[The Next Day]

After breakfast, Eco kept his word and had took Ravel out to the mall for shopping if she was going to live with him for the time being. She knew though that she couldn't go out in her current dress since she would be spotted easily so Eco had given her his, which were a pair of black blue shorts and a white polo shirt.

When coming to Japan, he had forgot to go through his clothes and separate what he grew out of and what he could fit in. He would deal with it later. Once they had come to the mall, Ravel went to the nearest women's clothing shop and had dragged him inside despite his protests. When asked why she said 'You are my guardian and must keep me within your sight at all times.'

He didn't know why but he just shrugged his shoulders and accepted it. So, he waited by the cashier while Ravel had searched around the store and seek out some casual clothes. When she was done, she was wearing a sleeveless black button-up blouse with a pink pencil skirt.

In her arms were a bundle of different clothes as she set them on the counter and then two tags that had belonged to the clothes she was wearing. Once Eco saw how much the clothes there were, he inwardly grumbled at the cost and how he was going to pay for rent for the next month but when he saw the happy expression on Ravel's face, he smiled and decided that it was worth it.

As the day went on, both teens went to different shops all over the mall with Eco letting Ravel guide him to wherever she wanted to go, curiosity taking over her mind as she explored the outlet. Soon both were hungry and were on their way to the food court.

"So, are you enjoying yourself?" Eco asked as he was carrying two bags full of clothes while Ravel was walking with her hands behind her back.

"It was delightful. I've never had this much fun in a long time, especially with someone who I just met." Ravel answered. "You sure you aren't doing this for something in return?"

Eco shook his head negatively. "Nope. Like I said, I don't mind and since you're residing in my apartment for the time being, It's my job to take care of you."

Ravel giggled at that. "I must say Eco, for a human I just met you are without a doubt a kind gentleman." She complimented as the said boy just chuckled.

"Thanks. It's been awhile since I've had a friend to hang out with." He said as they made arrived at the food court. "And here we are, the mall's greatest exhibit of all the time, the food court!"

"Oh my," Ravel tilted her head as she saw all the different types of food stands that were on two different sides while there were an unknown number of tables in the middle with a giant window in the back. "That's a lot of choices."

"Come on, let's go find a table." Eco said as Ravel nodded her head and followed him. They decided to sit by the window because the latter wanted to see the view while the former sat across. "Okay so what do you want?"

"Mmm." Ravel put her hand in her chin wondering what she wanted to eat as her eyes roam across the food court, scouting the shops. "I want… that." She pointed her finger to an Italian shop.

"Alright, I'll be right back." He said as he stood up and rushed off to get the food. As she was by herself, Ravel looked around before she peered her head down to keep anyone from seeing her face, underneath the table she cupped her hands together and closed her eyes in concentration.

As she took a deep breath, she slowly started gathering magic in her hands, as she tried to summon a small flame. After a minute, she started glaring at her hands as nothing happened. She kept looking up from her hands to where Eco was and saw that he on the side waiting for their orders, she went back and tried to summon her flames and once again was met with the same results, nothing.

'What's going on, why can't I summon it!?' Ravel inwardly growled as she felt herself starting to become angry. What was she doing wrong? She had just summoned her own fire wings when she had awakened from her injuries, so why can't she do it now?

She was brought out of her thoughts and let out a small yelp when Eco had dropped a tray on their table.

"I'm back, and I come bearing Italian greatness in the form of pasta!" Eco announced in a dramatic fashion, earning an eye roll from Ravel.

"Was that really necessary?" She asked.

"No, but it's fun to crack a few jokes every now and then." He answered as he sat down. "Plus, I thought you would need it."

"Why?"

"You looked angry when I was coming back. Did I do something to upset you?" He asked as she quickly waved her hands.

"N-No!" She said too quickly before clearing her throat. "I mean… it wasn't you, it's me. I was trying to see if I can summon a small flame in my hands."

"Oh. Well were you able to?" He asked and saw her frown.

"No." She admitted. "I have been unable to even summon a tiny amount, no matter how much I try I can't get it to work." She frowned.

"Alright then," Ravel looked up when she heard him speak. "After we leave this place, we'll go somewhere secluded and we can help you train your flames."

"R-Really?" Ravel asked in bewilderment. She knew that the boy had use magic but she wasn't sure what he could do nor that she was willing to believe that he was helping him out. She scanned his eyes for any type of deceit but there was no just genuine benevolence.

"Sure, it will be fun. I'll even show you my magic and we'll go from there."

"Once again, I thank you for generosity Eco. It seems to have no bounds." Ravel said giving him a smile as he returned the favor.

"Hehe, thanks." He chuckled while rubbing the back of his head. "Now come on, let's hurry and eat our food before gets cold." He said as he handed her a plate.

"What is this?"

"Fettucine Alfredo." He answered as he handed her another plate but it was smaller. "I also got some salad to go along with it."

"I see." Ravel voices, as she picked up her fork and twirled it around a small portion before engulfing it into her mouth. As it touched her tongue, her eyes lit up in astonishment and awe. The combination of the butter and cheese on the fettuccine was amazing.

"This…. This is amazing!" Ravel said as Eco smiled at the expression she was making.

"I'm glad you like it. I wasn't sure what to exactly get you so I went with something simple." He said as he watched the blonde eat her lunch. "You never had something like this back in your world?"

"Well… as far as I'm aware of our chefs usually serve anything they could think of. I don't think I've actually asked them about it other than what type of dish it is." Ravel said.

"Well, you know what they say and it never hurts to try new things." He said as he started eating his own food as well. He then noticed that Ravel still had a frown on her face. "What's wrong?"

"I'm just worried about my family. My mother must be worried sick about me as is my father and my siblings are no doubt searching for me." She said as she thought about her parents.

"You miss them, don't you?"

"I do. I want go to home and run into their arms but I can't, not as long as that Fallen Angel is looking for me and, the last thing I want to do is put them in danger." Ravel frowned as she gritted her teeth. "It's… just so frustrating…." She whispered.

Eco stared at the blonde girl with a sad expression on his face. There was a time where he did have someone that cared about him, especially since he didn't have any family. However, that same someone had used him and put a knife through his heart, because of that he can't trust them anymore. Eco only had problems with them and them alone, he still treats people with kindness and will lend a helping hand if needed but the shadow of doubt will always linger in his mind if someone got too close him.

Going back to Ravel, he moved his free hand and gently flicked her on the forehead earning her attention. When she looked up, she was met with a kind smile and eyes full of understanding.

"I'm gonna get you home. No matter what, even if it means fighting an entire army of fallen angels or angels or even other devils, I will take you to your family again." He said in a heartfelt tone that made Ravel feel shocked.

Her heart was fluttering that this human, this boy in front of her was willing to go far for her. They only had meant a day ago and here he was promising her that she would take her to her family no matter what.

Ravel's mouth slowly formed upwards as she gave the boy a warm smile.

"Thank you." She said in a genuine tone. After their conversation, both teens proceeded to finish eating their food and then were on their way home until Ravel had stopped him and said that she needed to make one more stop before they left.

[5 minutes later]

Little did he know that the place they were going to would be a bra shop or that he would be dragged inside with her.

"Why am I in here again?" Eco asked mentally with as his blushed brightly. He was currently sitting in the on a stool in a women's bra shop while Ravel was changing.

When he had asked her why she needed him inside the store she had said…

'I need a second opinion. I usually have my mother or sister help me with this but with my current predicament I have no one else, and since you are my guardian, that category falls on you.'

She had said all of that in a stern tone that made him wonder what was going on in that head of hers when she was dragging him. He kept his head down at the floor, trying to keep himself from staring at the undergarments around him but that didn't stop the gazes from the other females in the store.

"Why is there a boy in here?"

"Is he waiting for someone?"

"He isn't another pervert that's just in here for fun, is he?"

"No, he came in with a young girl."

"He's keeping his head down and it appears that he is very flustered."

"Seeing as how he kept his eyes on the ground the entire time that seems to be the case."

"Finally, a gentleman."

Eco slowly pulled up his hoodie as the women kept talking about him.

'Why me?'

He was unaware that someone was approaching him. Suddenly he felt slender arms wrap around his neck and hot breath breeze into his ear.

"I found you~" A familiar voice said that caused him

"AH!" Eco let out a small sound of surprise as his face remained red. Slowly turning his head, his eyes met with familiar gold ones. "A-Aika?"

The said girl giggled as she leaned back. "That's right. I never thought I would see my fellow peer inside a bra shop." She said in a teasing tone. "Does someone have a fetish~?"

"W-What!?" He yelped in response before turning around completely and crossed his arms in an x motion. "N-No I do not have a fetish."

"I wonder what the students would think if they heard about you in here, I can imagine the rumors around the school already?~" Aika wondered as Eco dropped his head and a dark cloud was hanging over him.

"Relax, tree boy. I'm won't tell anybody." She reassured him gently as he looked up.

"You won't?" He asked as she put a hand in her chin.

"Of course… unless you do something for me." She said as he tilted his head.

"What do you want me to do?"

"I want you…" She leaned forward with her hands on her hips. "… to come over to my place."

"W-What?" He stuttered at the response. A girl that was his classmate was inviting him over to her house, how could he not stutter?

"You heard me right, and yes a normal girl is inviting you to hang out with her." She stated as he stared at her.

"W-Why?"

"Murayama and Katase are sometimes busy because of their kendo club activities, leaving me alone with no one else since they're the only two people comfortable around me." She explained while crossing her arms before giving Eco a small smile. "Plus, I would like to get to know my fellow peer."

"O-Oh." He said as he rubbed the back of his head. "Um well…." He wasn't sure how to respond. He was being invited to hang out with Aika but he had to take care of Ravel since she needed help with her magic.

'What should I say?' He thought to himself as he tried to come up with an answer. At the same time, Ravel decided to come out.

"Eco, I'm coming out." She announced as she emerged from the changing rooms and walked out stopping in front of him and Aika.

"Eco-san." He turned his head to look at Ravel and let out a small sound of surprise at what he saw. Ravel wearing a white lingerie outfit that showed off her petite figure and large breasts.

"How do I look?" She asked in a bashful tone, looking away. When she heard no response, she turned her head and saw Eco staring at her with a blush on his cheeks making her heart race once again.

When Eco realized what he was doing, he quickly apologized and bowed his head down.

"I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to stare." He whispered as she shook her head.

"N-no it's okay."

"You um… look really… really amazing… sorry if I'm overstepping my boundaries." He apologized as Ravel smiled at his compliments.

"Thank you." She said as she decided that she would get the outfit. She then noticed the brunette standing next to Eco giving her a calculating stare. 'Who is this girl?'

"Wow, tree boy.. you didn't tell me you had a girlfriend~" Aika teased as Eco went stiff and Ravel narrowed her eyes at the former.

"I… I don't…" He tried saying his sentence but was stopped when Ravel interrupted him.

"Excuse for interrupting but who are you?" The blonde asked in a slightly harsh tone.

"MY bad, I'm Aika Kiryuu. A classmate of his and was his tour guide on his first day of school." Aika introduced herself. "You?"

"Ravel Hotaru, and for the record I'm his roommate. Would you care to tell me why you call him a tree boy?" Ravel asked.

"Oh, nothing more than just to tease him. You have to admit, he's cute when he gets all flustered." Aika said as she moved her hands to Eco's cheeks and pinched them. "It's fun."

"Ow, let me go." Eco said as he tried to take her hands on of him.

"Well it seems you have a different definition of fun. Teasing or not, no one is laughing and the nickname you given him is insulting." Ravel said in a cold tone as Aika gave him a glare.

"Excuse me?" She asked as Ravel huffed.

Eco then intervened not wanting them to fight.

"Okay okay, let's not fight please." He said keeping them apart with both occupants glaring at each other. Aika was about to say something when she heard a buzz from her pocket, picking out her phone she saw a notification and let out a small groan.

"Something wrong?" Eco asked.

"No, something came up and I need to be there like right now." Aika said as she put her phone away. "Eco, can I see your phone?" she asked him.

"Um why?" He asked.

"Please~" She asked as she tilted her head.

Eco looked at her in confusion before shrugging his shoulders and pulled his own phone before handing it to her. The brunette nodded her head in thanks before tapping her fingers across the screen, after a moment she held it out to him.

"Here you go."

Eco took it and before he knew it Aika was already making a beeline for the exit, while waving her hand in the air.

"See you later Eco-san, next time I see you get ready to have some fun~" She teased as she winked at him and was out of the shop leaving the two.

"Well… that was something… hehe.." Eco said in a sheepish tone as Ravel reached up and grabbed the hem of his shirt.

"Can we go home?" Ravel asked a bit irritated.

"Right, you know you didn't have to go off on her like that." Eco said only to receive a small glare from the blonde.

"Well you weren't exactly defending yourself either. You just let her call you that and you didn't say anything." She said as she turned around to into the changing rooms leaving Eco to let out a small sigh.

"Because being called is nothing to what I've been called in the past." Eco thought to himself before Ravel emerged with the pair of undergarments in her hands, once paid they both had left the mall and went home.

After the two arrived home, Ravel had announced that she was a bit exhausted from the day and asked Eco if she could rest before they get started. He was okay with it and said they could do either on the weekends or after he leaves from school.

Agreeing to his suggestion, Ravel then went to the guest room and had decided to get herself settled in with all of her clothes and stuff from her shopping bags. Eco chuckled as he stretched out his arms and was about to sit down on the bed that was across from the tv when he felt his eye pulse.

PULSE!

"Ah!" Eco let out a shout as his right eye starting hurting, it felt like acid was being burned into his pupil. Clutching his right eye, he went straight to the bathroom and quickly closed the door before removing his hand and saw that his right eye became a silver clock.

The hands on the clock started spinning rapidly and Eco went stiff while staring into his right eye, a vision happening.

{Vision Start}

He saw Issei with this random girl at the park right near a fountain. They were holding hands as Issei had on a smile on his face as did the girl before she leaned into his ear and whispered something.

'CoUlD YoU DiE FoR Me!?'

Suddenly several flashes happened, it showed the girl transforming as black wings sprouted from her back, floating in the air. She then formed a light spear and threw towards Issei, stabbing him in the stomach as the girl had a vicious smile on her face before flying away leaving Issei to die in a pool of his own blood.

Another flash happened, and this time a girl with blonde hair wearing a nun's outfit appeared. She had a kind smile on her face.

"Hi, yOu sPeAk iTaLiAn? nIcE tO mEeT yOu."

The vision went down to her fingers and showed she had rings on them, as they glowed green while hovering over something.

A Flash happened and this time, it showed something dark and messed up. The same blonde girl was no longer in her nun's outfit and was in her bra and panties while she was crucified but still breathing, and suddenly a green glowing orb was released from her body as she screamed to the heavens.

"AaAaAaAaAaAhHhHhHhHhHh!"

{Vision End}

Eco almost collapsed to the floor as he hands his hands on the edge of the sink, he was using it as a crutch as he calmed down from the vision he had just experienced.

"Issei, he's the kid that I saw from the Trio right? The perverted Trio or something?" He asked himself before shaking his head. "The names not important, what I just saw right now is. He dies but he's alive talking to the blonde but how… and the same blonde girl is crucified and screaming in agony as something is pulled from her chest. They die… both of them die." He said giving himself a brief summary of what he just saw.

"But when… when do they die and specifically why do they die?" He wondered trying to think of all the possibilities for the two people. He left the bathroom after cleaning up his eye and sat in the living room too busy being occupied in his thoughts that he didn't notice Ravel coming up to him.

She had tapped him on the shoulder bringing him back to earth.

"Eco-san… are you okay?" she asked as he looked up and was met with worried eyes. "You were deeply occupied with your thoughts but the expression you had on your face was full of concern." She stated.

"OH, um yeah sorry about that." Eco apologized with a sheepish tone. "I was thinking about what we could do for your training that's all." He said as he saw that she was still wearing the same outfit.

Ravel frowned as she knew that he was thinking about something else but decided not to call him out on it and gently nodded her head.

"Hai. You said you have a secluded area that we could train in?" She questioned as he nodded his head.

"Yeah, I know just the place for it." Eco said with a grin on his face. He quickly stood up and held out his hand out to Ravel. "Come on."

Ravel reached out to grasp his hand and suddenly she felt something shifting through her body before she and Eco had disappeared from the room.

[The Vortex]

In the middle of the white void, there was an hourglass high in the air with an ocean flowing underneath it. Slowly silver and blue particles had integrated in the middle of the ocean forming the bodies of Ravel and Eco as they arrived.

"And we're here." Eco announced as looked around the void while Ravel groaned holding a hand to her forehead.

"Why does my head ache?"

"Whoops sorry about that. It's a side effect from time-shifting you get used to it after a while." He said as she nodded her head.

"Just please let out a small warning next time." She said with a slight huff in her voice before taking a chance to look around. "Where are we?"

"This is the Vortex." He announced while spreading his arms. "This is where we are going to help you train your magic." Eco said as Ravel nodded her head "And we have six terrains to help us, a desert, snow mountain, catacombs, tropical rainforest, a volcano and of course the ocean, which we are currently standing on." He explained.

Ravel then released her hands from him and was about to move, however she felt her body weight suddenly increase causing her to fall, luckily Eco caught her in his arms.

"My body…" Ravel called out in surprise.

"Oh yeah I forgot the gravity here is a lot different and about 50x heavier than normal, so your body will need time to adjust so you got to focus on being able to stand." He explained.

"I see." Ravel said as she grabbed his shirt to pull herself up while her legs were struggling to stand.

"Oh, and before I forget…" He trailed off as he used his right hand and snap his fingers, suddenly he was in workout clothes as was Ravel. He was wearing a black short sleeve hoodie with arm guards and matching shorts while Ravel had on a sports bra and with spandex volleyball shorts and white sneakers.

"Now let's get started." Eco said as he was prepared to let her go. "First, we'll train your body to withstand gravity in here and once that's done, we'll go to your magic okay?"

Ravel nodded her head in agreement. "Okay."

For the next two weeks, Eco spend training Ravel in the Vortex. First was physical training. He had her walk on her own trying to help her get use the gravity on her body, which took about five days. He saw that she was pushing herself more than needed but she wanted to get strong, strong enough to protect herself and her family when needed so she kept going.

After getting use to walking, Eco then had running which took a little longer by running laps around the desert terrain and then through the winter terrain, four days later she was able to run through the terrains without a problem, her body finally adjusted to gravity.

The next thing they worked on was hand to hand combat. Eco wanted Ravel to not heavily rely on magic and be able to use other resources for fighting. So, they trained in all six terrains, using the environment to their advantage and that anything and everything is a weapon. Ravel's fighting style was sloppy but she was able to adapt the situation quickly as she used her surroundings to gain the upper hand on him during their spars.

While this was going on, there was something else going on out in the real world.

[2 hours earlier]

After Eco and Ravel had left disappeared into the vortex someone had entered their home. There was a small sound of scratching coming from the glass door to the patio. On the ground was a tiny black cat that was scratching its little claws on the glass, suddenly it raised its paws and drew a huge circle around the glass big enough for it to be able to go through. Once the cat was done drawing the circle, it tapped its head against the glass as if fell inside and shattered.

The black let out a meow before it crawled inside the apartment peering its eyes around the place, seeing no one around it was suddenly engulfed in black smoke.

"Mmm, that's better, nya~" A seductive voice said. As the smoke disperse, the cat was replaced with a female figure. Standing with their arms above their head was a woman with a voluptuous figure, she had long black hair with split bangs, hazel gold eyes and was wearing a black kimono with a red interior open to her shoulders that showed off a very good portion of her large breasts, a yellow obi, a set of golden beads, a headband and black geta.

This was the infamous SS Class criminal of the underworld Kuroka. The same criminal that is being hunted for murdering her king, and was separated from her sister. Not only is she on the run but she is also searching for her sister since she escaped her confinement.

"Now, where is he?" Kuroka wondered as she walked through apartment searching for the boy. She frowned when she didn't find him in the bathroom or the guest room however she was curious when she came upon the guest room.

"Oh, what's this?" She walked inside the guest room, gazing at a few shopping bags that were on the floor and on the bed. Walking up to the bag, she opened it putting her hand inside and pulled out something she wasn't expecting. She had pulled out a black bra along with a pair of panties.

"A bra? Did the little bear suddenly started having a fetish?" She asked herself before felt something enter her nostrils. Sniffing the air, she let out a small sound of surprise when she smelled a female scent.

"Ara Ara, you've been busy Eco, nya~" Kuroka muttered to herself as she left the guest room and went to the living room. "Still I hope you haven't given that away to anyone yet…"

She then discarded her clothing, dropping her kimono to the floor showing off her body and bare breasts before climbing onto the bed and covered herself with the bedsheets.

'I'll see you soon.'