Human World, Japan, Kuoh.
A few months have passed, summer break is over and the New Year is around the corner. At the same time, the second term of James, Rias, Sona, Akeno, Tsubaki, Reya, Flora has just ended. And once again, James took first on the end of term exams. Followed by Sona, Tsubaki, Akeno, Reya, and Rias in that order. Because of that, Sona and Rias are in less than stellar moods at the moment. Sona, because she had managed to take first during the mid-term exams like she did in the first term, lost her place to James again. Rias on the other hand, after ranking fourth on the final exams for the first term, fell to fifth place during mid-terms and is now ranked sixth after this term's final exams. Also, Flora was able to raise her own rank to eleventh.
On another note, during the second term, Rias has raised the intensity of her and her peerage's training by several folds. After the incident when James and Akeno lost their virginities together, Rias finally realized that things would not always just fall into her lap. After they returned from Martinique, Rias went straight to her brother, Sirzechs Lucifer, and asked him to train her in the use of [Power of Destruction]. It did not need to be mentioned how ecstatic Sirzechs was for the chance to help Rias. Even though Sirzechs enthusiasm was over the top, Rias' control and output rose exponentially. And, through pushing herself, Rias was able to raise her power level to the intermediate-level of the high-rank. On top of that, James gave her some advice, too.
===Flashback===
"Hey, Riri." James said, sitting next to Rias one day after training.
"Hmm?" Rias responded lethargically, As Sirzechs has been putting her through the ringer lately.
"You should try and add some variety into your attacks with the [Power of Destruction]." James said casually.
"What are you talking about?" Rias asked tiredly, while leaning on James' shoulder with a victorious grin on her lips.
"You read a lot of manga and watch a lot of anime, right?" James said as he rolled his eyes at Rias who was thinking herself clever for getting a little extra skinship. "Why don't you try imitating some of the attacks the characters use. Like the Hellzone Grenade, the Galick Gun, or the Special Beam Cannon. That could be pretty sick, right?"
Forgetting that she had just gained some extra skinship with James, Rias shot up to her feet immediately. Flushed in excitement, she grabbed on to James' arm and began to pull.
"OMG, James! Are you a genius!?" Rias asked, or rather shouted, excitedly. "Come on! We have work to do. I'll need your help to make sure I get the moves right!"
===Flashback End===
As previously mentioned, Rias was not the only one to step up her training. Akeno and Koneko were able to reach the advanced-level of the middle-rank, Yuuto rose to the intermediate-level of the middle-rank, and Gasper broke the threshold of the middle-rank and reached its initial-level. Although, when using his [Sacred Gear], [Forbidden Balor View] with its ability to freeze time, Gasper is a match for even the strongest advanced-level, middle-rank beings.
Right now, James, Rias, Sona, Akeno, Tsubaki, Reya, and Flora were walking toward the Alaverus Estate from Kuoh Academy. The last bell had rung not too long ago, and like most other students they were ready to go home to enjoy their winter break. For the next ten days, they could, theoretically, relax until the final term starts. That, of course, would not happen. James and his peerage are basically training fanatics, with the exception of Dante. Though Sona does not enjoy training like James does, she keeps her peerage working hard. And Rias, with her desire to have her engagement cancelled, has her peerage training as hard, if not harder than James and his peerage. Or so she likes to tell herself.
Akeno is probably the only one who is truly upset about the heavy training schedule. She has the sneaking suspicion that part of Rias' motivation behind the long hours of training was to keep her out of James' bed. Even though she is still the only one of the girls who has lost their virginity, she has only had two chances to sleep with James since the summer break ended.
"Hey, Riri." James asked while looking around.
"What's wrong?" Rias asked while watching James swivel his head around as if he were looking for something. "Are you getting the feeling that you're being watched again?"
"*Sigh* Yeah, I'm getting sick of this shit, for real." James said in exasperation. "I know someone is watching me. Training with Master Scathach trained my intuition to a scary degree."
"How long has it been, now?" Sona asked as she looked at James with concern.
"I dunno... Three months or so." James said with uncertainty. "What I do know, though. Whoever you are, you better not let me find you. Because when I do, my foot is going straight up your ass!"
Seeing James slightly over the top declaration, the girls giggled. At the same time, a cloaked figure hiding at the top of an electrical pole shuddered when they heard James' threat.
"Anyway, Riri, do you mind if I take Gasper with me while my peerage and I train with Master Scathach?" James asked, deciding to leave his stalker be, for now.
"Gasper? Why? Rias asked in confusion.
"I was thinking, his [Sacred Gear], [Forbidden Balor View], has a name related to the Celtic pantheon, right?" James said with a big smile on his face. He was clearly thinking his idea was a good one. "Well, who better to ask about things with Celtic origins than Master Scathach"
"What do you mean?" Rias asked, still confused. "That's just what it's called because it can petrify things, right? That doesn't mean it has anything to do with the real Balor, right?"
"You shouldn't underestimate the power of names, Rias." Sona said, inserting herself into the conversation. "You know how important names are to our devil contracts right?"
"Yeah, I guess you're right." Rias said while tapping her chin with her index finger. "Well, if there's a chance it could help my adorable servant, I'll allow it."
"Alright, you should let him know as early as you can." James said with a smile. "We're leaving at the break of dawn. Oh yeah, my mom wants to leave with you guys when you go back to the Underworld, is that all right?"
"Of course." Rias said with a nod. "Auntie Leona is always welcome."
"She'll be happy to hear that." James replied.
Shortly after that, the group made it to the Alaverus Estate. While he was opening the door, James turned back and looked at Flora.
"I thought you would stop by your house first, Flora." James said with confusion in his tone.
"Oh, on my way to school this morning, I ran into Auntie Leona." Flora said with a smile. "She told me I should come straight to your house after school lets out. She said I'd get to see something interesting."
"I get the feeling someone is gonna have a bad time." James muttered to himself.
James just shook his head, then pushed the door open. When everyone entered the living room, what they saw left them confused. Standing In the middle of the living room was Cu Chulainn wearing some very stylish clothing. Around him, Leona, Mizore, Moka, and Kunou were sifting through a pile of clothes.
"Uh... What's going on?" James asked with his head tilted in confusion.
"Oh, Lancer asked..." Leona began to explain what the five of them were doing before she was interrupted.
"Ahhhh! Ahhh! Ahhh!" Cu Chulainn did everything he could to stop Leona's explanation after he saw Tsubaki in the group.
Picking up on what was going on very quickly, James decided that picking on Cu Chulainn was the perfect way to end a school term.
"Oh, I see!" James said while bringing his right fist down into his left palm. He then turned to Tsubaki and asked. "So, you have a date with Lancer, huh?"
With James' words, everyone, except Tsubaki, realized. The ladies were helping Cu Chulainn pick out an outfit for his date with Tsubaki. And at that moment, they all thought.
'These two really are mother and son.'
Meanwhile, Cu Chulainn was panicking. He did not want Tsubaki to see him in this situation. Nor did he want her to know that he had to ask for help to pick out his clothes. Similarly, Tsubaki did not want to see the process of Cu Chulainn's selection of an outfit for their date. Not that she thought any less of him, it would just take the fun out of it. Meanwhile, James was smiling gleefully at the flustered couple.
'I can't get enough of this.' James thought to himself. 'Tsubaki is unfortunate to wind up as collateral damage but seeing Lancer like this might be my new calling in life. I love to see that cocky prick squirm.'
Eventually, Tsubaki decided to leave. She really did not want to ruin the surprise she would get before their date. That, of course, led the rest of the girls to use Cu Chulainn as a dress up doll for the next few hours. After the girls had their fun and James got a sufficient amount of blackmail... Or rather, commemorative photos of the event, the dress up festival came to an end when a certain adorable fox claimed she was hungry.
After Leona went off to prepare dinner, Cu Chulainn took a seat next to James on a sofa.
"I really hate you." Cu Chulainn said with a deadpan.
"That means I'm doing my job well." James said, giving Cu Chulainn a thumbs up with a bright smile. "Anyway, so when is your date?"
"*Sigh* It's the last day of your winter break." Cu Chulainn admitted easily.
"Damn, you're gonna be dead tired." James said with some pity. "How are you gonna manage going on a date right after training with Master for ten days?"
"It's the only day we're both free during the break." Cu Chulainn explained.
Shrugging his shoulders, James spoke. "Well, do your best, Bro." He then extended his fist.
Bumping James' fist, Cu Chulainn gave a simple thanks in return.
"Seriously, though." James' expression turned serious as he said. "Take good care of her. Tsubaki deserves to be happy after what she went through with her family."
"Yeah." Cu Chulainn said with a determined gaze. "Besides, we both know she's too good for me. So, I'll do whatever it takes to make her happy."
James clapped Cu Chulainn on the shoulder. He then stood up and spoke.
"I just hope your bad luck doesn't rub off on her." James said as he walked toward the stairs.
Deadpanning once again, Cu Chulainn watched James walk away. Just before he reached the stairs, Cu Chulainn spoke again.
"I really, really hate you."
"Then that means I should get a promotion for how well I'm doing my job." James said while raising his hand to wave. Trying to give that setting off into the sunset vibe.
Just before James began climbing the stairs, Leona's voice could be heard from the dining room.
"Okay, everyone come and eat!"
With that, James stumbled as his foot reached the first step.
"Damn it!" James exclaimed quietly, so his mother would not hear him.
On the other hand, Cu Chulainn was laughing hysterically. The only thing that felt better than seeing James make a fool of himself was when Tsubaki said "yes" after he asked her on that date. Once Cu Chulainn was able to calm his laughter, he exclaimed.
"Worth it!"