POV: Haruki
"I heard Lord Agares offered you his daughter's hand," said Rias casually as she moved her knight across the board.
We sat in the Occult Research Club room, a quiet evening with only the clicking of chess pieces between us. We had already played three matches. I had won all three, and judging by the current layout, I would win this round as well. She had not yet noticed that she was twelve moves away from an inevitable checkmate.
"Did Seekvaira tell you?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. I could not imagine Lord Agares wanting everyone to know he had extended such an offer, only to be refused. No matter how prestigious I am or rather who they believe I might be, I doubt that would spare him ridicule. Even if every one of them would have done the same in his position.
"She is my childhood friend," said Rias. "She didn't want to hurt my feelings by going behind my back to steal the object of my affection. She thought I might hate her for it."
Her fingers tensed as she finally realized the trap on the board.
"Very sweet of her, but silly," she said, smiling sadly. "How could I hate my dear friend for something like that? I, more than anyone, know the lengths our parents will go to improve their social standing and how little our feelings matter to them."
"Sona, Seekvaira," I said thoughtfully. "It seems you have quite the loyal friends. They are in short supply in the underworld. Good friends, good books, and a sleepy conscience: That is the ideal life."
"I am blessed like that," said Rias. "I am privileged to have amazing friends, a kind brother, and even if flawed, my parents are wonderful people."
"You reflect that in your personality," I said quietly.
She looked at me, puzzled.
"You are very delightful," I clarified, voice calm. "So delightful in a way that is almost contagious. Delightful only in the way someone who has been loved and cherished their whole life can be."
"How can you say something like that with such a straight face?" Rias muttered, blushing.
"What do you think?" I asked, placing her king in check.
"About what?" she asked, eyes flicking between the board and me.
"About Lord Agares's offer."
"It makes sense from his point of view," she said, touching her lips thoughtfully. "You may not know it, but the underworld is convinced that you are the heir of Lucifer. Any pillar house that has you on their side would gain enormous political influence."
"And from my point of view?" I asked, curious about what she would say.
"Well…" she began slowly. "House Agares is the second most powerful house in the underworld. They and House Bael lead the conservative faction and hold immense influence with the populace. Given your desire to enact change for reincarnated devils, having House Agares at your side would be a major advantage."
"And what do you personally think?" I asked.
"I do not want to see my friend in an unhappy marriage to someone who will only see her as a political pawn," said Rias firmly.
"Oh?" I said with amusement. "You think I would not be kind to her?"
"No, not that," Rias said quickly. "One can accuse you of many things, but never of mistreating people without purpose."
"But?" I looked directly into her eyes.
"If you married her," she said, gaze lowering, "it would not be because you love her for herself, but because of what she represents. I know you well enough to know you wouldn't intentionally hurt her, but you also would not give her what she deserves. You would not love her"
"So?" I replied. "There are many such marriages, even among humans. A marriage of convenience is hardly a tragedy. She would be free to take lovers as she pleases. I would not care, as you implied."
"But is that what you want? No, do not answer. I know what you will say," Rias said, voice slightly trembling. "You would say your personal dissatisfaction means nothing compared to the happiness of thousands. Always ready to follow your principles, even if it kills you."
"You know me well," I said, allowing the smile to show.
"Yes, I do," she said with a tired sigh. "Always intent on making yourself unhappy for the sake of some grand ideal. But I don't want Seekvaira to be hurt. She has done nothing to deserve being used as a pawn in a game she never agreed to play. She is my dear friend, Haruki. And I will never forgive you if you hurt her."
There was a firmness in her eyes that almost surprised me. Perhaps there was more steel beneath all that kindness than I gave her credit for.
"And you believe I would let go of such a political advantage," I said, amused, "because you would hate me for it?"
"No," she said firmly. "You care little about how others feel about you, even those who love you. I expect you to refuse it because of what you would truly risk losing."
"Oh?" I grinned. "And what would I risk losing? Your affection?"
The moment I said it, I saw it strike her. Cruel, perhaps needlessly so. But I wanted to see where she intended to go with this. She invited me here for a reason.
"That is cruel, even for you," she said softly. Then, seeing I would not answer, she continued. "No. You risk losing my brother and his allies."
"And why would that be?" I asked with mild curiosity.
"My brother leads the progressive faction," she began. "He is the greatest supporter of improving the lives of lower classes and reincarnated devils. As the Lucifer and the strongest devil to ever live, his influence far exceeds even the second most powerful house. It would be foolish to choose Agares over him."
"A stunning summary of the obvious," I said mockingly. "Will you also inform me that the sun is necessary for life on earth?"
"Mockery is beneath you," she said with annoyance.
"Perhaps," I admitted. "But you will have to forgive me. I do not yet see how gaining House Agares means losing your brother."
"Because of me," she said simply.
"Because of you?" I echoed, amused.
"Yes. I cherish my friends. I want them to be happy. I know you and my brother have some agreement, but he can still make your path difficult. He can ensure that any efforts you make with Lord Agares fail. Tell me, how long will it take for Lord Agares to realize that having Lucifer as an enemy is unwise?"
"Longer than you think," I said with a small laugh. "But why would Sirzechs do that? It benefits him to have Agares on his side."
"Because of me," she said seriously.
I laughed.
"You would use your brother's love as leverage?" I said, entertained. "How devious."
"No. But I would use it to protect my friends," she said earnestly. "And woe to you, if you think that my brother would not do it for me."
"Oh, I have no doubt he would," I said, still amused. "I am simply surprised you would take advantage of it."
"I will do whatever I can to make my friends happy. Seekvaira is dear to me," she said with conviction.
"I see that," I said, laughing at her attempt at menace. There was something almost adorable about it.
"Can you stop laughing?" she said, irritated. "I am serious."
"I know, I know," I said, still amused. "I simply do not see the point."
"What do you mean? Seekvaira's happiness is impor–"
"I refused Lord Agares's offer," I said, cutting off what would have been her tenth repetition.
She froze, eyes widening before a flush spread across her face.
"You're an asshole," she muttered, covering her face with her hands. "You could have said that from the beginning."
"But then I would not have seen your attempt at a threat," I said, laughing. "'My friends' happiness is very important to me,'" I mimicked her voice with deliberate exaggeration.
Rias's entire face turned crimson. She grabbed a pillow and threw it at me. I dodged easily.
"You are infuriating!" she shouted.
"I know," I said solemnly. "But I warn you, 'my brother will get angry if you throw another pillow at me.'"
She flushed even deeper, which I did not think was possible. She lunged forward, pushing me back. I let her. She straddled my stomach and pinned my arms beside my head.
"Want to repeat that?" she said, as if it would erase her earlier embarrassment.
"I would," I said very seriously. "But 'the happiness of my friends is very important to me,' so I will not."
"I hate you so much," she muttered, blush creeping across her cheeks.
"No, you do not," I said with a smirk.
"More the fool I am," she sighed, then rested her head on my chest, fingers idly playing with my hair.
"Hardly as foolish as making a threat you cannot carry out," I said.
"I would not have had to do that if you told me from the start that you rejected him," she said stubbornly.
"I assumed Seekvaira told you," I said, running my fingers through her hair.
"No," she said. "She didn't know. She thought it was a foregone conclusion. Who would refuse such an offer?"
"Me, apparently," I said. "Her father likely didn't inform her of my rejection. I wonder what his angle is."
"Probably that he cannot believe it himself," Rias said. "You are likely the only one with enough will and ego to refuse."
"Perhaps," I said. He likely has another plan. He does not seem to have given up on the idea. He likely has another plan. He probably believes only marriage will secure a true alliance.
"Haruki," Rias said softly.
"Yes?"
"Can I ask you a question?" she said hesitantly.
"I don't know. Can you?" I said.
"Can you not be yourself for one second?" she muttered.
"I can. But should I?" I replied, tone innocent.
She exhaled sharply, as if restraining the urge to commit murder.
"Why did you refuse Lord Agares's offer?" she asked.
"Your friend is a terrible conversationalist," I said dryly.
"That is not even true," Rias said defensively. "She just has very specific interests."
"You don't say," I answered. "She ignored every attempt at small talk. I have had more engaging conversations with trees."
"She is not that bad," Rias said, though she could not suppress a laugh.
"But I am surprised you thought I would accept," I said seriously. "Surely you did not believe I would subject someone to what I risked my life to free you from."
Rias fell quiet, thinking. "I suppose you are right," she said finally. "But sometimes I feel that you are so focused on the abstract and bigger picture that you ignore the small, personal things."
I did not respond. We stayed like that for a while, her on my chest, my fingers moving slowly through her hair.
"Rias," I said after a while.
"Yes?" She murmured.
"I refused also because if there ever comes a day where I marry someone," I said calmly, "it would be you."
I felt her heartbeat spike. She lifted her head, meeting my eyes. Her face was as red as her hair. Her eyes, clear and blue, were fixed on me with intensity. They looked beautiful.
She leaned down. Her lips hovered inches from mine. I knew what she wanted.
"Rias, you know I cannot," I said, trying to pull away.
She held my face firmly in her hands, keeping me still. "I know," she whispered. "But just for tonight. Only tonight. Please be mine."
There was no pleading in her voice, only quiet certainty. And for the first time, I ignored my mind and listened to my heart. Whether it was right or not, I could not bring myself to care.
I loved Rias. That was a truth I had known for some time now.
And just for tonight, I would allow myself to be selfish, no matter the consequences.
I turned the lights down and began, one piece at a time, with the gentlest touch I could manage, to remove her clothes. I removed her blouse and trousers, and then her underwear.
Then I undressed. And we clung to each other's nakedness without a sense of reservation. We explored each other's bodies in the darkness without words. I kissed her and held her soft breasts in my hands. I caressed them and took her nipples in my teeth, then slid a finger inside her warm, moist vagina and began to move it.
With my finger in her, I moved my lips up her neck to her ear and took a nipple in my fingers. As her breathing intensified and her throat began to tremble, I parted her long, slim legs and eased myself inside her. She clutched at my erection. Her opening was warm and wet and asking for me.
And yet, when I went inside her, Rias tensed with pain. I remembered the night she offered me her virginity. Was this her first time? I asked, and she nodded. I went in as far as I could and stayed that way for a long time, holding Rias without moving. And then, as she began to seem calmer, I allowed myself to move inside her, taking a long time to come to climax, with slow, gentle movements. Her arms tightened around me at the end, when at last she broke her silence. Her moan was the most pleasant sound of orgasm I had ever heard.
Caressing her back, I continued moving inside her and then, without warning, I came. It was an intense, unstoppable ejaculation. I clutched at her as my semen pulsed into her warmth again and again.
"That was… amazing," she said, breathing heavily.
"You are exquisite," I said sincerely, which only made her blush harder.
Growing hard a few minutes later, I went inside her again. Rias held her breath and twisted beneath me. I moved slowly and quietly with my arms around her, and we talked. It felt wonderful to talk that way.
If I said something funny and made her laugh, the tremors came into me through my penis. We held each other like this for a very long time.
"Oh, this feels even better than my wildest imagination," she said, moaning.
"We'll talk about your erotic imagination later," I said, smiling. "I'll start to move now, okay?"
"Go ahead. Give it a try."
I lifted her hips and went in as far as I could go, then savoured the sensation of moving in a circular pattern until, having enjoyed it to the full, I let myself come.
Altogether, we joined our bodies eight times that night. At the end each time, she would lie in my arms trembling slightly, eyes closed, and release a long sigh.
AN: And yes, I know, this chapter is very short. But the tone didn't really mesh with the rest of the arc, so I decided to post it separately as its own thing. So… Haruki finally gives in to his emotions, if only for one night. Progress???
Also, this was my first time writing a sex scene. It felt really weird to write, I can read them just fine in stories, but actually writing one myself felt strange. I kept going back and forth between "I should add more detail" and "this is already too much." Let me know what you think. I'm honestly not sure if I'll ever write another one because I feel like I'm terrible at it. Any advice would be apreciated.