DxD: Anomaly

Leonardo leaned back against the worn-out wooden bench, arms lazily resting behind his head as he stared at Lavinia. "So, what is my Sacred Gear?" he asked, testing the waters to see if she could figure it out.

"Hmm..." Lavinia put a finger on her lips and tilted her head slightly, her bright blue eyes narrowing in thought. She looked like a cartoon character trying to solve a particularly tricky puzzle.

She looks cute, Leonardo thought before immediately snapping out of it.

NO PEDO.

"I think it could be any three of these," Lavinia finally declared, holding up three fingers. "Night Reflection, Canis Lykaon, or Annihilation Maker."

Close. She's not as dumb as she lets on, Leonardo mused, feeling a mix of amusement and dread. Night Reflection, Canis Lykaon, and Annihilation Maker—he didn't know much about the first, but the last two were absurdly powerful Sacred Gears, each capable of turning someone into a walking apocalypse.

"Any of those three?" he repeated slowly, his tone carefully neutral.

"Yup!" Lavinia nodded cheerfully, as if she hadn't just casually listed off some of the most terrifying abilities in existence. "Night Reflection is all about countering attacks using shadows. Canis Lykaon has those really cool blades that can cut through almost anything, and Annihilation Maker—oh! That one lets you create terrifying creatures straight from your imagination!"

Leonardo kept his expression blank, but internally, he was grinning. She was so close to the truth, yet so far.

Outwardly, he put on an uncertain expression. "Those sound… dangerous."

Lavinia waved a hand dismissively. "Oh, don't worry! Only if you use them irresponsibly. But if it is Annihilation Maker, you're going to need a strong will. Otherwise, your own creatures could go out of control and—poof!—turn on you." She mimed an explosion with her hands, complete with a tiny sound effect.

"…That's very reassuring," Leonardo muttered.

"Right?!" Lavinia beamed, completely missing his sarcasm. Then her eyes lit up, as if she'd just had the most brilliant idea. "Oh, but on the bright side, you could make a pet! Like a big fluffy wolf or maybe a tiny dragon! Imagine how cute that would be!"

Leonardo stared at her, deadpan. "True," he said flatly, but internally, he was thrilled. As a kid—no, scratch that, even as an adult—who wouldn't want to have Pokémon? And now, he had the power to create any Pokémon. 

He felt a deep, existential revelation hit him all at once.

'I don't need to catch them all—I can just make them all!'

A rush of power-fueled excitement shot through him before a single, dangerous thought derailed everything.

Lopunny.

Leonardo immediately slammed the brakes on his own brain.

'Nope. Nope. We are NOT going down that road. Not yet.

Lavinia, completely unaware of the internal chaos unfolding in front of her, continued rambling. "Or, ooooh! You could make a giant penguin! A penguin with armor! Or—or—a cat with laser eyes! The possibilities are endless!"

Leonardo forced himself to nod, shoving certain thoughts deep, deep down into the void where they belonged. "Uh-huh. Super useful."

"Right?!" Lavinia pumped her fist. "I mean, sure, you could make horrifying eldritch creatures of destruction, but wouldn't it be way more fun to have a fluffy army? Like a cavalry of war bunnies!"

Leonardo's eye twitched.

'She does have an absurd imagination.'

Lavinia's enthusiasm showed no signs of stopping. "Oh! Oh! What about a giant owl that shoots lightning from its eyes? Or a tiger that breathes fire? Or—"

She suddenly gasped, grabbing Leonardo's hands with both of hers. Her eyes sparkled like she had just discovered the meaning of life.

"What if you made a giant, fire-breathing, armored penguin that also acts as a mount?! Imagine charging into battle on a giant penguin!"

Leonardo blinked. His brain short-circuited.

"…You really like penguins, huh?" he asked flatly.

Lavinia pouted. "What's not to like? They're cute! And if they were huge, they'd be unstoppable! Imagine the tactical advantage!" She flapped her arms, mimicking the nonexistent wings of her imaginary battle penguin. "No one would ever see it coming!"

Leonardo pinched the bridge of his nose. This girl is impossible. He was still trying to process his terrifying realization that he had access to one of the most broken abilities in this world, and here she was, plotting an army of adorable yet potentially devastating creatures.

"You're not taking this seriously at all, are you?"

"I am taking it seriously," Lavinia huffed. "Just in a fun way! You're too tense, Leo! Magic is all about imagination! If you're going to make nightmare monsters, they might as well be cool."

Leonardo opened his mouth to argue—then paused.

She wasn't wrong.

His power was only limited by imagination. The stronger his ideas, the more terrifying his creations could become. But that also meant…

'I could make a battle penguin.'

…Damn it. Now he wanted to.

Lavinia grinned, clearly pleased with herself as she saw the gears turning in his head. "See? Fun and practical!"

Leonardo sighed. He had so many things to worry about—devils, survival, his own powers—but somehow, she was the biggest headache of them all.

"How do you know that much about Sacred Gears? Do you also have one?" he asked, tilting his head slightly.

Leonardo narrowed his eyes. She did have one, though, didn't she? An ice-type Poké—wait, no, Sacred Gear. What was it called again?

…Absolute Zero or something.

"Yep, it's called Absolute Demise. It takes the appearance of a three-meter-tall doll made of ice in the form of a woman in a dress with four slender arms. It gives me the ability to create unbreakable ice that is capable of freezing an entire area, turning it into a frozen world."

Leonardo raised an eyebrow. "So, basically, you have a giant, four-armed ice lady who can freeze everything?"

Lavinia nodded enthusiastically. "Mhm! She's super pretty too! Like a regal ice queen!"

"Sounds busted."

"It is!" she chirped. "But, you know, it's also really pretty!"

Leonardo gave her a deadpan stare. "…You're way too excited about this."

"Why wouldn't I be? Ice is cool!" She giggled at her own pun.

Leonardo stared at her, unamused. "You did that on purpose."

"Maybe," she said with a playful wink. "But anyway, what about you? Do you feel anything weird when you try using your Sacred Gear?"

He paused.

Did he?

He hadn't actually tried to activate it yet. He had been too busy figuring out where he was, who she was, and how not to die. But now that she mentioned it…

Leonardo focused, trying to reach for something within himself. Some instinct, some pull—

And then he felt it.

A presence. A sleeping force deep within him, just waiting to be unleashed. It was overwhelming, chaotic, yet brimming with endless possibilities.

Lavinia tilted her head, watching him closely. "Leo?"

He exhaled slowly, then grinned. "I think I got something."

Leonardo concentrated, feeling the dormant power stir within him. It was vast, an untapped well of creation, and the moment he reached for it, his mind was flooded with possibilities. Images of creatures—fearsome, majestic, utterly ridiculous—flashed through his head.

And then, before he could fully grasp the process…

Poof!

A small cloud of black mist swirled in front of him, condensing into—

…A penguin.

Not just any penguin. A perfectly normal-sized penguin. Wearing a tiny, silver helmet.

The penguin blinked up at him.

Lavinia gasped, hands clasped over her mouth in awe. "Leo."

Leonardo stared at the bird, his expression unreadable. "...What."

"IT WORKED!" Lavinia squealed. "YOU MADE A PENGUIN!"

The penguin tilted its head and let out a little honk.

Leonardo slowly turned his gaze toward Lavinia. "…This was not what I was going for."

"But it's so cute!" She crouched down, poking the penguin's soft belly. "Oh my gosh, I love him. Can I keep him?"

Leonardo pinched the bridge of his nose. "This is an Annihilation Maker Sacred Gear. A reality-warping force capable of manifesting nightmares. And the first thing I create is… a penguin?"

The penguin flapped its wings once.

"An armored penguin," Lavinia corrected helpfully.

Leonardo groaned. "I was supposed to make something terrifying!"

Lavinia wagged a finger. "Ah-ah! You did make something terrifying."

He gave her a flat look.

She grinned. "Because now you have to take responsibility for him!"

The penguin nodded in agreement.

Leonardo was starting to think that maybe, just maybe, getting reincarnated was his greatest mistake.

Lavinia clapped her hands together. "So now that we know your Sacred Gear is Annihilation Maker… what are you going to do?"

Leonardo smirked, stretching his arms. "Simple. I'll build an army of horrifying monsters and plan my world domination."

Lavinia gasped. "With battle penguins?!"

Leonardo sighed. "...We'll see."

"Really, though. What's your next move? Seeing the devils are after you."

"Go home, probably."

Lavinia looked at him, clearly unconvinced. Even the penguin seemed skeptical.

"Really?"

"Yeah! And why are you looking at me like I don't have a home?" Leonardo raised an eyebrow. 

"Do you, though?" Lavinia said.

"Ah... No," Leonardo said while avoiding eye contact.

Lavinia let out a long, dramatic sigh, placing her hands on her hips. "Leo, you can't just say you're going home when you don't even have one."

Leonardo crossed his arms and looked away. "Details, details."

"Not details," she countered. "That's literally the main issue here." She crouched down, poking the armored penguin, who let out an approving honk. "See? Even Sir Honksalot agrees."

Leonardo frowned. "Sir Honksalot?"

Lavinia nodded sagely. "He's noble, armored, and dignified. It's only right that he has a proper knightly name."

Leonardo stared blankly at the penguin, who did, in fact, look rather proud of himself despite being a completely random anomaly of magic. He sighed in defeat. "Fine. Sir Honksalot it is."

The penguin puffed out its chest.

"And here I was thinking of naming you Empoleon." Leonardo smirked at the penguin's eyes going wide. "But Sir Honksalot is also good." His smirk turned into a smile seeing his first creation now being deflated.

Lavinia clapped her hands. "Now, back to the topic at hand. You have nowhere to go, devils are after you, and you just unlocked a super rare and dangerous Sacred Gear. Any brilliant plans?"

Leonardo leaned back against the bench, gazing up at the sky. "Well, if I think about it logically... I should probably disappear for a while, lay low, and avoid drawing attention."

"That does sound smart," Lavinia agreed, nodding.

"But," Leonardo continued, "I could also just cause absolute chaos and see what happens."

Lavinia's eye twitched. "That sounds... less smart."

"But way more fun," Leonardo pointed out, grinning. "I mean, I literally have the power to create monsters. Might as well go nuts with it."

Lavinia rubbed her temples. "Leo, no. You should try to keep yourself alive, not make things worse."

"Depends on your definition of 'worse,'" Leonardo said, smirking. "I think an army of battle penguins sounds like a neat."

Lavinia opened her mouth to argue, then paused, considering it. "Okay, I'll give you that one. But still! No unnecessary chaos! You're already on someone's radar, and if you start making, I don't know, A giant lizard with nuclear power—"

Leonardo gasped, eyes wide. "That's an option?"

Lavinia groaned. "Ugh, I should not have said that."

Leonardo tapped his chin. "A giant lizard with nuclear power… or maybe a giant gorilla with a battle axe that absorbs energy…"

Lavinia shook his shoulders. "Leo, focus!"

"Fine, fine," he relented. "I'll keep a low profile. Maybe."

Lavinia narrowed her eyes. "Promise?"

Leonardo smirked. "Absolutely not."

She groaned, dragging a hand down her face. "You're impossible."

"And yet, you're still here," Leonardo pointed out, leaning forward. "Why's that?"

Lavinia blinked, caught off guard. "Huh?"

"You could've just ditched me the moment you realized I had no home, no direction, and now a borderline broken power. Yet, here you are, putting up with my nonsense. Why?" Leonardo's tone was casual, but his eyes held a sharpness to them.

Lavinia hesitated, then gave a small, sheepish smile. "I don't know. I guess… I think you're interesting."

"Interesting how?" Leonardo raised an eyebrow.

Lavinia shrugged. "You're different. And kind of funny. And a little ridiculous. But mostly, I guess... you remind me of myself."

Leonardo's smirk faltered just slightly, and he saw sadness in her eyes.

There was a moment of silence before Leonardo leaned back again, exhaling. "Well, lucky me, I guess."

Lavinia smiled. "Yeah. Lucky you."

Sir Honksalot honked, seemingly approving of the sentiment.

Leonardo sighed. "...Fine. I'll figure something out. But if worse comes to worst, I'm making that battle penguin army."

Lavinia grinned. "I have an idea, why don't you come with me?"

Leonardo raised an eyebrow. "And where would that be?"

"Grauzauberer," Lavinia said with a smile.

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(Hello Everyone! Author here, and I hope you all enjoyed the chapters so far.

If you did, then comment down below as your appreciation is appreciated.

Well, this is an AU of DXD if you haven't figured it out by now, but I know you guys are smart, and if there are some unfortunate ones who haven't.

I said it;,it's an AU like every fanfic should be, so if something doesn't go according to canon, that means I don't want it to (I forgot), but if there is some mistake, I am always up for well-structured criticism.

I think I blabber enough.

See you guys on the next chapter.

Adios, bitches!)