeper into the comforting hands. A range of emotions swirled in him; happiness, sadness, and shame. With a final glance, he left for his own room.

He didn't bother with taking his clothes off as he collapsed onto his bed, however, any amount of sleep that he got was too little before his alarm, cheerful in its job, blared loudly reminding him to get up. He lazily disconnected the power cord and settled in for a nice long rest, yet again, when Amaterasu decided that six o'clock was definitely the time to start the day. One eye opened in anger at the ray of the sun.

"One of these days, Amaterasu, one of these days…" Issei muttered. He rose from his bed almost not too dissimilar from the dead rising from the grave. He promptly turned around and closed the curtains, flopping back on his bed. He settled himself once again, a sigh of relief as he did so. He felt warm, comfortable and most of all relaxed. For two seconds.

"Onii-chan, onii-chan! Wake up, Onii-chan!" Issei could resist many things but there were very few that he couldn't. Namely his little sister, Olivia. She peered at him closely with honey-brown eyes in curiosity at his huddled form. He wrapped the blankets around him more tightly as she tugged it trying to wake up her older brother. She tugged a little too hard and saw his exhausted state. Issei only moaned tiredly and sagged to the floor.

"Ah, Onii-chan is scary!"

"Just tired, Olivia." He groaned while she giggled to herself.

Right now, his impression of a classic zombie was spot on as he walked to the school with two of his friends beside him.

"Oi oi, Issei, it's a fine morning we're having today!"

"A glorious day when you're in Kuoh academy where all the beauties are." The two friends beside him were Motohama and Matsuda respectively both having a reputation for being the biggest perverts in Kuoh Academy.

"Eh, 6/10," Issei commented dryly, rubbing away the crust in his eyes as he slouched forward.

"How could you say that Issei? Kuoh Academy is where all the girls are waiting for us to take them." Matsuda was a bald, former jock, currently in the photography club and a self-proclaimed lolicon.

"Indeed and it has the most talented and beautiful girls of the country as well." This was Motohama, who had the ability to tell a female's measurements just by looking at them which both unnerved and infuriated the ladies of Kuoh Academy and he was therefore dubbed 'Pervert Glasses' and 'Three Sizes Scouter'. It was an achievement that they weren't expelled from Kuoh for sexual harassment.

"Why am I friends with both of you?" Issei sighed deeply. It was known to everyone in Kuoh Academy about the Perverted Duo and their particular interests in seeing girls naked. Issei also had such an interest but was more restrained in that regard and perhaps what stood out from him and his friends were that he was subtle in his appreciation of the female form.

"Because Issei you are the one who understands us, our goals to..." Matsuda paused for effect.

"HAVING OUR OWN HAREM!"

Issei immediately kicked Matsuda from behind and pointed at him in indignation.

"Don't sink me to your level, I'm not looking for a harem." Poor Issei, the irony of those words.

"Disgusting perverts."

"Scum of the earth is what they are."

"Pigs."

Both Matsuda and Motohama sunk to the floor with a cloud over their head. Issei only shook his head at them both. "Maybe if you didn't shout your life goals in front of the girls you're making a harem with, they'd be slightly more receptive to you guys."

"The gods have abandoned me." Matsuda wailed, tears streaming.

"I'm gonna die a virgin." Motohama moaned in agony. Issei had enough of their self-pity and boot met ass as they fell forward.

Issei smacked his head onto his desk, a distinct feeling of utter exhaustion washed over him when he sat down. He angled his head upwards and saw the mischievous face of Aika Kiryuu staring down at him. Aika was a second-year student like Issei with loosely braided hair on both sides of her face, she had the curves and bust of a budding teenage girl that was accentuated by her uniform. She peered down behind her glasses and Issei could feel a headache coming on.

"Oh ho, tired on a Monday, did you spend all weekend pleasuring girls as a gigolo?"

"Go away." He moaned into his desk.

"Or was it your job as a stripper for the ladies in the red light district?"

"Are you always this annoying or is today special?" He glared half-heartedly.

"Oh you know I rejoice in the suffering of my best male friend." She pinched his cheek in amusement.

Issei smacked her hand away from him and sat up on his desk giving his full attention to the girl in front of him.

"If you really want to know, Meiko-sensei has been driving me and the other assistants crazy with her spontaneous ideas and deadlines."

"You could say that she's been riding you hard all weekend." She grinned perversely.

"Shut up."

"Fufufu!"

"Anyway, some asshole decided to steal my bike so I had to walk all the way home and my body is aching to go into a coma at any time now."

"That's rough and how's Olivia?"

"No."

"Aww, I was just asking how she was doing."

"The last time I let you near her I had to explain where babies came from, putting her outside of your influence is good for me."

"Hey, she got an early sex ed from her brother. That's a big plus in your book."

"She was five! Ah I swear you are a walking ball of lust and corruption, I'm surprised those two haven't keeled over from your presence." He pointed at the perverted duo still stuck in their cloud of self-pity and depression.

"I'm not that bad, I do have a lot of self-respect and dignity thank you very much." Ah yes, Aika was something of a boogeyman in the hallways of Kuoh Academy. Even though guys fantasise about girls coming after them, they did not expect Aika, who was so forward with her intentions that it frightened the small number of males in the academy away. She was the combination of the Perverted Duo and oh so much worse than them. Luckily, Issei was the best meat shield they could throw at her and the two struck up an odd friendship where he wasn't put off by her innuendos and she could use Issei to discuss every idea and fantasy that she had. Truly, a friendship forged in the fires of teenage hormonal lust and the tears of the frightened male population.

"Should I let slip about your size to the ladies, I'm sure you'll get a date."

"Do it and I swear I'll withdraw your dango privileges."

"You monster! Oddly enough, that IS the size of your di-" She began to say loudly which was muffled by Issei's hand. The students looked curiously in their direction and Issei had to withdraw his hand from her mouth which spotted a Cheshire grin.

"You are pure evil," Issei grumbled and Aika could only laugh at his misfortune.

Here we find the Perverted Duo enjoying the sights of the Kendo Club members undressing and Issei sleeping soundly against a wall as he tried to catch up on some sleep. Both were trying to catch a view of boobs however their inner greed to see some flesh caused a fight amongst themselves.

"Matsuda, it's my turn now!"

"Shut up Motohama, I can almost see it." Motohama shoved him aside and peeked.

"It's amazing!"

"Huh did you hear that?"

"Someone's peeping on us!"

Both boys panicked and stared at the almost comatose body of Issei, nodding their heads together and left Issei to his fate.

Issei blinked his eyes blearily as he felt something poke him on the side. Slowly, he looked up to see the members of the Kendo Club staring down at him in righteous feminine fury. All equipped with their shinai as well.

"Oh, this is not a good day."

"Just tell us where they are Hyoudou," Katase said serenely, that was betrayed by the aura of wrath around her and the other club members.

"Can't we sort this out in a civil manner?" Issei had sweat dripping down his brow and he tried to move away but his back met the wall.

"Oh we are going settle this civilly with this shinai hitting someone's crotch, repeatedly I might add, it's your choice whether it's yours or theirs," Murayama said sweetly.

'Ah shit.' He thought as they came closer to him. "Wait! Wait! Hold on! Alright if you're interested in beating someone, how about we settle this in a match?"

Seeing some of the unconvinced gazes from the ladies of the Kendo Club, Issei decided to give them some incentive. "If you win, I will be your personal gopher for the week in place of Matsuda and Motohama, you can order me to do anything you want while we're in school."

"Hmm, that is a tempting offer Hyoudou but what's in it for you?" Murayama said, her eyes still held scepticism in them.

"If I win, you have to leave Matsuda and Motohama alone and I'll make sure that they don't peep on you for a week. A win-win situation if you think about it." Issei offered.

"Alright, I accept your bet, meet us inside the Kendo Club after school."

'Great…'

'Oh good, the whole school is here'. Issei walked into the Kendo club spotting a large number of girls all waiting in the stands and giving him a glare, that would have combusted him on the spot and scattered the ashes to the wind.

'Huh never knew I was so popular.' He thought dryly until he spotted Matsuda and Motohama with a large amount of cash in hand.

"Place your bets here! All bets are here! See how long the deadbeat of the school can last against the Captain of the Kendo Club!" Issei growled seeing them run a betting pool and seeing that a lot of people were betting in favour of him losing.

"Hey! What the hell do you think you guys are doing!?"

"Ah, Issei! Thanks for taking the fall for us back there and we're using your total humiliation and defeat to our advantage." Matsuda stated matter-of-factly.

"Don't worry we'll give you a big cut for this golden opportunity," Motohama responded. "Plus we get to look at the girls here up close and not get in trouble for it."

Issei blinked, once then twice as an idea entered his mind. "Anyone else betting on me to win?"

"Aside from Aika, no-one is dumb enough to make that bet." Issei's jaw twitched in irritation before he shoved a couple of crumpled notes from his pocket into their hands. "I'll bet 4,000 yen on me. And when I win, I'll be sure to get my winnings from everyone who bet against me."

"You sure you want to lose your money too?" Matsuda said awkwardly as he held the notes in hand. Issei only turned around and spotted Aika, chin in hand as her perpetual grin was still in place.

"Thanks." Issei bowed his head as Aika perked up at the sight of him.

"You're welcome although are you really going to honour your agreement with Murayama?"

"Actually that reminds me I need to make an amendment on my side of the bet. By the way, how much did you bet on me?"

"Oh not much, only 10,000 yen." Issei almost stumbled when he walked away but was nonetheless touched by the faith she had in him. He walked up to the sparring mat to see Murayama outfitted in her traditional Kendo outfit.

"Are you ready to lose?" A cocky smirk was on lips as she said this.

"Actually, I'd like to make an amendment on my side of the bet." She frowned at this information and crossed her arms.

"Sorry but you can't change the bet at this stage."

"Oh, this will benefit you, if you listen." He walked up in whispered in her ear as her eyebrows raised before a smile was plastered on her face.

"I'll think I'll make an exception Hyoudou-san." She tossed him the helmet and shinai which Issei caught easily however he noticed something was missing like the armour that was supposed to protect him. "Wait...how come I only get the helmet and sword and you're decked out in armour?"

"I did say I would make an exception however it does come at a cost so do you still want to continue?" Issei sighed before putting the helmet on.

"The odds are stacked against me, pretty much everyone in the school is betting against me and no cup to protect my balls. Meh, this could be worse." Issei settled into a relaxed stance gripping the shinai in his left hand.

"Look the deadbeat doesn't even know how to hold a shinai."

"Oi, doesn't he sleep all day in class?"

"Are you not taking me seriously!?" Murayama fumed at seeing his relaxed stance.

"I'd figure you need the advantage, but are we really here to talk about my stance or are we going to fight?" He drawled, hoping to rile her up. He was proven correct when she launched forward with a jab which he managed to parry, spinning on his foot as he backpedalled away from the stabs to his midsection. She rushed forward, her bamboo sword aiming to strike at his neck but it was parried to side as his own sword rose and their helmets were only inches apart.

"Hmm, is that peach I smell?" Her assault was reinvigorated with that comment as he managed to continuously block every attack that she made. Stab, Slash, Thrust before the two wooden swords pushed against each other for dominance. One held in the traditional two hand grip and the other held in Issei's one-handed grip.

"You know, you're not so bad, Hyoudou," Murayama commented off-handedly sounding less antagonised and more eager.

"That's high praise coming from a two-time champion in the Japanese National Circuit." She could only blink in surprise before she was pushed back and she held her shinai in a closely. Issei shifted his hands and he held the sword with two hands.

Murayama narrowed her eyes as before she could find openings in his stances and now, the hairs on the back of her neck raised in anticipation of what he would do next.

"You're really amazing and I should pay my respects to your skill so now I will face you equally."

"And what makes you think that you're my equal?" She couldn't help but say arrogantly.

"Because you were holding back and you should know...so was I." Murayama found herself on the defensive as she had to use everything in her arsenal to keep from being hit. Until finally, a single stab to her abdomen ended that thought. She paused momentarily, feeling the pain in her abdomen and Issei pulled back giving her time to recover.

"You are full of surprises today, Hyoudou."

"...I think you may be overestimating my skills here." Wood smacked against wood as they continued their exchange, Murayama's sword struck his shoulder and Issei's struck her shoulder pads.

"You let me hit you." It wasn't a question but a statement.

"Can you prove it?" A challenging smirk on his lips.

"I guess I'll have to beat it out of you." Her strikes became ferocious, focused as they continued with the intent to hit him, each strike brushed past his uniform leaving cuts as if an actual blade was in her hand.

All thoughts of the bet were forgotten in her mind as she focused entirely on this spar, no, this dance. The feeling of exhilaration, the thrill of the battle with an opponent that was her equal and yet so much stronger that he was driving her past her limits. Nothing was said between them as the wooden swords smacked loudly in the club, no-one said anything in awe of the duel between them.

She didn't know how long this had been going on for, minutes or hours, she had lost herself in this fight and then a window of opportunity appeared. Issei had left himself open for a decisive strike that would knock him out. He was already in the middle of a strike and she could pull back and hit him sending him out of the ring.

The shinai gripped tightly in her hand cut through the empty air and then pain exploded from her abdomen once more as Issei's shinai splintered and she tumbled outside the sparring mats. The look of total shock was clear on her face and she would never forget the fierce determination that she saw in his eyes.

Silence descended as Murayama struggled to get up to her feet, her breaths ragged and the shinai was barely assisting her in getting up but she managed to hold on weakly.

"W-We're not done yet, Hyoudou." Issei's face snapped in surprise and Murayama was about to move forward to strike before her eyes rolled up in her head and she fell forward only to be caught by a pair of strong arms. She groaned as the pain in her side flared once again before looking up to see honey-brown eyes trained on him in concern, his shinai and helmet forgotten.

"You're pretty good, Issei." Those were her last words before she fell unconscious.

After bringing Murayama to the nurse's office and seeing that the nurse was about to question the state of his uniform, Issei left and came back to the club only to be met with a mixed reception ranging from fear to anger and shock, at his accomplishments which unnerved him but he put on a brave face. He reached Aika who held up his winnings to him which he pocketed before he turned to the Perverted Duo who were ready to hightail it outta there.

"Where do you think you guys are going?" He grabbed both of them by the back of their shirts and they turned their heads robotically seeing the aura of wrath surrounding Issei.

"H-hey, Issei, did you get your winnings?" Matsuda stammered, sweat pouring down his face.

"Y-yeah, see you win and you got lots of money and we don't get beat up win-win," Motohama responded in the same tone.

"I actually changed the bet on my part, instead I reduced the time that you have before the Kendo Club gets you again to 5," Issei stated calmly before he released them.

"5 what? 5 days? 5 weeks?...5 months!" They both said feeling their hopes soaring. The entire Kendo Club was behind the two and they were itching to get their revenge on them. Matsuda and Motohama's hopes were dashed however when Issei began to count down.

"4...3...2…" The duo learned that day that hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. The two walked away missing the curious gaze of the handsome 'Prince' of the school and he left the club to inform his master of the developments that had transpired.

"Whoo, you were amazing back there. The way you stabbed and thrust your stick at her, at every angle and you rammed it in until she was left panting exhausted at the end." Issei paused before turning to her with an incredulous expression.

"Does everything have to be a sex joke with you?"

"Yes." Was her blunt reply. "But still that was literally unbelievable what you did back there."

"It's not that hard, you saw it yourself."

"You struck a girl so hard in the stomach that you shattered the shinai you were using against her without her armour I'm sure she should be in the hospital at this moment."

"I did not mean for that to happen." He raised the bruised hands that were beginning to purple and Issei swore that he heard a gasp of concern from her.

"Why didn't you get something for your hands when you were at the nurses' office?" She hissed, grabbing his wrists to inspect them.

"I'm fine, this is nothing." He tried to pull away from her surprisingly strong grip.

"It's not nothing, Issei, we're going to get some bandages at least." Aika dragged the protesting boy to the large supermarket unaware of the small smile that graced Issei's lips momentarily.

"I hate Mondays, I have zero sleep over the weekend, I injure the captain of the Kendo Club and now pretty much everyone are either afraid or they hate me. On the plus side, I have enough to pay for rent this month which is nice." Issei leant against the railing staring at the sunset after assuring Aika that he would be fine in getting home. He began talking to himself in the hopes of getting a response from his partner. He waited for a while only to be met with silence and a heavy sigh left his lips. "Who am I kidding that's a pretty weak reason for hurting Murayama like that."

'Damn it, why do I did have to lapse out of control like that? I hurt a really nice girl not to mention she was cute too so that makes me more of an asshole now.'

Issei was broken out of his thoughts of self-loathing to turn to a girl that had snuck up on him. That or he was way too deep in thought but that didn't matter, the young woman before him was beautiful, Issei had to admit to himself, long black hair that reached her hips and violet eyes. She wore a school uniform that he had never seen before.

"A-are you Hyoudou Issei?" The mystery girl asked.

"Yes, I am."

"Tha-that's great! So, um, Issei-kun do you have a-a girlfriend?" She asked shyly pulling at her skirt.

"No." He said lamely. This situation was entirely unexpected for him and the best response he could give was so pathetic, he felt the urge to face-palm right there and then.

"Really? Then would you like to go out with me!?" She said quickly.

"Huh?" Shock took over exasperation quickly in that moment.

"Since you don't have a girlfriend, WOULD YOU PLEASE GO OUT WITH ME!?" She said loudly, this time with her head bowed.

Issei blinked once, twice and his mouth hung open in shock. 'Holy shit, this isn't happening, no way is a girl confessing that she likes me and wants to be my girlfriend? There is no way that this is a cruel ploy to kill me. So how to go about this? Alright Issei, just act normal.'

"Uh." Was Issei's ever intelligent response. 'Great job, dumbass.'

"I understand if you don't want to." She bowed her head sadly. 'Gotta salvage the situation.'

"I mean yes I would like to go out with you. But who are you?" He asked curiously.

"My name is Yuuma, Yuuma Amano." They exchanged numbers and she waved at Issei before leaving.

"Huh, I got a date." He stared at the digits between his fingers, scrutinising it as if it was the most interesting thing in the world. "Hmm, today's a good day."

And so he turned towards home before looking over his shoulder for the moment, peering at the shadows momentarily only to turn away as a white-haired girl stepped out.

The moon hung high in the sky as Kuoh's nightlife bustled about and for one lone high school student this afforded her the opportunity to think.

Aika wandered aimlessly through the streets carrying her bag of groceries, her thoughts turning to her enigmatic best friend and the events that transpired today. She had known Issei when he first came to Kuoh Academy, he was quiet, reclusive and quite handsome when she saw him but he had made no effort to be outstanding or extraordinary unlike Kiba Yuuto, the Prince of Kuoh Academy, with his good looks and charming attitude had captured the hearts of many girls.

Yet, Issei was content to be that, average, and gravitated to the two students with an infamous reputation 'The Perverted Duo' and naturally the girls feared that the duo would become a trio. The ladies could breathe a sigh of relief as Issei had more or less mitigated the duo's perverted tendencies.

And she remembered the day when she decided to sate her curiosity and had talked to him, he had replied curtly to her attempts at friendship but undeterred employed more of her 'unusual' topics into their conversation. She was surprised when instead of discomfort, he was amused and she managed to use that opening to become friends with him.

She was broken out of her reverie as she passed an alleyway where she was roughly grabbed by a couple of tattooed men. Her bag fell to the ground as she struggled in their grasp.

"Just stay quiet now." The man growled. "Or the boys will get to sample the product if you scream."

Aika struggled, seeing four more of them near a truck. Three other girls from what she could see were bound and gagged, tears streaming down their faces. She roughly shoved her elbow into his throat where he choked loosening his grip and swung her fist into the other man's stomach.

"That was a big mistake girl." The man pulled out a switchblade and inched closer while she took a step back further into the alleyway. The men moved closer, lecherous grins on their faces as Aika held the frightened expression until her back touched the wall.

"Hahaha, Kuro, she's a feisty one, isn't she?" A man howled in laughter seeing Kuro get closer.

"Oh she's my type alright and I can't wait to break her in and by the end of tonight you'll be screaming my name." Aika's expression changed to that of a sadistic grin.

"Are you sure about that?" Her eyes flashed dangerously from hazel to red. "Because I'll be the one that will make you scream."

Leather wings ripped from her back and her canines elongated, showing the deadly smirk that settled on her lips. "What's wrong? You don't like little ol' me anymore? Are the Yakuza too afraid of a girl?"

The men shook at the sight of the monstrous girl before them and the only thing standing between them was the switchblade in his hand. "What the hell are you!?"

She didn't answer disappearing in a burst of speed, wrenching the man with switchblade into the shadows as his screams echoed, dying as all the other men pulled their guns.

"Daisuke, Nobu, Tatsuo, get the product and go." Three of the men broke off towards the truck.

"Aww, you don't want to play anymore? Too bad because I'm not done playing with you." Her voice bounced all over the place and the Yakuza couldn't help but feel the fear creeping inside them. The sensation of a predator watching. A beast in the dark waiting for the opportune moment to strike.

A shadow flitted past their vision grabbing Nobu as he fired his gun wildly, they all took aim at where she was but by then she was gone and only three remained.

A whistling sound pierced the air and into Tatsuo's shoulder as he cried in agony at the knife buried there.

"Ah fuck, Izumo, help me!" The injured man shouted grasping his shoulder tenderly but he was silenced as Aika dragged him in the dark, his screeches haunting the last thugs.

"Forget this, I'm outta here." Daisuke tossed away his gun and made a break for the exit before a bullet entered his chest and he fell down to the ground.

"Fucking coward," Izumo growled, the sub-machine in his hands pointed wildly. The only sounds left was Daisuke's dying groans and the clatter of debris in the alleyway. A rustle by the dumpster and a hail of bullets flew where it was.

Izumo's fingers twitched and his eyes narrowed trying to peer through the darkness but his frustrations got the better of him. "Where are you!?"

"Here." A whisper and his world turned black.

Aika leant down, her fangs piercing his neck and blood flowed down her throat before she ripped it away, sensing someone at the entrance of the alleyway.

"I wasn't expecting to see you here, Aika." A boy, dressed in a familiar uniform was crouched down by Daisuke and any sense of satisfaction or pleasure that she felt from taking down the gangsters was slowly being overwhelmed by dread.

The boy moved forward, his form illuminated by a streetlight and Aika uttered one word.

"Issei."