Highschool DxD: The Beast Hunter

Chapter 2: Premonition

"In comparison to other universes I've encountered, this one is unique, yet it appears to follow a similar overarching timeline. Despite the evident signs of events beyond our influence, everything continues to progress as usual. I can't help but ponder whether this occasion will diverge from the norm..." -Excerpt From a Glitchy Diary, page 43.

Haru jolts awake, his eyes darting around as in confusion, he realizes he's in his bedroom. Bloodstained clothing hangs dangerously low to a bucket of blood underneath them. His axe leaning against the wall next to a desk full of school paperwork and a sharpening stone. Black blinds pulled lazily over the windows, blocking all light from entering the room. His vision is glossy, though he just rubs it away, and sits up. A pair of arms pull him down, startling him heavily, he gasps in pain as the phantom pain of wounds still stings. He softly gasps as he reaches down to his chest, where an arm is tightly wrapped around him. Lifting the sheets, his eyes lock onto the nude figure of a girl with red hair. Her breasts pushed against his arm, which she had wrapped around her arms like she was about to lose him. Haru's thoughts go crazy as he tries to figure out what happened last night. Was it a fever dream? A nightmare, or something else? The girl stirs awake, causing the hunter to panic a bit.

Rias: "Mmnh... Good morning~" The girl coos sleepily, cuddling closer to the hunter, making his mind fly into overdrive. He knew her. Rias Gremory. The girl looks at him and laughs, pulling him down and pushing his head between her breasts. "Aren't you adorable?" She squeezes the hunter's cheek playfully.

Haru: "M-miss Gremory... What did we do last night?" Haru's voice was shaky, as he tried to piece together what happened. Pieces put together, a man, a gun, a flier, and blood. His eyes widen as his free hand dives around his body. Nothing, not even a scar. In confusion, he drops his hand.

Rias: "Oh, don't you worry. We didn't do anything at all last night." The girl sits up, her chest bouncing freely now as she stretches. Haru groans and just gets up, digging into his closet and pulling out a fresh pair of underwear. Sliding the trousers on, he starts.

Haru: "Why are we together then? I clearly remember dying. So, how did I end up here, at home?" His tone was accusatory. He stands up, his body puffing up a bit. He wasn't leaving without answers.

Rias: "Well, I know you probably won't be too happy with this..." Rias starts, getting a dissatisfied grunt from the hunter, making her stiffen up a bit. "I made you into a Devil." Haru immediately stiffens at it.

Haru: "What..?" He couldn't believe it. His mind went a million miles a minute, that's why he didn't wake up in the dream, why his body felt weaker than before. He was... changed. Placing his hands on his head, he stumbles back, his entire world collapsing in on itself. He couldn't think, disbelief stricken in his head. The thing he fought against, the idea of being something other than mortal... drove him mad.

A mixture of laughter and disbelief muttering filled the room as Haru stumbled backward into the wall. His breaking point was so dangerously close now, that he couldn't believe it. So many years as a human, a hunter, only to be condemned to the very thing he hated. Ironic, he thought. If only he had a few more. Maybe he could kill the girl, and find a way to turn back. Taking a sharp breath, he exhales calmly. Relaxing his thoughts, he just covered his head in his arms, shaky breathing all he heard until Rias spoke.

Rias: "I'm sorry, I thought-" Rias gets cut off by the hunter laughing.

Haru: "Thought? My, oh my... you're dull." He laughs to himself, figuring out the right words to say. "Why'd you do it? I'm not special." He looks down at his arms, scars dug deep into his flesh from where he cut, and where he used to be grabbed by creatures more terrifying than humans.

Rias: "Mr... Haru.." She spoke somberly, trying to de-escalate the situation, though not much by now. "I've had an eye on you for multiple reasons, one being you're a hunter, but... more so, you're interesting. A big, brooding figure. Tallest person in school, yet refuses to play sports. You're an interesting character, it would be nice to understand you more, to know how you tick."

Haru: "Congratulations, you found out what makes me tick." He spoke, venom in his voice. Snarling out a sigh, he gets off the wall and goes into his closet, grabbing a fresh pair of clothing, he slides it on. Looking in the mirror connected to the closet, he adjusts the tie. "Hurry, it's a school day." Rias nods and stands up, leaving the room, and Haru alone.

The Hunter stands alone, his eyes gazing at his form. To him, his life is taking a turn for the worse. While he was human, albeit a hunter of all things, he still was free. His freedom let him do things he wanted, but now he lacks that. His mind wanders to the priests he would listen to religiously. How they told him what to look out for, and how to avoid it. How he wished he listened harder.

The door opening catches his attention as Rias walks in, dressed in her school attire. With a sigh, Haru leads Rias out of the room and into his kitchen. The kitchen was as dark as the rest of the house, with blinds pulled over the windows, letting almost zero light into the building. Though Haru enjoyed the darkness, it didn't seem so dark anymore. The room looked like the lights were on full blast, despite the actual room being as dark as the night. Rubbing his eyes, he lets out a soft, defeated sigh and opens the door of his fridge. The only thing inside the fridge now were a few cans of cola and coffee, making the boy sigh and reach in, grabbing a can of coffee and opening it. Taking a sip of the bitter liquid, Rias looks around the house.

Rias: "Haru, do you not have food?" Rias asked gingerly, to not annoy Haru much. Haru just shakes his head.

Haru: "Don't worry about me, I make money." The hunter sips the coffee and begins to walk out of the house. Rias nervously follows the hunter outside.

People at school kept staring at the duo as they walked together. Whispers of rumors spread about them, though Haru ignored them. His mind wandered somewhere else, a world he wished he was in. Through the crowds of students, his eyes landed on something that intrigued him. A man, no older than 25 stood. By all definitions, he was colorless. His skin was paper white, his clothing a monochromatic black. A heavy jacket covered a simple t-shirt and torn jeans covered his pale legs. His eyes were lifeless, a snowy white with no hint of pupils. However, he didn't need pupils for Haru to know the man was staring at him. No, scratch that. The man was staring through the boy. Haru felt that the stare was chewing through him. His heart rate increased as he heard beating in his ears. Unknown to him, his breathing was growing quicker as sweat started to bead on his forehead. A tug on his sleeve snapped him out of it, making him jump, his eyes jolt down to see Rias.

Rias: "Are you okay? You kinda spaced out there for a second.." She said mostly out of worry. Haru nodded, his eyes trailing back to where the man was, only for the spot to be empty.

Haru: "Yeah.." His voice trailed off. "Yeah, I'm fine.." Rias didn't seem to believe him but nodded anyway.

Rias: "Okay." She said. "Listen, I'll send someone to talk with you soon. See you then." She said before walking off.

Haru's gaze lingers on where the man once stood. His mind wanders to only one question now...

"Who the hell was that?"