DxD: Ascension - Redux

Chapter 53: A Lucrative Hunt

things got a little heavy toward the end last time huh? let me know what you think of things like that. enjoy! <3

Manhattan, New York

Zach awoke for the second time that morning in his and Sona's hotel room. Sona was still fast asleep on his chest. He ran his fingers through her hair, smiling down at her. His smile quickly faded as he tried to remember what he could from the previous night. Fragments slowly came back to him: too many drinks over the course of a few hours, a lot of dancing, using his powers to attack at least two people possibly including a police officer, and then getting to the hotel, which was the point at which his memories started to become clearer. How long were we at it for...? he wondered to himself.
Sona stirred a little in her sleep before groggily opening her eyes. "Mmh... Zach?" she muttered as she looked up at him.
"Morning, you." Zach smiled at her. "Sleep okay?"
"Amazing. You make an excellent pillow. Head is killing me, though."
"Yeah, same. I should be used to this by now."
Sona sat up and stretched. "You said healing magic cures hangovers?"
"Sometimes. Sometimes not. Depends on how bad-" Zach's eyes fell onto the hickey marks on Sona's neck as he also sat up. "Shit, did I do that?"
Sona frowned. Based on Zach's voice, he was genuinely scared about something. "Yeah. Why? Are you okay?"
"I don't know. How do you feel? Headache aside. Any changes? Sensitivity to bright lights, heightened senses?"
"No?"
"Oh, thank the gods." Zach breathed a sigh of relief and seemed to calm down.
"Is something wrong?"
"It's... a long story." Zach looked at his reflection in his phone screen, checking his teeth. Were his canines sharper? He couldn't tell.
"We've got time," Sona reminded him. "And you're worrying me."
Zach sighed. "Alright, but I'll spare you the irrelevant details. So, back in my home timeline, my friends and I were sent on a mission to hunt down a vampire. We tracked him to the ruins of a mansion in the woods somewhere. After killing one of his underlings, we found the main man. After some brief fighting, he started to disintegrate, but he got his fangs on me before he died." Zach showed Sona the scars on his neck where he'd been bitten. "The Phoenix of Rebellion passively counteracted the spread of the vampirism, stopping me from becoming one, but ever since I lost my fire, I've been worried about it resurfacing. Hasn't yet, so I can only assume that over a year of being forced back has made the curse dormant. But who knows how long that'll last?"
"So you were worried I'd become a vampire since you bit me," Sona concluded.
"Right. But I didn't draw blood, so I guess my worry was pointless."

BGM: Persona 3 Reload - Tranquility -Reload-

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, the bites felt great."
Zach chuckled. "Good to know. So did yours."
Sona smiled softly. "I'm glad we came out here. Don't know if any of this would've happened in Kuoh."
"Agreed. We should get back soon, though."
"Why the rush? Surely everyone can manage for one weekend without us."
"I dunno..."
"Come on. We have those excused absences to use, right?"
"Well, it's already Sunday night over there, so we'd definitely be missing school if we spent another night..." Zach smiled, admitting defeat- not that he'd wanted to win. "Alright. Might as well. Got more plans? Or just wanna see the sights?"
"Sightseeing sounds good to me." Sona got out of bed. "We should wash our clothes before we go anywhere, though." She looked at the dark red splotches on her skirt. "What did I spill?"
"Don't remember, but considering that it's red, I'll guess a vodka cran."
"Vodka and cranberry juice, right?"
"Right. Is there a washing machine and dryer in here?"
"Yeah, actually. It's in the bathroom." Sona picked up her and Zach's clothes. "I'll toss them in."
"Thanks." Zach followed Sona to the bathroom and unwrapped one of the toothbrushes left for them.
"Got any recommendations?" Sona asked, putting their clothes in the laundry as Zach brushed his teeth.
"Freedom Tower," he replied, his voice garbled through his toothbrush.
"Sorry?"
Zach held up a finger, telling her to wait until he finished. When he was done, he tried again: "Freedom Tower."
"Oh, I've been wanting to see the observatory. That's a good idea."
"It's amazing. Can't recommend it enough." Zach looked at the time on the washing machine. "But we've still got roughly a couple hours if we combine the time to wash and dry. So what's on the menu in the meantime?"
"Oh, I think you know," Sona said slyly.
As the couple returned to the bedroom, a dark-haired girl spied on them through the scope of her sniper rifle from a nearby rooftop. "Their guard is totally down. This'll be easy," she said to herself.