(y/n) stood behind Elmenhilde as she poured through her massive library. It should have been obvious to (y/n) that someone like Elmenhilde would have such a place like this, but he still found himself looking around in awe. He had never seen so many books in his life before. Elmenhilde hovered above (y/n) as she sorted through books and occasionally threw one down to him. In his observation of the massive library, he accidentally failed to catch one of the falling books. 

"Hey! Are you even paying attention down there?!" chastised Elmenhilde. 

"S-Sorry, Ms. Karnstein!" apologized (y/n) as he re-focused at the task at hand. 

"And I thought I told you to call me Elmenhilde!" 

"Sorry!" 

After a few more minutes of searching for and throwing books, (y/n) soon found himself with an armful of books.

"Take those to my room, won't you?" 

"No problem!" said (y/n) cheerfully as Elmenhilde shook her head. 

In the 2 weeks that had passed between his first arrival, (y/n) was able to memorize the seemingly endless corridors of the Karnstein estate. He eventually reached Elmenhilde's room and placed the stack of books on a nightstand to the right of her bed. What caught his eye, however, was the refrigerator near the corner of the room. 

"A fridge? In here?" thought (y/n) as he moved in for a closer look. 

His curiosity about what was inside was killing him, so he opened it. He was expecting something like chilled drinks or even some snacks, but he wasn't expecting the blood. Crimson stained the fridge as the red contrasted the white of the fridge light. (y/n) couldn't even summon the words to speak before someone did it for him. 

"I'm not a vampire like Gasper..." 

(y/n) turned around quickly to see Elmenhilde in the doorway. He expected her to be angry and yell at him, but from the look of her face and the tone of her voice... 

She sounded embarrassed. 

"...So I have to consume blood traditionally... And frequently..." 

"E-Elmenhilde! I-I'm so sorry!" apologized (y/n). 

"I knew you'd figure out this side of my life sooner or later..." sighed Elmenhilde, "I just didn't want you to see me as a monster... Like everyone else does..." 

"Everyone else?" 

"I lived in the human world for the majority of my early life. Like I said before, I'm a traditional vampire, so I have to consume blood frequently if I am to survive. Eventually, people found out and... Well, as the old saying goes, 'Man is afraid of that he cannot comprehend.'" 

"Elmenhilde... I'm so sorry..." repeated (y/n). 

"I was treated like a monster... To be fair, I was to them, but I could never forget the looks on their faces... How much they were afraid of me..." 

There was a bit of silence before Elmenhilde sighed again.

"Follow me." 

"Where?" 

"To pay for going through my personal belongings..." 

Elmenhilde led him to the dining room where she sat him down in one of the chairs facing away from her. She left for a moment before returning to place a warm towel around (y/n)'s neck. 

"W-What are you doing?" asked (y/n) nervously. 

"It helps sooth the skin and eases some of the pain from the initial puncture." 

"Y-You're not thinking about..." 

"Since you saw my blood, it's only fair that I see yours." 

(y/n) closed his eyes and prepared himself mentally. Elmenhilde drew close to his neck and bit down. He felt a sharp pinch as he felt Elmenhilde bite down on his neck. Slowly and carefully, she began to draw out his blood, drinking it down. (y/n) began to feel a bit lightheaded after a few seconds of being drained, but before any more discomfort could set in, Elmenhilde released him. 

A few drops of blood still lingered on his neck, so Elmenhilde licked his neck, making him shiver. 

"What was that for?!" (y/n) exclaimed. 

"Shut up..." muttered Elmenhilde with a noticeable blush on her face. 

"I-If it's any consolation... You tasted good..." 

____________________________________ 

A week had passed since the blood ordeal and Elmenhilde got a message from Rias: She was coming to get her rook. It was almost a month since the fight with Loki and (y/n) was itching to see everyone, especially Xenovia. He could barely sit still at breakfast, which annoyed Elmenhilde. 

"Calm down, idiot!" yelled Elmenhilde, "Acting all hyper isn't going to make them get here any faster!" 

"Sorry..." said (y/n). 

They continued to eat until they heard a knock at the door. (y/n) was the first to get up and Elmenhilde followed closely behind. 

(y/n) stopped right in front of the door. 

"Well? Open it!" 

He obeyed Elmenhilde's command and opened the door to see Rias standing there. It was a bit of an awkward experience, as none of them talked. But before (y/n) could open his mouth to speak, Rias wrapped her arms around him. It was faint and almost unnoticeable, but he could hear her crying. 

"Rias..." muttered (y/n). 

"I'm so sorry..." she cried, "So sorry that we abandoned you... So sorry that we didn't believe in you..."  

"It's okay... Honestly! I kinda deserved it..."

Rias pulled away from (y/n) and wiped a tear from her eye. 

"If you're all done with the pity party," said Elmenhilde in her usual tone of voice, "Shall we begin our discussion?" 

Rias nodded as Elmenhilde led them into her living room. 

"Long story short," said Rias, "You're named has been cleared." 

"Really?!" asked (y/n). 

"Well... Kind of?" 

"What's that supposed to mean?" 

"Ever since the Azazel Cup ended two years ago, you've been seen as a threat. However, after the battle with Loki, we tried to challenge that status. Sirzechs and the other Satans have agreed that your actions against the Trickster God have proven yourself to be an ally." 

"That sounds great! Where does this 'kind of' come in?" 

"That's just what I was about to get to... Despite the decision of the Satans, the vast majority of the Underworld still perceives you as a traitor... So we came to a conclusion: You'll have to leave." 

"Leave? What does that mean?" asked (y/n). 

"It means that until we can change the public perception of you, you'll have to leave us and go into hiding." 

"Damn it..." muttered (y/n), running his hands through his hair. 

"I've come to retrieve you so we can prepare for your departure. But before we go, I want to ask you one thing..." 

A few moments later, Rias and (y/n) were ready to leave. 

"Wait!" 

(y/n) turned around to see Elmenhilde behind them. 

"I'll wait outside," smiled Rias as she walked out the door. 

"Am... Am I going to see you again?" asked Elmenhilde.

"No... Not for some time..." sighed (y/n). 

This seemed to visibly upset Elmenhilde to the point where she ran up and hugged (y/n). 

"I'm going to miss you..." 

"I'm going to miss you too, Elmenhilde... You've been a great teacher and an even greater friend..." 

"You really are something else, Son (y/n)..." 

____________________________________

The light from Rias' magic circle faded and (y/n) could clearly see the definitive shape of Issei's living room. He was home. Immediatly, he was tackled to the ground by Xenovia, who littered his face with kisses and attention. 

"(y/n)! Your heart stopped!" she cried, "I thought... I thought!" 

"I'm here..." muttered (y/n) as he buried his face into Xenvoia's neck. 

He sat up to see everyone else, who all crowded around him to welcome him back and to say how relieved they were that (y/n) was okay. After a few minutes of this, Rias raised her voice. 

"Alright, everybody!" 

Everyone stopped to look to Rias. 

"It's time..." 

Everyone seemed really uncomfortable after Rias spoke. They knew about the deal. 

"Can't he stay for just a little while longer?" asked Asia, "We just got him back!" 

"I wish he could... honestly... But we need to uphold our end of the deal or else he'll just be sent right back to Warenai for sure..." 

No one could find the words to say. They just got their dear friend back, only to discover that he was leaving right away. 

"Everyone... I'm so sorry..." apologized (y/n), "My actions have been nothing but a burden to you in the past 3 years..." 

"You're not a burden!" exclaimed Issei, "Whatever you did, I know that you were only doing what you thought was right." 

"After everything, you're still willing to stand behind me?" (y/n) asked. 

"We'll stand with you to the end," replied Kiba. 

____________________________________

(y/n) wasn just about ready to leave. Everyone was outside in the front, ready to watch him leave. (y/n) thanked them one more time for staying by his side, and began to walk away. 

"Wait!" 

(y/n) turned around to see Xenovia trying to catch up with him. 

"You can't follow me, Xenovia. I have to go alone." 

"I don't care! I made a promise! 'Don't you leave him, Xenovia Quarta'! I made a promise and I intend to keep it!" 

"Xenovia..." 

"It's like everyone said... I'm with you to the end..." 

(y/n) wrapped his arms around Xenovia's waist and kissed her. 

"There's no one else I'd rather have with me than you..." 

The two kissed again and flew off together. They flew for about an hour until the began to slow down in the countryside.

"The Paozu Mountain Range? What are we doing here?" asked Xenovia.

"We're going home..." said (y/n). 

They landed down in a small field with a small house in the distance.

"Is that?"

"It is. The house I grew up in. My grandpa Gohan's house."