Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Izumo knew that the Illuminati was bad news. She wasn’t stupid, even if she was foolish for trusting the first people she ran into for help. It’s also pretty hard to ignore being locked in a sterile cell in a hospital gown with a collar around your neck. She was almost twelve, alright? She wasn’t stupid.

But aside from herself, she didn’t think the Illuminati would have any other children around. Which seems like another foolish assumption now, but it also threw into question quite a few things about her guilt that she wasn’t ready to face just yet. (Because if the Illuminati was doing this to other kids who didn’t know any better and taking advantage of them then what did that say about what happened to her? How much fault was really on her shoulders?)

Granted, she doesn’t know for sure that her new neighbour got tricked into this but who’d ever do it willingly?

(She hears him, sometimes. When Gedouin drops by for random visits and the sound proofing on the walls conveniently craps out.)

(It’s awful.)

An orderly had told her over her morning check up that they’d scheduled a play date for the two of them. Something about developmental issues, puberty delays, demon brats deserving each other, it all blurred together. It was going to be heavily monitored, of course, what wasn’t? But Izumo was almost excited by the idea. It would be a lie to say she wasn't lonely. And, she reasoned to herself, taking the edge off of the knife of solitude can be done without relying on the other kid. She could handle herself and get something from him, she could do both. If nothing else, it would be a welcome change of pace. There's only so many times a blood draw or physical can be interesting. That day had already come and gone a year ago.

And then that afternoon she was led into a large white room—aren’t they all?—positively swarming with orderlies and soldiers alike. Not that there was much difference between the two in the first place, but the soldiers had their weapons drawn already and the orderlies were palming the ones they kept secretly in their coats. The whole room was holding its breath.

In the middle of the room was a boy her age with dark hair, a tail, a collar, heavy looking cuffs, and a hospital gown. He turned to her and raised his clasped hands up in a wave. He smiled at her.

That was the first time she met Rin.

///\\\///\\\///\\\

“Ready, Izumo?” Rin grinned over at her, key in hand and primed over the lock in the closed door of an abandoned shed tucked away from the True Cross campus.

Izumo huffed, adjusting her hair for the thousandth time that afternoon. It didn't need to be perfect, but it had to make a good enough impression that no one would try and challenge her. “It’s Kamiki, got it? We’re strangers, and I don’t like you.”

Rin pouted at her (and she hated how effective it was), scuffing the floor with his shoe. “You don’t? Not even a little bit?”

“Fine. You were annoyingly endearing on the train ride over, how’s that?” Izumo offered. They weren’t supposed to change their story, keep it simple to maintain the lie, but the moron was probably going to slip up sooner than later anyway. Planting the seeds of familiarity wasn’t a terrible idea.

Rin simply grinned in response and she could see his tail twitching ever so slightly under his shirt like he wanted to be wagging it. He was hopeless. She gave it one month until his half-demon status got revealed. (She gave it three until her own was found out.)

“Yeah, yeah,” she sighed, interrupting his excited cheer, “let’s get moving already. I want to be early so I can keep catching up with Noriko.”

Rin slotted the key into place and opened the door into a sprawling hallway dotted with huge doors and painted in bright, imposing colours. "I'm still shocked you managed to convince her to join the cram school within a single day back together." The teen scratched idly at his cheek. "I mean, are all roommates supposed to be that close? I don't think Godaiin and I are that close..." He mumbled.

Izumo breezed past him, her hand unconsciously relaxing from where it had been clenched on the strap of her book bag. "Our friendship is too much to be labelled as just 'roommates'. She's my first ever friend and we knew each other as kids, it's only natural she'd want to stay by my side now that we've reconnected."

"Uh huh, and you definitely don't want her to cling to your side no matter what, right?" Rin teased.

She huffed and didn't bother dignifying that dig with a response.

Rin pitched his voice high, clasping his hands together and fake-swooning over them. "Oh~! Izumo-chan~! You're so~o~o powerful and strong~! I want you to protect me forever and then maybe we could k-i-s-"

"Shut it!" Izumo snapped, her face bright red. The blood was rushing in her ears. She knew confiding in Rin about her crush was a bad idea!

He just giggled at her and stopped in the hallway to fall behind. "Good luck winning her over, Izumo!"

She marched forward, the teasing having frayed her nerves and left her feeling uncoordinated. She paused. "It's Kamiki!" She called over her shoulder before continuing forward. They couldn't show up to class together, they weren't even supposed to know each other yet.

When she made it to the designated classroom she wasted no time pushing inside and making herself at home near the wall. There were already a few people inside the room but they were both fiddling with their own things. Besides, she had better things to do than try and make friends with random strangers that she would inevitably leave behind. She wasn't Rin.

Noriko came in shortly after. She looked concerned as she scanned the room but as soon as she caught sight of Izumo she lit up completely. Izumo preened at the attention and eagerly pat the seat next to her to invite Noriko over.

"Did you find your way alright?" Izumo asked once Noriko had settled in.

Her friend paused, smiling guiltily. "Well...I did have some trouble understanding what I was doing, but at least I made it here. What about you? Are you...doing alright?"

Izumo blinked. The concern from her friend was incredibly sweet, it made butterflies explode in her belly, but with it came the cold wash of knowing that she'd have to lie and keep lying. "Of course," she said breezily, "this kind of thing comes easily to me, after all."

"That's not what I meant..." Noriko protested weakly.

"My answer hasn't changed." Izumo replied. Noriko flinched back at her tone so Izumo fixed a smile to her face and quickly shifted the conversation topic. How was your winter? Have you met any cute boys yet? How did your classes go today? Basic things that didn't require a web of misdirection to keep up with.

More people filtered into the classroom, three boys that were all chatting with each other and took their seats on the opposite side of the room. Izumo handily ignored them.

Rin came in last, naturally, and plopped right down in the front, notebook out. She rolled her eyes, as if he was actually going to use that thing, but Noriko didn't comment on it so she happily jumped back into casual conversation with her friend.

The teacher practically exploded into the room, an older looking man in a cassock with very heavily decorated glasses chains. Behind him trailed a younger exorcist holding quite a few large stacks of papers, also wearing glasses. The teacher veered into place behind the desk and puffed out his chest proudly. "Good afternoon, class! I see we have some lovely ladies in our class, hello, and-" the teacher cut off abruptly, looking like he'd just been slapped.

He was staring openly at Rin who bristled under the weight of the gaze. Rin shifted his chin into the palm of his hand. "Can I...help you, sir?" He asked.

"You..." The teacher shook himself, once, violently. "No, never mind, my apologies." He cleared his throat and stood back to attention, smacking the blackboard behind him for emphasis. "I'm the current Paladin of True Cross, Fujimoto Shiro. I'll be heading your class on demon pharmaceuticals. Working beside me is Okumura Yukio, my son, and a full fledged exorcist in his own right."

Fujimoto had slung his arm around Yukio's shoulders and pulled him close, a hand up in his hair. Yukio flushed brightly, smiling awkwardly. "Ah, hello. I'm working as a teacher's aide for this class. I'm your age, but I've been training to be an exorcist for several years now, so please don't be afraid to ask me any questions you have." The teenager introduced. He bowed stiffly but was quickly pulled back up by Fujimoto.

The teacher in question opened up his coat and withdrew a long stick of chalk that settled in nicely in his palm. "Now! Before we get too far along, we need to conduct a mashou ceremony. Can anyone tell me what a mashou is?"

Izumo's hand went up immediately. She was called on, much to the chagrin of the surly guy in the trio across the room. "It's a wound caused by a demon and allows humans to see demons."

"Very good Kamiki-chan!" Fujimoto cheered. "So, who here needs a mashou?"

They got through the ceremony easily enough and got through class without any major disruptions. Izumo carefully angled her notes so Noriko could peek at them and catch up quickly if she was ever confused. She got a thankful smile for her troubles, so it was worth the stink eye Okumura was sending her way. He didn't have the balls to call her out on it so he could sit there and stew for all she cared.

At the end of the lesson they were dismissed for the day. Izumo took Noriko by the elbow and they were on their way out the door. She heard Fujimoto call for Rin to stay back for a minute and she did her best not to look back at him. She failed, of course, she was weaker than she'd let anyone know, but Rin looked confident and at ease. He could handle himself, she knew. They weren't kids anymore. They weren't twelve.

She pulled herself and Noriko flush together and focused on chatting about dinner and how they wanted to decorate their dorms. When they got back, she would definitely be interrogating Rin about all that.

///\\\///\\\///\\\

"What's your name?" The strange smiling boy asked immediately. "Mine is Rin, I'm a demon! I'm not a demon king or anything, but my brother is and my dad is going to use me to get back to Assiah so he can make everything nice again! I'm eleven, but I'll be twelve soon! Hey, are you a demon too? But you don't have a tail, huh? Oh, then maybe not. I talk a lot! So just tell me to shut up!"

Izumo had stood there speechless. She only found her words when they tore themselves free from her throat without her brain behind it. "Don't you know where you are right now?" She hissed, furiously eying all the soldiers that had begun shifting ominously in place.

Rin tilted his head, eyebrows drawn. "Well, sure. Don't you?"

He asked it so genuinely that Izumo couldn't find an answer for him.

Rin just smiled again and his tail swished happily through the air. "Hey, if you don't have a name yet can I just call you eyebrows?"

"What?" Izumo shrieked, her hand flying up to her brow as her face grew hot with a mix of embarrassment and indignation. "I do too have a name already, and don't go deciding things like nicknames so lazily!"

He just smiled brighter at her and even had the gall to start laughing at her. She snarled at him, the way she'd snarl at her brothers back home to get them to actually take her seriously. Rin snarled back with a grin and too-sharp teeth. His tail was flicking in the air and he had lowered his body and leaned forward.

Did he want to play...?

Right as he made to jump into a tackle a shock of electricity jolted through him, forcing him down to the floor. Izumo gasped and backed away, reality crashing back into focus around her. Right. She was in an Illuminati laboratory surrounded by soldiers and scientists employed to prod at her and not care about her as a person. She watched with wide eyes as Rin struggled on the ground, writhing and clawing at his throat.

Two soldiers marched forward quickly and hauled him up by his armpits. The boy was panting hard, tail lying limp behind him as he was dragged.

Izumo didn't know what possessed her to take a step forward and shout. "Kamiki Izumo!"

She could just barely see bright blue eyes meet her own past the arms of the soldiers. "S-s...see you, Izumo!" Rin managed weakly.

Her hands were fisted over her chest in her gown. Her breathing wouldn't settle. Everyone in the room felt too close and too far away. An orderly came up behind her to start guiding her away and she growled lowly at them. Not that it did anything. Because as much as they spouted off about peace, demons were still demons, and demon children were still unwanted wretches that were lucky to exist in the first place.

As she was shoved back into her cell for the rest of the day, she just had one, desperate, thought. I hope I get to see him again.

Chapter Text

“Samael, if you’re going to pretend to not know where I am I would appreciate some consistency.” Lucifer hummed. He kept his eyes shut and body relaxed. The careful cocktail of medicine that kept his body alive trundled along through his veins. Even still, Samael would not be a difficult fight. Something he knew his brother already figured out.

Samael chuckled in that ostentatious way of his. He grabbed a chair from the far end of the room and dragged it over to the bed, purposefully scraping it against the floor as loudly as he possibly could. He took a seat once he was satisfied. “My beloved Lucifer I have no idea what you mean. I have no knowledge of your current whereabouts, I’m just visiting your room for a chat.”

“Of course,” Lucifer allowed. The difference between knowing where something is and being where someone was is incredibly slight, no doubt Samael was using that vague grey space to get away with a visit. “What do you want to discuss?”

“Can I not simply visit my dearest older brother in his hospital bed?” Samael said, not nearly as offended as he sounded. “I’m insulted you think I have an ulterior motive every time I want to see you.”

Lucifer just hummed. Talking so much when he was meant to be resting was already straining this body. “Maybe not every time, but this time you do.” He countered softly.

Samael let out a long, dramatic sigh. Likely throwing his hands up in a surrendering pose. “You caught me. Indeed, I’m hoping to enter into an arrangement with you.”

Lucifer clicked his teeth.

“A deal,” Samael continued, “and a very lucrative one at that. You see, our youngest siblings are about to be lifted from the confines of True Cross. I plan on letting this happen, but then I find out that the Paladin plans to raise them both as humans. Blind to their heritage and without reason to fight for or against Gehenna. Keeping them weak, I don't mind. They need time to cultivate their strength before Father comes looking, after all. But keeping them weak and ignorant? It's inexcusable.”

Lucifer had his own reservations about his youngest siblings. On the one hand, they proved everything he believed in and were champions of a future where humans and demons could live together in peace. On the other, they belonged solely to his Father and intervening with them was an exercise in testing Father's patience. Plus, there was no way Samael was actually bothered by the ignorance of their siblings. Samael preferred stupid, ignorant puppets surrounding him at all times. Amaimon was evidence enough of that fact. "Samael," he began, "speak honestly, or cut the tongue out of your mouth in my stead."

The King of Time and Space sighed again, sounding even more put upon than before. "If Shiro gets his way we will be waiting fifteen years, nearly sixteen, before anything entertaining happens. There's only so much anime and manga in the world." Between two demon Kings, a lot can go unsaid.

“You would interfere with Father’s work…out of boredom?” Lucifer asked, lower lip curled just so in distaste. Lucifer was not one for grand changes in expression, that was how one wore down their body even further with wrinkles and folds. Samael was fond of such a thing, but then again he was also fond of watching beautiful art burn to ashes. But that didn't mean Lucifer was incapable of displaying his emotions. Quite the opposite, really. Whereas Samael would use grand gestures and extreme expressions to get his point across, Lucifer changing his face at all was a sign of how strongly his emotions were raging.

“I would,” his brother responded airily.

Never had Lucifer wanted to strangle the King of Time and Space more.

Samael pressed on with another small sigh. “Now look, I don’t intend to meddle for meddling’s sake. There is a method to my madness, and while the downsides to this deal may seem egregious now, you haven’t even heard the benefits!”

Lucifer very carefully did not roll his eyes under his lids.

“You see, I was thinking of dropping off just one of our youngest with your fine organization for a while. Rin, the one with a fully formed demon heart. If he were to stay here, you would have access to the perfect vessel for Father’s power. What better gift for him than to expedite the whole process of finding a body! Plus, you get a mighty fine weapon for a while.”

The offer, Lucifer was loathe to admit, was tempting. The very best and brightest of both Gehenna and Assiah were hard at work cultivating a body to hold Father as well as medicine to maintain the body he landed in. Lucifer understood that frustration well, only recently had he been able to keep one singular vessel for so long. But still, they’d hardly made any progress. Their only lead at the moment was investigating the biological state of possession. The issue was finding people possessed by appropriately high level demons in a mutual pact and then being able to study them for long enough to get real information. It was quite difficult, to put it lightly.

But if there was a way to speed up their research, look into the biological state of a demon King sculpted perfectly of both Gehenna and Assiah, the first of his kind…it could revolutionize their understanding.

Still, there was a gap in Samael’s explanation. “And what of our very youngest brother?”

“What about him?” Samael asked. “He gets to grow up showered in the affections of humanity and will be stronger for it. Later in life he may even be able to awaken to something far greater than what lies dormant in his skull now.”

"Samael," Lucifer warned.

"What?" His brother responded with an edge of laughter in his voice, "I can't let you have complete custody of both brothers. Maybe I want to play around with our youngest myself and need Rin out of the way? Either way, Yukio isn't your problem and this deal is mutually beneficial. I see no reason for you not to accept it."

Lucifer hummed, pretending to think it over. He'd already made his decision, but he wanted to make Samael wait. "And the deal does not extend beyond what we've already explicitly discussed out loud?"

"Naturalich!"

"Very well." Lucifer opened his eyes for the first time that evening and pinned his brother with brightly glowing irises. The magic of the pact was already thrumming strong between them. "We have a deal." And with that, the deal was sealed, no getting out of it for either of them.

Samael clapped his hands and shot up to his feet. "Wonderful! Well, that'll be all from me, I'll let you get some more rest." He made a big show of dusting his clothes off and moving his chair back into its spot in the room. But just before he turned the doorknob to leave he turned and addressed Lucifer again. "Oh, and don't train him up too well," he warned, "something tells me he'll be drawn to my side in due time."

///\\\///\\\///\\\

Rin grimaced down at his phone. Izumo had been texting him, looking to meet up. No doubt to ask him about what happened with Paladin Fujimoto. Which...how could he even describe it to someone else? He lived it and he still doesn't understand exactly what happened. He thumbed at the buttons of his phone, idly coming up with a million different beginnings to the conversation. Frustration was building up behind his eyes and with a huff he shoved his phone back into his pocket. He could figure out how to open that cantaloupe of words later. Or however the saying went.

He ran a hand roughly through his hair and thought back to his interaction with the Paladin.

Rin had found it incredibly awkward to stick around and wait while everyone else packed up and left for the day. Especially with the stare that Fujimoto was sending him. Like, fucking hell, did he even blink?

When it was just Rin, Fujimoto, and Okumura left in the room the Paladin did something that surprised the half demon.

"Yukio," Fujimoto started, "can you head home early?"

Okumura had whirled to face his father, disbelief written in giant red marker all over his face. "What? But-"

"Do me a solid while you're at it and take Shura home too, huh?" Fujimoto smiled at his kid. Completely ignoring how conflicted and upset Okumura looked after hearing that. Rin's heart went out to the kid, not being acknowledged sucked ass.

Still, despite the way Okumura was obviously looking to argue, he inevitably folded and walked out the door.

Rin whistled at the display and Fujimoto turned that grin his way. "You have a very obedient son." Rin said casually. Making sure to muddle whether that was a compliment or a jab at his parenting skills.

The Paladin chuckled good naturedly and gestured towards his desk. "He's my pride and joy." He replied easily. "But we're not here to gush about Yukio, as much as I would enjoy that. I actually have some questions for you, Mister...?"

"Okamoto Nobuhiko, sir!" Rin chirped, snapping into a salute for the hell of it. He was supposed to sell being completely loyal to True Cross, yeah, but he could have some fun with it.

Fujimoto nodded, but he didn't look wholly convinced. "Okamoto-kun, then. I'll be as frank as possible, so I hope you're not offended. Do you have any demon ancestry?" The Paladin's eyes, normally dark as dried blood, seemed even more lively.

Rin paused for a moment, mind racing. Technically, he had a back up plan in case anyone found out he wasn't fully human, but he didn't expect to have to use it on the first day. "Uh..." He ducked his head, hand on his neck, trying to buy more time by looking shy. "Man, I guess nothing gets passed you, huh?" Not an explicit confirmation.

Fujimoto leaned further over his desk. This close, Rin could just barely see over the rims of the Paladin's ridiculous glasses. The eyes that met his own were familiar like walking into a trap felt familiar. A sinking pit of wrongness that threatened to swallow him whole if he wasn't careful. He'd never actually met his father face to face, but if Rin ever did he would imagine it'd be Fujimoto's eyes staring back from an unfamiliar face.

"You think so?" The Paladin challenged with a wide grin. "I gotta wear these things for a reason, kid, they aren't just for show." He rattled the chains of his glasses with his finger for emphasis.

Rin growled lowly, unintentionally breaking the shy routine as a familiar sting of irritation nestled under his skin. "I'm not a kid, you're just an old man." The realization that he just said that to the Paladin of True Cross, the most powerful human around, and one of the biggest threats to the mission being exposed hit about half a second after his mouth finished moving.

Fujimoto held his stare for another beat. And then the older man threw his head back and cackled. Hands on his belly, eyes squinted shut, leaned back on his heels, full and loud belly laughs. He slowly comes down from his high, wiping a tear away from his eyes. "Oh, man! Keep that kind of spirit, kid. It suits you better."

And then Rin had been dismissed. Just like that.

So now he was grumbling to himself as the sun worked its way below the horizon, stomach gurgling for his attention. "Stupid rich school, stupid meal tokens, stupid Paladin..." He kicked at a loose pebble and watched it careen across the sidewalk and bounce off a wall. It skittered to a halt and tipped over into the grass.

Fuck. This whole mission thing might be harder than he thought.

Rin: dont worery just old man shit >_> <read at 7:37 PM>

Rin: u wanna get dinnerr???? <Read at 7:37 PM>

Chapter Text

Izumo rifled through her desk drawers, growing ever more frustrated with each passing second she couldn’t find what she was looking for. She usually kept a full stack of summoning papers with pre-drawn circles on her at all times. The fact that she was nearly out a few days before their first summoning class was unthinkable.

“I don’t get what you’re so worked up about.” Rin commented from where he had settled on her bed, idly chewing on a popsicle stick. He’d asked to come over to study, and since Noriko was out for the day, Izumo had agreed. If she’d known that he’d steal her textbooks instead of bringing his own, she might’ve reconsidered. “Can’t you draw those in your sleep?”

Izumo groaned under her breath. “Yes, but drawing them still takes time. Time that exorcists don’t often get in the middle of a battle.” She liked Rin, really. She couldn’t imagine her life without him in it. But sometimes she wanted to strangle some sense into that thick skull of his.

Rin just shrugged and went back to flipping through her textbooks.

Izumo sighed, there was no helping it. She wouldn’t be able to focus now that she knew a problem existed and needed to be fixed. It’d just stay hanging over her head until she solved it. She’d just have to go out and get some more papers. Wonderful. She’d been told about a supply store hidden somewhere on campus, but the method to get to it was convoluted at best. “I need to step out for a bit.”

As she stood from her chair Rin didn’t even look up. Simply waving at her as his eyes drifted in and out of focus on the page in front of him. “Have fun! If you meet any cute girls don’t forget to tell me about them later.” He teased.

Yeah right, Izumo rolled her eyes at his antics. She was supply shopping, the likelihood that she’d run into any cute girls was abysmally low. “Lock the door behind you if you leave.” She said, barely hearing his call of assent as she stepped out of the room and closed the door behind her. She nearly locked it herself out of habit but caught herself. She tucked her room key back into her pocket. That could’ve been a disaster. Neither of them did well with locked doors, but Rin would take it especially bad.

She rolled her shoulders back and rolled any guilt, shame, or fear back with them. She felt their weight fall from her neck, though she knew they still trailed behind her as she walked. She was strong. So she could handle it. She would force herself to handle it.

Following the directions from the headmaster swiftly gave her a headache. The amount of switchbacking and retracing quickly got her frustration to its peak. When she finally pried open a large wooden door onto a thin bridge high above the rest of True Cross campus she barely felt that it was worth the trouble getting there. Looking down off the side of the bridge made nausea leap up her throat. She wouldn't be doing that again. The supply shop itself looked like a slice of forest plopped down on the top of a tower. It was flush with greenery and reminded her of home.

Walking up the roughly hewn stone path to the store just reminded her of her old house even more. She could almost hear the fox spirits rustling in the grass. Tsukumo singing along with her mother in the kitchen. Paper lanterns and wards bumping together in time with gentle brushes from the breeze.

Something thick wedged itself at the top of her throat. As she opened the door to the shop she cleared it away and pushed her expression into neutrality.

The interior was a warm space as crammed full of supplies as its exterior was crammed full of plants. A portly woman in traditional garb was stationed behind an overflowing desk. The older woman looked up and took a slow draw from a smouldering pipe. "Welcome to the exorcist supply shop. Do you know what you're looking for?" The woman's voice was rich and warm despite her bored tone.

"Yes," Izumo stepped up to the counter and fought the urge to start messing with her hair. "I'd like to buy a full stack of pre-drawn summoning papers."

The woman hummed and after giving Izumo a once over turned to start peering through the massive wall of drawers for the papers. As she was searching, the supply shop door opened again.

Izumo didn't bother checking who it was, they didn't matter to her. She was just here to get her supplies and she'd prefer to get in, get out, and be done with this whole process already.

A tall figure dressed in an exorcist’s coat with brown hair and glasses took up the space next to her. "Ah, hello there Kamiki-san." Her teenaged teacher began. What were the odds that she'd run into Okumura Yukio on a random errand to the most remote locale on campus? They were abysmally low, which meant her luck was just that bad.

Izumo cooly regarded him over her shoulder, becoming even more tired by his mere presence in the shop. "Hello, Okumura-sensei."

He opened his mouth to continue talking to her when the older woman chimed in. "Yukio! What a pleasant surprise!" The stack of summoning papers she had just removed from a drawer were set right back inside. Izumo felt like exploding on the spot and taking the whole school with her. "Will it be your usual?"

Okumura had the decency to look bashful. “Yes, please, Moriyama-san.”

The now-named Moriyama tittered happily at his politeness and quickly set to work pulling down bullets, grenades, and various other things. Izumo did not roll her eyes at the whole affair, no matter how much she really wanted to.

Okumura cleared his throat before sparking up the conversation again. “How is Shiemi doing?” He asked, sounding almost shy.

It was the wrong thing to ask apparently as Moriyama’s entire face darkened and her movements slowed. “She’s not well,” the older woman began after a moments pause. “My mother passed recently and Shiemi was the one to find her, she's taken it so hard it's almost supernatural. I have half a mind to call your father over to take a look at her, I worry she’s been possessed by that cursed garden.”

Izumo perked up at the mention of possession. Most possession cases were small. Not harmless, just small, but maybe…

Okumura straightened too. His shy teenager routine falling away to reveal a will of steel and cool determination. Izumo felt the barest flickers of respect form for him. “May I see her? I’d like to help in any way I can.”

“Thank you, I’d appreciate whatever you can do for her, even if it's someone to talk to right now.” Moriyama bowed her head and gestured an arm towards a side door that likely went deeper into the house. “She’s outside in the garden right now, please follow me.”

Izumo felt her moment of opportunity and stepped forward to catch Okumura’s attention. “Sensei, may I observe? Possession is something I specialize in. My mother was a shrine maiden.”

Okumura blinked owlishly at her, having either forgotten she was there or surprised that he was being asked at all. “Ah, I suppose that’s alright. Just…don’t do anything without consulting me, okay?”

She nodded and followed after him through the house and outside into the garden. It was a beautiful space, absolutely verdant. And yet there was an air of humility about the garden that made it feel relaxing and natural despite the massive amount of work that had surely gone in to cultivating it. And toiling away at the centre was a girl with short blond hair and large green eyes.

The girl looked up from where she was kneeling and practically lit up. “Yuki-chan!” She cheered, smiling so sincerely it was almost nauseating.

Damn it…she was cute.

“Hello Shiemi,” Okumura said, a similar looking dopey grin pulling at his face. Oh, wait, were they a thing? Izumo felt a familiar pang of disappointment tug at her sternum and quickly dismissed it. She and her teacher made their way further into the garden, Moriyama hanging back by the door.

Okumura knelt down next to Shiemi and motioned for Izumo to do the same. She stayed standing. He faltered but recovered quick enough. “Ah, Shiemi, this is Kamiki-san, she’s one of my students from the Exorcist Cram School. We hear you haven’t been feeling well?”

“No, no, I feel fine!” Shiemi replied. She carefully took the plants she had been cradling in her lap and set them on the ground, brushing the dirt off of her apron. She extended a dirty hand over to Izumo. “It’s so nice to meet you Kamiki-chan!”

Izumo’s nose wrinkled. This girl absolutely reeked. Yes, of manure and warm dirt, but that’s not what Izumo was reacting to. She was reacting to the stench of earth demon that had slathered itself all over the poor girl.

Shiemi’s smile dimmed, a flush rising in her cheeks as she hastily wiped her hands off again before offering her hand back up. “U-um, excuse me.” She mumbled.

“You’re not fine, stop lying to yourself.” Izumo huffed, pointedly folding her arms across her chest and feeling proud as Shiemi slowly pulled her hand back to her lap. The girl drew further in on herself, now refusing to meet anyone’s eyes.

“I really- I’m really fine, I promise. I’ve got my garden so…” Shiemi trailed off, her mouth working but no sounds coming from it. She took in a deep breath and forced her head up to look first to Okumura, and then to Izumo. “So, really, don’t worry about me.” She said with a smile.

Izumo felt her lip curl. Self sacrificing idiots like her were the worst. “Moron, how selfish can you get?”

“Kamiki!” Okumura snapped at her, his eyes dangerous. Gone was the easy, carefree set to his shoulders. Replaced by a pining idiot's tension.

Still, Izumo wasn’t about to back down from saying what needed to be said. Letting these kinds of people go unchecked meant they’d probably try to die for some ‘greater good’ and their blood would pool pointlessly at the feet of every single person who had pushed their self worth into the mud. She would know, she's seen Rin try it enough times. “Make yourself miserable all you want, but all you’re doing is forcing your mother to sit through yet another funeral. What are you hoping to get out of suffering like this, anyway? You think it’s going to make you feel better? Make some kind of penance? Wake up already!”

“Kamiki that is enough!” Okumura stood up sharply, Shiemi wincing away from him as he pushed forward into Izumo’s space. “Shiemi is not well and your comments have crossed the line. She’s suffering right now and despite that puts on a brave face to be a good host. And instead of repaying her kindness you seem determined to criticize her!”

Izumo grit her teeth. “She needs to hear it! Possession needs a constant emotional fuel, she’s not going to get anywhere if you keep coddling her and dodging the truth of the situation.”

Okumura opened his mouth to argue but Shiemi's soft voice cut him off. "Possession? You...you think I've been possessed?" Her voice was strained, already fraying around the edges.

"Shiemi I..." Okumura looked physically pained as he struggled for the words. "Your...mother thinks something may be harming you and I'm here to sort of...check up on things."

The sharp, damp, and slightly sweet smell of earthen demon spiked as Shiemi's face crumpled. Not in sadness, but in rage. The blonde whirled to glare at her mother, her fists clenched tight in the grass where she still kneeled. "So now you're worried? Where was your worry when Grandma had been dead, alone, for hours because you never checked on her? You can't act like you suddenly care now, I won't let you! I hate you!" The smell flared to an almost staggering level before Shiemi's eyes rolled back in her head and she collapsed on the ground.

Moriyama came running over, tears hanging on her lashes, and Izumo wordlessly got out of the mother's way.

She hadn't expected that, anger. Shiemi had seemed so similar to the delicate flowers she tended. Pushed too far in any direction she'd wilt and shrivel up completely. The perfect victim, the perfect damsel. But that wasn't true, was it?

Moriyama carefully arranged her daughter in her arms and stood. "Can you help me get her to a bed?" She asked, eyes not leaving her daughter's face.

Izumo took a step forward but Okumura sidestepped her with a nasty glare. "You've done enough." He muttered under his breath. Yet another reason to hang back as Shiemi was taken to a shed just off of the garden. She wanted to brush off the animosity but it clung like burrs to the hem of her pants. Spiny clusters of guilt that wouldn't be brushed aside so easily. She didn't regret saying what she had, exactly, but she didn't want to encourage the demon's grip on its victim.

Moriyama emerged from the shed a few moments later looking shaken. Having seemingly forgotten that there were still people around in the garden the older woman leaned back against the wall of the shed and curled around her arms.

Izumo hardly felt the steps it took for her to cross the garden and stand at Moriyama's side. She had no idea what to say. The older woman wasn’t crying, at least, glancing up once as Izumo approached but otherwise completely still. “Is…is she alright?” She asked softly.

Moriyama sighed. Her eyes were burning a spot in the grass. “She’s stable. Yukio’s exorcising her now. You mentioned you specialized in possession, didn't you?"

"Yes," Izumo said hesitantly.

The older woman looked up and studied Izumo's face carefully. Her dark eyes looked so sad, all the lines in her face casting her expression into shadow. She looked tired. "Do they mean it?" At Izumo's confused hum Moriyama continued. "Do the possessed mean what they say? Do they mean it?"

Izumo glanced down sharply. Biting words from the past nipping at her ears. The softer truth was so easy to drown out next to all the lies that had come spilling out of her mother's mouth. "It's not a complete lie. But during possession demons will take even the smallest seeds of emotion and twist them into something so much worse."

Moriyama nodded but she didn't look comforted. "At this rate, even if what she said wasn't true, I feel like I'll lose my daughter within the year."

Izumo didn't know what to say to that. She's sure that if Rin were here he'd have a whole feel-good speech ready to go. But Rin wasn't there, so Izumo would just have to improvise. "Tell her, then." She said, flicking one of her pigtails over her shoulder. "Nothing's worse than a mother who can't be honest with her children."

The older woman snorted, a wry smile curling up on her face. "You really do have quite the mouth on you, young lady. It'd do you well to try and be sweeter."

Uke and Mike's teasing voices chuckled in Izumo's mind, her face heating up. "I'm doing fine just the way I am." She bit back, trying not to sound as defensive as she felt.

"Of course, of course." Moriyama tutted, still smiling. She looked back at the shed with one final look of sadness before she sighed. "My apologies, you still need your summoning papers don't you? Let's go inside, let them finish up out here."

She's rung up without much fanfare. Moriyama pressed the stack of papers into Izumo's grip with two hands, squeezing them kindly. "Next time you need more supplies, remind me to put a kettle on. You could do with some tea service lessons."

"That's- really, I don't need-"

"Nonsense," Moriyama waved her off. "Consider it your repayment for this afternoon. My Shiemi will be needing an apology from you." She said with a chuckle.

Izumo chuckled back. Outwardly intimidated by Moriyama's chilling tone. Privately, she was glad that Shiemi had a mother who was willing to defend and protect her no matter what. She hoped that this experience would drill some appreciation into that fluffy blonde head of hair. If not, well, they apparently had some tea ceremonies in the future to set the record straight.

Izumo ducked out of the shop a split second before Okumura and Shiemi came back inside. Izumo had her back pressed up against the wall and could hear as Shiemi tearfully apologized to her mother. There was a lot more shuffling and sniffling, but Izumo didn't stick around for the rest of the aftermath. She had to take the longest route imaginable back to her dorm and she didn't want Okumura to leave and catch her still loitering around like some lost child. She didn't need that kind of embarrassment today.

When she got back to her dorm, unsurprisingly Rin was still there and still hanging out on her bed. He looked up from a manga as she entered and practically lit up. "Hey, you got your papers! Congrats!"

She groaned, shoved him over, and fell face first into her bed. Her papers scattered across her dorm floor but she couldn't bring herself to care much about that at the moment.

Rin let her wallow for a blissful few seconds. "So...did'ja meet any cute girls?"

Izumo grabbed blindly for her pillow and chucked at straight at his face.

Chapter Text

“Again,” his trainer snapped.

Rin struggled to catch his breath. His belly felt like it was jerking all around and he couldn’t tell if he was actually breathing in anymore. Sweat made the floor slick and warm underneath him. He was so hot.

“Again!”

He cringed at the order, struggling to push his arms under him. They shook with the effort of moving just a few centimetres and he doubted they could hold his weight. “C-can’t,” he mumbled.

His trainer’s feet circled closer. A steady rhythm of skin on metal as he approached the boy. He squatted down, hand reaching down. Rin braced for…something to happen but the hand just landed softly on top of his head.

“Do you remember why we’re spending so much time training you?”

Because you hate me. “Because…if I’m strong…then dad can be…strong when he comes…back?” He rasped.

The hand in his hair ruffled the strands affectionately. “Very good!” His trainer cooed. “So what do you think happens if you’re weak?”

“Dad…won’t be strong enough.”

Another ruffle. “Good. Remember, you are your father’s weapon, with you he can finally put a stop to the war between humans and demons.”

Rin hummed. He already knew that. His big brother loved talking about that and all the cool future plans he had for Rin. He was supposed to be some kind of secret trump card for the Illuminati. He thought that everyone was doing a pretty lousy job of keeping it secret though since they talked about it so much.

“And Rin,” his trainer pulled his focus back to the present. “What do we do with weapons that don’t work right?”

Rin closed his eyes. “Get rid of ‘em.”

The hand left his hair and his trainer walked back to his position near the wall. “Again,” his trainer called.

Rin got up.

///\\\///\\\

Two weeks into Cram School and things were going well! Y’know. Relatively.

They had barely made any real progress on their mission objectives which was not ideal. But! Aside from that one weird after-class conversation with Fujimoto no one had shown any signs of suspicion. It helped that Yukio brought in a new student recently. Got the whole class to focus on just the one new girl instead of each other. Three cheers for community building. Golden trimmings, or however that went.

Rin was in a pretty good mood that afternoon. They were doing physical training so he was prepared to more or less check out and enjoy the light exercise. The teacher with weird facial hair was droning on and on about how dangerous leapers could be and the rules of the pit and blah blah blah. Rin heard “run in a circle” and he knew everything he needed to know.

The Izumo in his head would tell him not to “show off” and then glare at him in a way that meant she really wanted to tell him “don’t get your head cut off doing something stupid”. But, see, Rin knew how to regulate his own speed while still having a little fun. So imaginary-Izumo didn’t have to worry so much. He was a moron but he wasn’t stupid.

He watched Izumo and the new girl do their laps and how Izumo kept glancing back when the new girl nearly tripped over her own clothes with every step. The new girl got reprimanded and Izumo said something to her with a snobbish flip of her hair before they ascended the ladder.

Surprisingly enough though, the new girl—geez Rin would really need to catch her name sometime—looked overjoyed when she stepped off the ladder and not angry. That reaction was weird, Izumo tended to make people want to chuck her in front of a moving bus. It was like a defensive mechanic or whatever. So it was nice to see her making friends. Well, more friends, if you counted Paku.

And what was the deal with Paku, anyway? Rin thought. He didn’t get their friendship at all. And Paku seemed super uncomfortable with all this exorcist stuff! Did Izumo just insist on her crush sticking around because she wanted a cover story? Or was she doing that round about I-want-comfort-but-don’t-know-how-to-ask-for-it thing? And if she was, why wasn’t Rin enough of a comfort for her? Not that he was jealous of Paku or anything. But where was Paku when Izumo was crying late at night in her cell? Doing math homework? He was the one on the other side of the wall tapping out her favourite song to calm her down!

Rin felt his tail twitching up a storm under his shirt and forced himself to chill out. Izumo having more friends was a good thing. He wasn’t being replaced, she was just finally getting the love and attention she deserved. That’s all there was to it. Mmhm. Yes. He wasn't jealous of Paku.

Soon enough it was Rin’s time in the ring, he tried not to look too excited about it but he hadn’t had the chance to really let loose in a while, and he had some emotions to get out of his system! He was bouncing on the balls of his feet, wishing their weird teacher would pull the damn lever faster. The farthest reaper from them croaked in confusion as its chain went slack and Rin was off.

His running partner, the cool guy with the rooster hair, kept a decent pace. Nothing outstanding but the dude clearly worked out. Rin took a page out of his book and made sure to keep just a few paces ahead of Rooster Guy at all times.

Something his partner seemed to catch on to.

‘Cause, one moment Rin was running along happy enough to stretch his legs and then the next there was a pressure against his back and the world went spinning.

He landed in a heap in the sand. One of the Leapers croaked excitedly, its haunches shimmying, and he whipped his head around to snarl get back but-

“STOP!” Their teacher shrieked, slamming on the lever.

The leaper was yanked back to its cage, its flesh bulging against the bars. Rin almost felt bad for it. Their teacher marched down to the sand all in a huff and Rin steeled himself for what was coming.

And then. Their teacher went over to…the other guy. Oh.

What?

Rin scrambled to his feet and started jogging over to them. Thanks to his sensitive ears, he could already hear what they were saying across the pit.

“Suguro, that was entirely unacceptable! Why on earth would you trip one of your comrades? Especially around hostile demons?” Their teacher demanded.

Rooster Guy—Suguro! Man, even his name sounded cool—crossed his arms, looking defensive. “Sensei, that guy wasn’t taking the training even a little bit seriously! He stayed exactly one meter ahead of me and wasn’t paying any attention to the leaper’s movements. He spaces out during all our other classes too! His notebook is just full of doodles!”

Which! Hey! No it wasn’t! Rin had some song lyrics scribbled down in there too! It wasn’t his fault that he already knew everything the cram school was teaching.

Their teacher sighed, shaking his head. “Young man that’s no excuse. It’s not your responsibility to make sure your fellow students are working hard. That falls on them and it falls on us, your teachers. Now…what to do with you?”

At that ominous sentence Rin picked up his pace. A prickle of unease forcing him to go faster until he skidded up to the two of them. “Ah, sensei! Wait, it’s fine, Suguro didn’t do anything wrong. It’s true, I wasn’t paying attention at all. I failed the exercise so I should be the one punished.”

The other two stared at him for interrupting—Suguro with confusion, and their teacher with something Rin couldn’t place. Their teacher hummed but still shook his head. “Young Okamoto, that’s very kind of you, but Suguro was out of line. Suguro, since you have such strong feelings about our exercise today, you get to run the course again. Okamoto, you can head back up with the others.”

“Oh, uh…sure, okay.” Rin spared one look back over his shoulder at Suguro as he headed towards the ladder. The other teen looked confused, but still managed to glare at him when he caught Rin looking. Jeez, Rin felt like an idiot for getting so worried. This was True Cross after all. He scaled the ladder quickly, still mentally kicking himself for forgetting just how soft the teachers here were on their students. Samael would throw a fit if all those rich donor parents pulled out because the exorcist cram school was too hard on their kids. In these classrooms, there were no threats. Maybe if he reminded himself of that fact seventy more times he’d start to believe it.

When he got to the top, two other boys quickly jogged up to him. The bald one and the pink one whose names were…something or other. “What happened down there?” The bald one started. “Is Bon okay?”

"Yeah, he's fine. What's that guy's deal, anyway?" Rin huffed, hoping these guys were the chatty type.

Pinky winced. "Ooh, boy...Bon's a pretty intense guy, y'know? He works real hard to get where he is. He can't stand guys who just coast on by."

"He's the young master of our temple in Kyoto, the Myo Dha sect." Bald explains. "It used to be pretty prosperous until...the Blue Night. It lost all of its worshippers and the temple fell on hard times. We've had to work twice as hard just to get to this point. So, it's a sore spot when people don't try."

It was Rin's turn to wince. Always nice to be reminded that his birth incited mass suffering for all the humans he hung out with. "Yeesh, yeah, that sucks. Are you guys his brothers, then?"

Pinky burst out into wild laughter and Bald had the courtesy to look politely remiss. "No, just childhood friends. Our families were part of the sect so he's our dear young master."

"And the 'Bon' nickname..."

"What are you tellin' this guy?" Suguro growled from behind them.

Rin spun around and raised a brow at the other teen. His chest was still slightly heaving, a shine to his forehead. Guess he had a good time with the leaper. "Nothin'," he said at the same time Bald and Pinky chimed in.

"Just making sure you're okay!" From Bald.

"The Blue Night." From Pinky.

Suguro's face grew doubly flushed and he shouldered his way up to his friends. "Why are you telling him about that?"

Bald's mouth was moving but he wasn't saying anything so Rin decided to come to the rescue. "I was just wondering what makes a guy like you tick. I need to know if I should watch out for more flyin' kicks." He said it as a joke but Suguro didn't find it funny.

"You'll only have to watch your back if you keep goofing off in class. That kind of attitude gets people killed you know."

Rin rolled his eyes but before he could respond their teacher interrupted. Going on about some "kitten" that needed his attention? He claimed the Paladin would be sent in to watch over them in his absence but pretty much sprinted to the door. Talk about unreliable. "Anyway," Rin continued, "what makes you so sure I'm goofin' off? I'm trying my best too." A blatant lie, but the other teen didn't have to know that.

Suguro's lip was starting to curl. His eyes darted over to the pit and something in his attitude straightened up. "Oh yeah? Then why don't we prove just how dedicated we are. We'll both go up and touch a leaper. Whoever chickens out first wins."

"You're on!" Rin snorted, rocking back on his heels. "Is what you thought I'd say. Like hell am I risking my place here just to prove myself to you."

That flush on Suguro's cheeks pooled even higher on his face, his forehead a brilliant crimson. "You're just scared!" He said, shoving a finger at Rin. "Watch how a real man does it." And before anyone could convince him otherwise, he was climbing back down into the pit.

"You're gonna hurt yourself." Rin called lazily after him.

"Bon, come back!" Bald cried.

Pinky whistled. "Aim for the eyes, Bon!"

At all the commotion, the girls finally wandered over. Izumo cast one sharp look down at Suguro before turning that biting gaze up to Rin. "Why's that guy back in the pit?"

"He's trying to prove himself." Rin shrugged.

Izumo scoffed, a harsh mutter of "boys," under her breath.

Suguro stepped forwards towards the leapers in their cages. Stance wide and tension billowing off of his form. "I'll show you! I'll show all of you! 'Cause I'm going to be the one to take down Satan once and for all!"

The resounding silence was made all the louder by Izumo's sudden laughter. Rin was tempted to join her.

What was Suguro thinking? Satan couldn't be defeated. Not with big brother Lucifer's help and not with Rin standing by as his father's ultimate weapon. As the extension of Satan, Rin knew that as hard as Suguro had worked so far, they were on entirely different levels. Izumo's laughter pitched even higher and Rin found himself wishing that would be enough to get Suguro to give up on this dream. If only because he wasn't sure he could stand the sight of Suguro's blood on his hands.

"That's your dream? How childish and stupid can someone get?" Izumo chuckled.

Suguro hesitated, and that's all it took.

The leaper lunged and Rin jerked to lunge after it. A hand fisted itself in his shirt and yanked him back into place just as Paladin Fujimoto dropped from the observation deck and got in between Suguro and the rogue demon.

The older man was saying something to the teen but Rin couldn't hear it over the blood still rushing in his ears. He glanced back and found Izumo, her knuckles white where she held onto him. She very subtly shook her head.

Rin swallowed back the adrenaline and forced himself to relax. He nodded back, falling into a more neutral posture. He was a normal cram school student. Completely ordinary with ordinary human reactions.

When Fujimoto and Suguro got back up to the rest of the class, the other boy looked thoroughly rattled. The Paladin gave him one more pat on the back before nudging him towards his friends. Fujimoto cleared his throat and turned to address the rest of them. "Now, while it is very dumb to put your life on the line for the sake of pride, it's also very silly to laugh at someone's dream."

Izumo flushed, her arms crossing in a huff.

"Everyone has a drive, something that gets 'em out of bed every day ready to face the hell that is being an exorcist. They have to, or else no one'd take this job." The Paladin continued. "Dreams are a powerful thing, and I'd encourage each of you to seriously consider what it is that's keeping you here. Judge your own reasons before you judge someone else's. And you never know, something that seems impossible," those deep red eyes slid over to Rin and he felt himself bristle, "could still come true."

The Paladin let them sit in chastised quiet for a few seconds before clapping his hands. "Now! How about we finish up with some core strengthening exercises for today!" He was met with a chorus of groans from his students.

///\\\///\\\

When Rin was put back in his cell he didn't make it to his bed before his young body collapsed to the ground. His skin itched unpleasantly, stinging from fresh welts and cuts that littered his arms and legs.

He felt himself change, flames flaring to life around him as his demon heart took over to try and heal things up as best as it could. It didn't help. It just made him feel even hotter, his throat so dry he was amazed it hadn't torn itself open yet.

He limped his arm through the air until he caught the edge of his blanket. Pulling it down to where he was curled on the floor was an exercise in pain tolerance like nothing his trainers could ever imagine. Despite all the heat pouring off of him, he still shivered as he clutched onto his blanket. Curling around it for dear life.

The worst part was knowing he had more training in the morning. The eight year old would get only a short break where he would feel just a little bit better and then his trainers would be back again.

He couldn't complain, though. Because who'd ever heard of a sword or a gun getting tired?

Rin wasn't allowed to be weak. That's all there was to it. So he swallowed down all his ugly tears and disgusting loneliness and focused on healing. He had to be the very best so his dad could have a good body to use.

There was no other choice.

Chapter Text

For the record, Izumo knew the weekend training was going to be hell when fucking Okumura Yukio had announced in front of their whole class that he would be holding a boot camp for everybody. He'd stood at the board, back straight—though she could just barely see how his thumb kept darting over his knuckles behind him—and kept sneaking glances over to Moriyama. And the girl kept blushing.

"Ah, Izumo...is that your teeth grinding?" Paku whispered at her side.

Izumo forced her jaw to unclench. "If I have to watch those two idiots moon over each other for 48 hours straight I'm going to punch somebody."

Okumura kept on talking. "Once class is out for the day, please gather your things from your homes and meet me and my father at the Old Boys dorm on campus. In the meantime, I'll leave you in the hands of Neuhaus-sensei for your lesson." With a final wave to Moriyama (oh, look, Izumo's teeth were grinding again) their young teacher stepped out of the room and Neuhaus shuffled in.

Their taming teacher always looked rough, but he looked especially grouchy that evening. Still, he was one of the finest tamers of Japan, and Izumo knew he was the one to have the knowledge she sought. If anyone would know how to foster a connection to powerful demons, it would be him. She just had to impress him enough to gain his interest.

Neuhaus had them shove all the desks out of the way before he passed out pre-drawn summoning circles. "What matters above all else in taming," he said, sketching out a quick chalk circle on the floor, "is will power and intent. You have to know what you want, and you better want it like your life depends on it. Because it does." When he let his blood drip onto the circle, the stench of rot wafted throughout the classroom even before he finished his prayer.

The canine naberius he summoned was a wretched thing. It rankled on her like all rot-aligned demons tended to. Even as the bloodline of Inari had been watered down by generations of humans, they were still, at their cores, denizens of the harvest. Aligned with wind and light, the opposite to rot and earth. She was very thankful when Neuhaus dismissed his summon with a quick scuff of his shoe.

"Now, let's see what you lot can do."

Izumo watched as the rest of her classmates pricked their fingers and half-heartedly attempted to summon anything. Suguro's forehead was pinched and despite his sole efforts, nothing happened with his paper. She spared an ear to Rin's mumblings and she was pretty sure he was just making up fake words. Geez, he was a terrible actor, not even looking disappointed when no demon appeared. He could at least try to look like he was trying.

She cleared her throat. "Maybe a second demonstration will help." Once she was sure she had every eye in the room, she pulled her own pre-drawn paper and called forth her brothers Uke and Mike. The second they materialized she felt herself loose a tension in her shoulders she hadn't even noticed.

Neuhaus nodded, his mouth a fine line. "Two byakko at once, not bad miss Kamiki."

Perfect! Just what she needed. Now he was sure to answer her questions on summoning. She puffed out her chest with pride. "Well, I am the daughter of a shrine maiden after all. If I couldn't at least do this, that'd be pathetic."

"Way to go Izumo!" Paku cheered quietly. The praise only making Izumo's heart shine brighter.

Before anyone else could comment, Moriyama gripped her paper with both hands. "Intent and will...um...come out, come out wherever you are...just kidding."

With a pop of smoke Izumo registered the scent of sun-warmed earth before her eyes caught up with the reality in front of her.

"A baby greenman, incredibly impressive, miss Moriyama!" Neuhaus said, his one visible eye brightening with interest.

Moriyama was practically glowing. Her blonde hair matching just how wide her smile stretched. It was as if someone had bottled up a bit of sunlight from mid-summer, just to set it free. The worst part—worse than being upstaged, of having her one measly talent blown out of the water by a newbie who tried to run in a kimono, of losing her perfect shot for the next step in her mission—was that Moriyama immediately turned to Izumo with that smile.

"Kamiki-san!" The other girl squeaked, "it looks like we're both tamers, then!"

"Your familiar really suits you." Izumo said back. She meant it to be a biting remark, yet another snub to get that smile to turn to someone worth its light. But her words fell flat and genuine.

Moriyama ducked her head, cheeks pinking. "You really think so? That's very kind of you to say."

Save your shyness for your boyfriend, she wanted to spit. She didn't get the chance to respond before Neuhaus clapped his hands.

"Now that most of you have failed the practical part of class, we can move on to theory. Everyone, get out your notebooks."

After class, Izumo and Noriko were discussing their plans for what to bring to the weekend boot camp. It was easy conversation and they liked to walk the halls a little bit for some private time while everyone else in their class bolted for the exit. The halls were blessedly empty until a high pitched voice called out to them.

"A-ah, Kamiki-san! Paku-san! Wait for me, please!" And of course it was Moriyama looking red in the face—was she ever not?—hurrying up behind them. "I- I just- I wanted to-"

“Noriko,” Izumi interrupted, “can this be a private conversation? Please?”

Her long time friend blinked, looking more confused than hurt. She was a good friend like that. Still, she smiled and said, “of course Izumo, I need to get a start on packing. See you later?”

Izumo nodded. “Yeah, see you.” And with a final little wave goodbye, it was just Izumo and Moriyama alone in the red and green halls of True Cross. The blonde opened her mouth but Izumo beat her to the punch. “Before you say anything, listen to me first, alright?”

Moriyama swallowed, her hands clasped tight in front of her. She nodded, sharply, looking weirdly intense.

"If this is about that apology you're not getting it right now. I'll do it in front of your mom so she doesn't pester either of us about it." She said, pretending to inspect the ends of one of her ponytails. She figured that's the type of thing a confident, spoiled exorcist from a long line of tamers would say.

The other girl looked confused, her brows still pulled in low over her eyes. She caught her lip between her teeth. "No- I, actually...I was wondering if you and me could be...friends?"

Izumo was pretty sure she'd missed something. Maybe the echo in these stupid hallways threw the sound way off. "...Excuse me?"

"Well- well I mean since we're both tamers and everything and...girls should stick together, right? Would it be- I mean, can we be friends?" Moriyama looked up through golden lashes. Her body tense and waiting for...something. Izumo couldn't say what.

"Why would we be friends?" Izumo said, her own confusion twisting her face into a grimace. Those bright green eyes jolted up around a crumbling expression. Izumo turned back to stare at her hair to save herself the heartache. "I haven't exactly been kind to you, you know. Take a hint."

Now it was her turn to wait. Her fingers fiddling with her dark hair, only growing more agitated as the silence stretched. Where was the crying? The cursing? When would Moriyama give up?

"But...Kamiki-san...you've already shown me a great kindness." The girl in question whispered. "My whole life, my mother, even my grandmother, they think I'm delicate. That if I see too much of something I'll just break so they keep pushing more cushions and padding around me. When people look at me, they see a frail girl. But you- you saw someone strong enough for the truth. You tore away those cushions and trusted that if I fell I could land on my own two feet, right?"

Izumo couldn't speak. She was rendered silent by those green eyes, beautiful and solid like the roots of a grand tree. The way Moriyama talked...like Izumo could actually be someone capable of saving someone. Yeah, right. She scoffed, mask back in place, though her voice was strained when she used it. "Idiot, I said all that because if you fell and shattered all over the floor it wouldn't be my problem. I just can't stand people that force everyone into their fantasies and lies." How often had her mother kept up the lies that doomed her? It was better for everyone to live in a true world, even if it's cruel.

Moriyama smiled then, though her eyes still looked misty. "You're right, it would've been my problem. That's why I want to be friends with you Kamiki-san, you let me have my own problems. Not everyone can be that kind."

"Fine," Izumo turned on her heel to run away from those damned eyes and to shield her own darkening cheeks. "We can be friends. But for the record, I'm not kind, and I'm not going to magically start being nice to you, either."

She couldn't see the face Moriyama was making, but when the other girl spoke it sounded like she was beaming. "I'm so glad! I'll- I'll see you at camp, Kamiki-san!"

Izumo clicked her teeth, keeping her gaze ahead. One moment of weakness and now she had a new "friend". She didn't know how, and she didn't know why, but she knew that this decision was going to seriously bite her in the ass later.

///\\\///\\\

"People didn't like me." Izumo whispered, freshly 13 and given an extra thirty minutes for a lunch with the only other hellspawn in the facility for her present. "Outside, I mean. Not that much has changed since I came here."

"Why?" Rin asked, head tilted just a little bit. He was always so genuine with his curiosity.

Izumo shrugged with one shoulder. Rolling one grain of rice from one end of her plate to the other. "I'm difficult, hard to get along with. Too proud."

Her friend hummed but nodded to himself a second later, decisive. "Well then those other people probably weren't trying hard enough. 'Cause you're really easy to like, Izumo."

All of the strength she had gathered fell to pieces in her chest. Fat tears gathered in her eyes and refused to leave no matter how many times she blinked. "Stupid...don't say things like that." Don't give me hope.

///\\\///\\\

Her fears materialized that very night. Fujimoto-sensei had dismissed them to clean up while he, Okumura, and Rin worked on getting dinner ready. Why Rin agreed to do more work instead of lounge around with everyone else, Izumo couldn't say. He always liked feeling useful. But still, to hang out with their teachers? Was he gathering intel?

But anyway, Noriko had said she wanted to enjoy the bath while they could and of course Moriyama was invited as the only other girl in their class.

She tried not to feel weird about sharing a bath so soon, but she caught the edge of Moriyama's shirt fluttering to the ground behind her and a lot of her nerves were swiftly replaced with interest.

Izumo bit down sharply on her own tongue, tasting iron. Idiot! Moriyama had a boyfriend! This is just a normal hang out between girls! Stop getting ideas!

"Oh, wow, this water's so nice!" Noriko sighed, thankfully drawing the attention back to the bath rather than...other things.

The sound of water gently lapping away at the tile grew a little louder, Moriyama joining Noriko. "You're right! This is heavenly...I wish Nee-chan could enjoy this."

"His roots would grow mold if left to soak in hot water for too long." Izumo said, taking her hair down and grabbing a towel from one of the shelves before joining them. "It's bad for their health."

Moriyama blinked up at her, her mouth open in a cute little 'oh'. "You're so knowledgable Kamiki-san...! I didn't know that Nee-chan had any kind of temperature sensitivity."

Izumo sank into the water and felt the warmth pour into her skin. This really was nice. "He's part of the earth domain so fire and water are going to be particularly effective against him. Though, he is a Greenman, so a little soaking could be nice. Just don't overdo it." She tossed her dampened hair over her shoulder to get it off of her neck.

"That's our Izumo," Noriko chuckled, "always three steps ahead and acting like all that effort is no big deal."

"Wh- it isn't!" Izumo insisted, her cheeks flushing as Moriyama started to giggle. "It's- you'll get it soon, Noriko don't worry. I'm sure the domains are part of the next demonology class."

Her friend snorted some more laughter and playfully sent a little splash her way. "I'm not worried, because you're going to help me with my notes anyway, right?" Noriko grinned. "Moriyama-chan, don't let her fool you, she's a really great tutor."

"I'm just helping you catch up! You could do it on your own, it's not a big deal." Izumo sniffed, ignoring how warm her face still felt. It was just the water, alright!

"Maybe the three of us could study together?" Moriyama said.

Noriko gasped and clapped her hands together. "That's a great idea! Here, help me convince Izumo. Hold your hands just like this...and..."

Izumo peeked an eye open and caught two of the most pitiful puppy-dog stares she'd ever seen in her life. Warm, homey brown and brilliant, steady green. Her friends leaning so far over towards her she was half convinced they were about to topple over.

In unison they said, "please?"

"Fine!" Her face was so scarlet she could give Tsukomo in the middle of a tantrum a run for her money. "Just-! Knock it off!" They were too good at getting to her! She couldn't handle their pleading faces for even one second longer!

Noriko leaned back with a bright smile. "Thank you Izumo-chan!"

"Th-thank you Kamiki-san!"

"Moriyama-chan, you should've seen Izumo back in elementary school. There was this one time-"

No...Noriko wouldn't-!

"-in culinary arts club the cookbooks along the back wall were getting unorganized so-"

AUGH! SHE WOULD!

With a screech of embarrassment Izumo launched a wave of water at her friend. "Don't go telling that story to Moriyama!"

The blonde in question spluttered from the crossfire, still somehow smiling. "No, wait, now I really want to hear it!"

"Don't you dare," Izumo pointed as stern a finger as she could at the brunette.

Noriko tapped at her chin, humming lightly to herself as if seriously mulling the decision over. "I don't know..."

"Please Paku-san!" Moriyama said.

Somewhere in between one waft of steam from the bath and the next the stench of slick rot engulfed the space. Izumo went rigid, her ears pricking to try and catch- there!

"Get down!" She yelled, shoving forward to push her friends—her friends—out of the way before-

There was barely a growl of warning before a blur of dark green-grey fell into the bath. Pain slicing a path up her back. Fresh, peppery blood caught the air, piercing through the heavy blanket of rot. Izumo felt the slip of warm skin under her hands, the waves still rocking her body. Noriko was under her, face just barely staying above water, eyebrows pinched in agony.

Izumo could almost trace the line from her own back, raking over her hip, before jumping down to complete its path buried in Noriko's side. The edges of the wound that she could see already flaking into nearly-black specks as necrosis set in. A canine naberius snarl came from behind her. Yet she couldn't take her eyes away from Noriko. Noriko bleeding. Noriko hurt.

A warm hand shoved hard at her shoulder and it was only then Izumo recognized she was screaming.

Chapter Text

Class? Boring. It was usually supremely boring and today was even worse. So boring Rin had the conscious thought that it would be better for his long term health if he ran into a wall. He wished he was the sort that could doze away a lesson, but even though this was True Cross, and therefore a hell of a lot more lenient, he still felt residual fear around teachers.

Thankfully, their nerdy mini-teacher had announced a weekend boot camp. He got to spend the rest of the class day dreaming about that rather than paying attention to tamer stuff. Izumo would pout at him for snubbing her personal method of demon fighting but Gehenna below, it’s just so boring!

All about will and intent blah blah blah it was just being an aria with extra steps! It still left the summoner super weak and reliant on their team to keep them alive, not to mention what would happen if any one of the summons turned against their summoners. It just wasn’t practical. In his very humble opinion. And he definitely didn’t feel weird and uncomfortable every time he had to stare at a demon twitching against the bonds of the summoning, alright? Nope, not easy to empathize with or pity at all.

Once class was out he basically sprinted back to his dorm to pack a bag.

“What’s got you in such a rush?” His roommate Godaiin asked.

Rin grinned as he tried to shove all his clothes into one bag. “I’ve got a weekend boot camp!” He announced proudly. And then, remembering that most normal people don't have that kind of thing, "for the cooking extracurricular.”

Godaiin grimaced in sympathy. "Good luck, Okamoto. I've heard the chefs are really intense about cooking."

"Yeah," Rin said absently, "they can be real pushy. But what can ya do. They make the rules."

Godaiin hummed in idle agreement before perking up. "Hey! Bring me back something tasty from all that cooking?"

Rin winced internally. He really needed to get better at lying. "Sure thing, man. Any requests?" Maybe he could pick something up from a restaurant?

"Not really, I enjoy a lot of things! Just whatever you can spare from your lessons."

"Roger that," Rin sighed. Mentally kicking himself. He made a few more token goodbyes before hoisting his over-full bag onto one shoulder and slipping out of the room.

When he finally got to the Old Boy's Dorm later that evening, he was greeted enthusiastically by their weird mini-teacher.

"Take any room you'd like on the third floor. We'll be having dinner together tonight and then resting up before our weekend training." Okumura smiled as he said it. Something was weird with that guy, Rin was sure. He couldn't place his finger on what, but looking at Okumura's face made him feel weird.

"Cool, thanks," Rin nodded, brushing past the older boy quickly. He found a solo room up the stairs without any trouble. He was pretty excited to have a space just for himself! He hadn't been able to really let his tail out to stretch in the past few weeks at school. Sure, he had a boring human roommate who probably wouldn't be able to see it anyway, but that was a risk he couldn't afford to take. It'd be sore as hell for a while, but he was too excited to really care.

He finished unpacking the necessities and was headed towards the cafeteria for their shared dinner when he spotted the Paladin leaning faux-casually against the wall ahead of him.

The old man caught his gaze and offered a two-fingered salute. "Yo, Okamoto. You got a second to indulge a crotchety geezer in some conversation?"

Rin did his best not to let his unease show on his face. He let his brows furrow. That could be read as genuine confusion so it was allowed to filter through. "Uh, sure sensei. Can I help you?"

Paladin Fujimoto sauntered up to his side. "Let's walk," he nodded down the hall and began to saunter on without checking that Rin was following. "I wanted to apologize."

"For- what?" Rin hated how he stumbled over his own question. Stupid!

"For scaring you. It's pretty clear you're on edge around me." Fujimoto sighed. "I can't blame you. I practically cornered you on your first day at cram school sniffing about your heritage. Must be scary having the Paladin breathing down your neck when you grew up the way you did."

An actual chord of fear struck true near the base of Rin's spine. This old bat knows!? What does he know? He forced himself to take careful breaths, rolling his eyes and turning to stare out the passing windows. "Nah, you don't scare me like that." He heard himself say. "You're just a very weird guy, Fujimoto-sensei."

"I can't deny that!" The old man in question chortled. "Hey, since you're doing me favours anyway, how about you help Yukio and I make some dinner for everyone?"

"Oh, I- I wouldn't want to intrude on your family time. Plus I don't know how to cook, I'd just get in your way."

A hearty slap on the teenager's back was the only warning he got before Fujimoto was laughing again. "You wouldn't be intruding! These are purely selfish motives, I assure you. My darling son doesn't have a lot of friends, you see. And since you've already proved how comfortable you are in the world of Exorcists, I'd appreciate it if you'd give Yukio a chance to have a real friend his own age who knows what he's going through."

Rin snorted. Yeah, okay, sure. He'd totally befriend their weird, nerdy four-eyed mini-teacher. He'd at least make a reasonable effort, but he doubted they'd actually get along all that well. He had a feeling they'd have more in common with snails than each other.

Before he could say anything, though, Fujimoto spoke up again. "And, of course, I'm sure you have plenty of questions of your own." He let his glasses slip down his nose and those blood red eyes pinned Rin in place.

That old man's face...god, it was so familiar! Rin squinted, wracking his brain to try and line up the features on his teacher's face to whatever was tickling the back of his memories. And, what did he mean by that? Did he actually know Rin was a spy for the Illuminati? Was he playing some kind of game? Waiting for Rin to take some bait or react some way? He didn't know.

The teen sniffed, rubbing at his nose. Super nonchalant. At the very least he could actually get something for Godaiin now. "Yeah, sure. But if I set the kitchen on fire you better take responsibility for trusting me in the first place."

Fujimoto snorted, dropping a hand into Rin's dark hair and ruffling the locks before a now-squawking teenager could swat his hand away. "I don't think I'll be regretting my choices any time soon, kid. Stop trying to act cool, you suck at it."

"Oi!" Rin felt his ears burning. First his hair and now his pride? This old man was ruthless! "I'm probably the coolest person in the entire class! It's not even a competition."

"Yeah, 'cause they're smokin' your ass like crazy."

"OI!" His voice cracked from jumping so high in his throat and wow! Rin would like to keel over dead now!

Fujimoto snickered into his hand. Old bastard. "I'm glad to see you finally act your age. You could stand to loosen up some more. Now c'mon, we got dinner to make."

In the cafeteria Rin caught Izumo's look from across the room. Their teacher was announcing the plan but he was more focused on the way her nose scrunched. She turned one supremely arched brow his way, the rest of her face pinched with distaste. He could practically hear her drawling, "really?"

When Paku and that new blonde one grabbed her arms to pull her off somewhere Rin sent Izumo his own raised brows. They'd have to meet up somewhere quiet later to hash out what had happened in the last few hours. And calling it a "debriefing" sounded much cooler than "gossiping" even if the latter was much closer to what they usually ended up doing.

He must've lingered too long because he jumped when a hand landed on his shoulder. "Get a move on Okamoto," Fujimoto said, breezing past, "you gotta make yourself useful!"

Rin...paused.

Automatically all the parts that made up "Rin" were tucked away somewhere too far to reach. Useful. Yes, how could he forget?

He followed after Teacher into the kitchen. There was another person there. Threat? No. Not yet, anyway. The space was rather small, two stretches of counter facing each other and a walkway between them. The far counter was interrupted by things like stoves and sinks and refrigerators. He noted the pans, knives, mallets, and controls for the stove. There was a board and a knife set up next to a small pile of assorted vegetables.

"If I remember right, you've already submitted a request to train as a Knight. So knife-work shouldn't be too hard for you." Teacher said. "Start by slicing up the carrots into thin strips. I gotta grab the rest of the ingredients from downstairs."

The task registered and he nodded. He picked up a carrot. He slid the knife down the flesh vertically to the tune of Teacher's retreating footsteps. Each cut one centimetre from the rest. When one side was done, he rolled them 90 degrees and repeated the actions. Perfect rectangular prisms that finally fell out of line when he lopped off the gnarled head of the plant.

No need for that mess.

"I see my dad's roped you into this." Other said. Voice kept deliberately quiet. "He can be kind of pushy, but he means well. Did he say why he wanted you to help?"

"He said you needed friends." He shrugged. Another carrot on the block.

Other didn't like that answer. Eyebrows drawing together and jaw setting just slightly forward. Frustration. Disappointment. "No offence, but I don't think teachers and students can be friends in a true, deeper sense of the word. It's a conflict of interests. To say it plainly, I don't think we'll be friends."

"I agree. But it's better if we play along." Slide thunk- slide thunk- slide.

"Maybe," Other sighed. "My dad thinks cooking's the solution for everything. He had me start doing it when I was younger. He said it'd be good to develop a sense of control and confidence. It's a good skill to have, but not one I'm particularly drawn to."

He didn't have anything to say to that. Maybe Rin would. Maybe Rin would say that even though he'd only been chopping carrots for five minutes, it was actually pretty soothing. He didn't say anything, though.

Other took one of the other vegetables and worked on peeling it open. Papery white skin flaking off at the softest touch. "Don't worry about trying to make him happy. I'll talk to him later about the whole...friends thing. We can just focus on cooking."

Teacher decided to make himself known again, carrying a large slab of meat in one hand. "What's this about cooking?"

"Just telling Nobuhiko about the benefits of making cooking a hobby." Other said with a little chuckle at the end. Damn. That kid was good.

He hummed in agreement. They were playing along, then. "Yukio made some strong arguments."

"Atta boy!" Teacher laughed, coming in close to sling an arm over Other's shoulders. "And did he mention that being a good cook is a real hit with the ladies?"

"Dad!" Other spluttered.

"What? It's true! Isn't that right, Okamoto? Hey...Okamoto?"

He ignored their teasing, ears pricking to attention as a deep, rumbling growl drifted through the walls of the dorm. He was moving before the screams started, knife kept tight in his grip. He could hear the sound of people cursing after him, panicked footsteps, but put them out of mind.

He skidded hard into the hallway, his shoulder slamming into the far wall. He used it to launch further down the hall. Following the sounds of shouting and growling all the way to a bathroom. He didn't bother reading the sign on the door. Ramming through the offending wood and tearing into the room.

Steam and fresh blood clogged his nostrils and made his head feel light. He could see three figures in the bath and his eyes honed in on one in particular.

Izumo.

Izumo, pressed up against the back of the bath, Paku behind her, her limbs flailing out to try and hit the snarling naberius prowling the waters between her and the blonde girl. Her face was open in pure fear.

Izumo was in danger.

///\\\///\\\

Big brother Lucifer usually stayed in his bed or his chair when he wanted to be up and about the ship. To see him standing—towering, really—above him made Rin start sweating right off the bat.

Lucifer gestured Rin closer and the teen hurried to close the distance between them. Falling down to his knees before his brother as expected. Head bowed. He had so, so many questions buzzing around his head, but he knew better than to speak first. Rin bit down hard on his lower lip to make sure it stayed shut.

"I'm giving you a special mission, little brother." Lucifer said. He never called Rin by his name. "You'll be allowed to roam about in the world, free to do as you please, so long as you follow this one, very important rule."

"What do you need me to do?" Rin breathed. Lucifer frowned in his own way at the interruption and Rin ducked his head back down.

Warm fingers caught onto his chin and turned his face back up to the radiant expression of his older brother. Lucifer never emoted—it was bad for keeping his vessels working—but he almost looked like he was smiling like this. "All you need to do, little brother, is keep Kamiki Izumo free from harm while she conducts her own mission at True Cross. Simple, right? I'm sure even you can manage it."

"I promise," Rin said, and he meant every word, "I won't let Izumo get hurt on my watch."

///\\\///\\\

The next thing he knew, strong arms were hooked under his armpits and hauling him- hauling- hauling Rin away from-

A last snarl tore it's way out of the half demon, the acrid knife in his hand twitching out in a final desperate swipe for the brutalized naberius corpse still spasming against the bathroom tiles.

"O-Okamoto! Calm down!" Their mini-teacher, Yukio, said right in Rin's ear. "You- it's already been neutralized. Relax, there's no other demons here."

Being pressed so tight to the other boy's chest made him realize how out of whack his breathing was. Rin forced it to settle with a harsh breath of air. "S-sorry, I- are the girls okay?"

Yukio's grip loosened ever so slightly—amateur, Rin couldn't help but think. "Father Fujimoto is tending to them behind the lockers over there." Yukio said, his voice low. Just low enough for the other sounds in the room to filter through. Harsh breathing mixing with pained whines, an older voice murmuring something under their breath.

Rin pushed out of the mini-teacher's grip, ignoring the whispered protests he got for it, scrambling on all fours to the other side of the lockers. The sight made something in his chest crack with the force of ancient ice flows crashing together.

Izumo and Paku were both covered with towels for their modesty but the gnarly wounds on them stood out stark on their pale skin. Dark red blood fell in sluggish spurts from the gashes, hitting the floor with a viscous plop. The edges were caked in black, creeping blisters that stank of over-sweet rot.

"Iz- Kamiki!" He remembered himself at the last second, crawling closer to her side. He didn't even register the Paladin and the other girl until a wrinkled hand blocked his path to Izumo.

"Stay back, Okamoto. Their injuries are infected, until we get the rot stabilized, they're very dangerous to be near." Fujimoto said. His face drained of his usual cheer so thoroughly that Rin almost didn't recognize him. "I need to go get some emergency herbs, Yukio, keep watch."

The blonde girl, kneeling next to Paku's side and looking extremely harried in a towel surged forward. "W-wait! I can- I- I think- Nee-chan! I need your help!" Her eyes squeezed shut and her hands clasped together in prayer. Her familiar puffed into existence and her watery smile seemed to brighten the entire room around her. "Can you get us some Mr. Sancho?"

The familiar chirped happily, bending back as large, spiked leaves spilled out of its leafy body. "Thank you!" The girl managed through her now free-flowing tears.

"Very good, Miss Moriyama. This is exactly what we need." Fujimoto's steely expression rusted away into something warmer. "Yukio, please help me apply this to Miss Kamiki and Miss Paku."

Rin and Moriyama were gently nudged away from the other two students while their teachers got to work treating their injuries. Cold water was pouring down Rin's throat, filling his belly so wholly with its frigidness that each beat of his heart sent the waves churning. Guilt.

How could he have let this happen? Izumo was supposed to be safe. She trusted him to watch out for her and he was too busy playing stupid, stupid games with their teachers and she got hurt.

Moriyama sniffled beside him. "I'm still shaking," she mumbled, "I- I couldn't do anything when it appeared...I just froze up and Izumo-san..."

"They'd be getting worse if you weren't here." Rin said, his eyes never leaving Izumo's form. "I should've been there, I was supposed to be there."

"But...you killed it? If it weren't for you who knows how bad it could've gotten."

Rin shuddered, one hand fisted over his belly while the other clenched tighter on the knife he still had. "I'm her friend." He managed, the words just barely making it out from his closed-off throat. "She shouldn't have gotten hurt at all."

Moriyama blinked up at him before her weak smile curled back over her face. "Maybe we can both be bad friends then." She said around a thin giggle. "I'm Moriyama Shiemi, I don't think we've officially met."

Rin watched as Fujimoto finally began to wrap Izumo in bandages and the teenager breathed a faint sigh of relief. He turned to Moriyama and made a pretty shitty attempt at matching her smile in return. "Okamoto Nobuhiko, wish we were officially meeting in literally any other circumstances."

He offered her a hand and she took it, giving it a gentle shake. "Me too, I know this is pretty normal for exorcists but I didn't think it'd start happening so soon." Moriyama admitted. She caught her bottom lip between her teeth, nibbling. "Maybe...once everyone's better, you could join us girls to study? Since you're their friend too."

Rin could easily imagine how mad Izumo would be if he crashed her girls-only time and pretended to consider the offer. "Yeah, I'll think about it."

The Paladin sighed loudly, cutting off the rest of their conversation. He sat back on his heels, looking for all the world like he'd gained two new wrinkles in the past twenty minutes. "They'll be just fine, kids. Me and Yukio will get them to a private room to monitor them over night. The best thing the two of you can do now is to get some rest yourselves. I'll ask some exorcists to bring over dinner from the cafeteria and have them delivered to everyone's rooms."

Rin and Moriyama let out twin breaths of relief. They sagged into one another and Rin found that he didn't mind the contact. Yukio bristled—why, Rin genuinely couldn't guess or care—and looking supremely frustrated that he couldn't rush over to them.

The two students in question stumbled out of the bathroom and bid each other goodbye as they split for their respective rooms. Rin made it to the dorm he'd claimed and when the door closed he sunk down against it with a shaky sigh.

He dug out his phone from his pocket and punched in the number he'd been forced to memorize with fingers that felt suddenly much too large and trembly for the task. When he finally got the number right, he hit dial and pressed the phone up to his face, trying and failing to steady his breathing.

The line clicked.

"I- I've failed. Kit-1 was badly injured by a naberius. Threat dispatched and Kit-1 under care of Queen." Rin said as evenly as he could manage.

There was a long stretch of silence. "Message received. Standby for further instructions."

The line went dead.

Rin pulled the phone from his ear. His body curling up and in on itself as his heart worked to slam itself up against his ribs like it had a death wish. He let the phone clatter to the ground, fingers winding up into his hair as he tucked his head between his knees.

He'd just failed his mission. He'd proven himself useless.

Rin knew what happened to useless tools. And it terrified him.

Chapter Text

It was often surprising, Izumo had found, how quickly all of her senses and faculties would return to her once she had woken up. It was an issue for the Illuminati scientists. They wanted to test their machines that deprived or tricked just one or two senses at once. It was usually easier to knock their subjects out and begin testing as consciousness trickled back.

Of course, Izumo once again found herself the exception. To everyone's mutual displeasure.

It's helpful here, though. As soon as the scent of antiseptic thinly veiling a creeping rot met her nose, she knew where she was and why. One of the dorms. It sounded like she was in here alone, no other sources of breathing, and she could vaguely hear her very loud classmates arguing about something one or two floors down.

Oh, Rin, she thought, something terrible wrenching closed around her chest. He'd come to her rescue, losing himself in the process. The Illuminati were very good at their jobs. He'd torn into the room and hacked at rotting flesh like a wild animal. He'd moved with such ferocity, but his blue eyes were dead in their sockets. She always hated seeing him like that. More than anything she hated that her closest friend had to become something awful due to her own weakness.

If she were a lesser girl, that was the type of thing that would make her cry.

Two seconds later and she was very glad she kept her eyes closed. There were the tell-tale plods of well-worn dress shoes coming down the hallway towards her room. She deliberately sucked in a breath and forced herself to go lax. When the door opened, she scrunched up her face and made a show of groaning softly before letting her eyes blink open.

"Ah, Kamiki-chan! Looks like you're awake." The overly cheerful voice of professor Fujimoto called from behind her. "I hope you got some good rest while I was checking up on your friend."

Noriko...she was okay then. That's one piece of good news, at least. Her fingers fisted tightly in the already rumpled sheets around her. "Fujimoto-sensei," she said, her voice crackling its way out of her throat.

He appeared in her vision with a chair that he propped up next to her bed. He fell back into it with a long sigh and the faint popping of bones. "How are you feeling?"

"I…" she tried to relax, shuffling around to try and sit up a bit. Pain still flickered up and down her back with each movement, but she could feel the pressure of bandages and something thicker beneath them. He was probably acting as her doctor, then. "It's painful."

Fujimoto nodded, looking at her with so much annoying pity it made her nauseous. "I can imagine. I was worried the rot may have seeped into your spinal cord given how deep the cuts were, but we managed to purify it quickly. You should give your friend Moriyama a big thank you for that later. Two days of fever and bedrest, and you'll be back to normal."

Moriyama saved her too? Izumo felt something odd roll to the surface of her churning stomach. Something so light it managed to rise to the bare lip of her esophagus. "I will," she said, whisper soft, "and Noriko…is she…?"

"Just fine. You took the worst of it. She's recovering just down the hall."

All the air shuddered out of her lungs. She slowly laid back down against the stiff pillows as tension bled steadily from her body. Thank you for this fortune Inari, she thought. As soon as her eyes slipped shut she was thrown right back into her memories of that night. Noriko's pale face, Moriyama's wails, the horrible sucking sound of bathwater squeezing itself in and out of the naberius' gaping flesh, Rin's gnarled snarl when the door splintered around him. "And...there was also..." She started.

"Okamoto?" Fujimoto had his arms crossed over his chest. "Yes, I did want to ask you about him."

Izumo did her best not to tense up too obviously. "Oh?" She heard herself say.

Her professor made a great show of harrumphing, sterning his face into that of a diligent teacher. She could see where his eyebrows folded down in the tell-tale soldier's arch, though. He wouldn't be fooling her so easily. "Yes, your sudden injury has been the most emotional I've ever seen him. I was starting to believe he really was just spacing out in class. But amateurs don't kill a demon like that. Amateurs don't really kill demons in the first place."

Damn it Rin! You were so close to passing under the radar! Izumo kept her teeth locked together. She hoped her involuntary eye-roll read as normal teenager-annoyed. Which she was. But she knew she couldn't really blame him. She hated every time the traitorous thought passed her by, but at some point Rin had grown tall in her heart next to the memories of her mother and sister. She couldn't say, if she were ever forced to choose, who she would pick first anymore.

"Maybe he's just a try-hard." She sniffed.

"That would probably do him some good!" Fujimoto said. "Ah, but where are my manners? Here, Kamiki-chan, lets get you something to drink first to help out that throat." He reached down to his hip and procured an old gourd. He popped the lid and held it out to her carefully.

The smell of it made her nose wrinkle. "What is that?"

"Silver vine tea. It's good for putting a little extra pep in your step. It'll also help keep your temperature elevated so you can better fight the rot. Plus, I expect you'll find a taste for the stuff." He smiled at her.

Izumo glanced between him and the lip of the bottle once more. She moved to take it from his hands and he let her. Good. She was 15, she could handle drinking her own tea. It was bitter, but it left a nice tartness behind, not unlike cherries. "It's good. Thank you, professor."

Fujimoto chuckled and scrubbed a hand through his hair. "Anything for one of my precious students! Now, are you ready to get down to business?"

"How thoughtful of you to ask," she muttered. "Yes, I'm ready."

The look of the soldier came back to him then, his teacher persona packed away. "You and Okamoto, you're friends, aren't you?"

Izumo scoffed and took another sip of the tea when it scratched her throat too hard. "I think that's a bit generous." Deny, deflect, discourage. She had a sinking suspicion he already knew way too much, but that didn't mean she had to go around confirming it.

"Still, he's attached to you. And for whatever reason the two of you have decided that that attachment has to be a secret."

"We're keeping secrets now? What, you think we're dating or something?" She snickered at the idea.

Fujimoto let his own chuckle join hers. "Or something," he agreed. "Frankly, that's what I'd prefer. But between you and me, I think we both know that's not the kind of attachment I'm talking about. I have my own guesses, but I'm not the kind of guy to put words in a nice young lady's mouth."

So that's it. He really wants her to admit they're working together. Well, fat chance. Rin had saved her from the naberius, so she could save Rin from some of Fujimoto's scrutiny. "Maybe we're dating, maybe not. Either way, I don't see why I have to tell you anything. It's none of your business and seems pretty far below your pay grade from where I'm standing."

"Well, you're not wrong!"

"Then get to your point." Izumo huffed. The tea really was helping a lot with making her feel more alert and in control of herself. Even if anxiety was making its prickling nest in her mind. "You wouldn't be asking like this if you didn't already know I wouldn't tell you upfront."

"Ah, Kamiki-chan, have you ever been told that you could stand to be cuter?" Fujimoto pretended to pout.

"Yes," she grit, Uke and Mike's teasing voices in her ears, "get to your point."

Her teacher sighed loudly before scooting his chair even closer to her bed. When he tipped his head down to meet her eyes she tensed as the colour of old, dead blood pierced into her. "Very well, I'll cut to the chase. I have a very, very personal stake in what I believe may be going on with you and Okamoto. I think someone very evil has already stolen and destroyed something very precious to me. And I think that someone is in the process of doing the same to you and Okamoto. I don't like to see children fighting in wars made by adults, and I especially hate to see children suffering and not realizing it. Call it my teacher-ly bleeding heart. So, I have an offer for you, Kamiki-san."

Numb, Izumo nodded. The smile she got in return sent chills racing down her arms.

Her professor held up two fingers. "You have two options. Either you agree to work with me as my eyes and ears, telling me everything about your mission at True Cross and I repay your kindness with all my own knowledge and resources at your disposal, keeping you safe from all backlash. Or, you keep your secrets, and I leave all the juiciest clues on the headmaster's desk and he gets to decide how things go." Fujimoto said.

She was sure, if she wasn't holding onto that stupid tea gourd so tightly the earth would have opened wide to chew her into bits already. Blackmail. He was fucking blackmailing her. "And," that shakiness was new, "you want me to choose now?"

He leaned back suddenly, all smiles and glittering glasses-charms once more. "Nah, I'm not that hard assed. I'll give you until your Exwire exam to decide. You can even talk it over with Okamoto, if you'd like."

"Yes, I'd-" she cursed under her breath, "I'll...think about it."

Fujimoto smiled at her, sharp as knives. "I know I may not always act like it, but I am the Paladin. I'm extremely powerful, with many powerful allies. I can handle your personal demon."

Izumo flinched physically at that, cursing herself once more. She was stronger than this, damnit! Her mouth twisted up into a disbelieving smirk, something safe. Donning her sharp, barbed insults like armour. "You have no idea what you'd be walking in to." She laughed.

His smile dulled into something she couldn't quite name. "Oh, Kamiki-chan...I think I have a better idea than anyone else."

He left before she could respond again, leaving her with the gourd to drink from. "I'll pick it up from you later when I come back to check up on you. For now, try to get some sleep."

Izumo fell back against her pillows and did her best not to cry. She'd blown her cover in less than a month. To the Paladin of all people. She was so, so screwed. She just had to hope she could protect Rin from the worst of it.

///\\\///\\\

Yukio Okumura was no stranger to the whims of teenagers. Despite what many people seemed to believe, he was one himself. He knew, logically, that teenagers tended to be impulsive, unreasonable, and driven more often by heightened emotions and hormones.

He knew all of this. And yet he had trouble accepting he was doing exactly the same things himself until Shura inevitably teased him for being "such a teenager!" Personally, he found that line of teasing to be quite the hypocrisy. She couldn't tease him for acting like a teenager and also tease him for acting like a stuck up old man! That was a logical fallacy! He knew she lacked shame, but this was a few steps beyond that.

So, he reasoned, he was behaving very well given the circumstances. Three students were attacked by a rogue naberius, a fourth exorcised a demon with a kitchen knife, the teacher responsible was being incredibly cagey about why his familiar got loose ahead of schedule, Yukio's own father was keeping him firmly out of whatever mystery had captured his attention, and to top it all off: Shiemi and Okamoto were getting far too friendly!

Yukio and Shiemi had been friends for years and now, suddenly, some random, broody, lackadaisical, slacker shows up and they're studying together?! Yukio was Shiemi's tutor! That was his job! Between Kamiki and Okamoto he wasn't sure which one's newfound bond with Shiemi upset him more.

Obviously Okamoto's, he'd tried to reason. Because that guy's an actual threat. Because Shiemi doesn't spare girls a second look.

...Right?!

More than anything Yukio wished he could talk about all this with his father. Shiro was usually all too happy to talk about girl troubles. And yet, as Yukio studies their exorcist class' lesson for the day from the false wall, he was the only one taking notes. The spot next to him where his father should be was empty.

He'd been behaving strangely since their first day of class, but for whatever reason he refused to tell Yukio what was happening. Yukio thought he wouldn't have to deal with this annoying habit anymore. He'd become an exorcist, strengthened his body and mind all for himself, and yet his father still treated him like a little boy.

Yukio had tried to get his dad to spill the beans more than once. Every time, Shiro would dance around the topic, find some new distraction, ruffle Yukio's hair, and walk away. Being the Paladin meant keeping a lot of secrets, but his father had promised...

If they became comrades, no more secrets. That was the deal. So far, Yukio had only really gotten one of those secrets pried out of Shiro's grip.

///\\\///\\\

It was late. Much too late for Yukio to really be awake. He'd just turned 13 that day and Shiro had closed the monastery early. They needed the money New Years and Christmas patrons brought in, but Shiro had just laughed and ruffled his hair when Yukio had asked about it.

They sat side by side on one of the pews. The other priests were busy in the kitchen preparing a very late dinner. Shura couldn't make the celebration until far into the evening, so they'd all agreed just to have the party later when she got there. Yukio wanted her to be there. She was basically his older sister and for all she liked to tease him, she would also be honest with him. She should be at his party.

"Dad," Yukio started not really knowing why and staring up at the candlelit pulpit. "Why do we dress in black for my birthday? Who are we grieving?"

His father sighed. And when Yukio looked he wasn't sure who had taken the place of the man. There was an old man sitting next to him, wearing all the pain and grief of Mother Mary. When Shiro caught him looking, his father still gave him a smile full of love and pulled him in close to his side.

Yukio curled against him, then. Indulging in something childish, just for the moment.

"It's not fair to you," Shiro murmured between gentle kisses on the top of his head. "I need you to know that all the love I have for you is real. It's not born out of pity or duty or anything like that. I love you because you are my beloved son. And I am a selfish old man."

"Dad?"

Shiro took a moment to simply have his face pressed in close to Yukio's head. "I am horribly selfish. To make you grieve your brother's death on a day when you should be celebrating."

Yukio's breath had caught in his throat. "Brother? I had a brother?"

"You did," his father said and Yukio felt his thoughts grind to a halt. Unbidden, Shiro continued. "When you two had just been born, there was...a horrific accident. Your brother passed mere minutes after you'd been named. It's okay if you hate me for forcing my own grief on you all these years. Though, I'm hoping in time you could have it in your heart to fight for yourself and fight in his honour. See how selfish I am?" Shiro laughed as if it'd erase how much anguish had found a home on his face.

Yukio wasn't sure what to say. He couldn't very well pledge to fight for an infant brother he'd never known, not immediately, even if it'd make his father happy. So, he asked something instead. "What was his name?"

Shiro smiled, his hug becoming a desperate hold as Yukio became his father's anchor. "His name was Rin."

Yukio let himself melt into his father's embrace. Turning a blind eye to the way small drops of wetness fell upon his head. He knew his father loved him fiercely. And now he knew what it would look like if he himself ever passed. It was almost a relief to know that he could be grieved like this. That his father loved so deeply, and that Yukio was the son being held so tightly. It was a horrible thought, but he was glad to be Shiro's one and only beloved son. He couldn't even imagine sharing.

Okumura Rin, he thought, I'm sorry, I hope you can forgive me for being selfish, too.

///\\\///\\\

Yukio frowned to himself, he'd unknowingly started chewing on his lip and rubbing at his knuckles. Shura called them his bad habit tells. He knew he shouldn't be getting distracted like this when he was supposed to be watching the students. He had to focus. He just needed to find a reason to have them all together in one room of the dorms-

"Oy! If you're gonna fight could ya take it out into the hallway?" The crackling voice of Okamoto Nobuhiko called out.

Sure enough, Shura in her disguise and the pink haired boy, Shima Renzou were posturing right over Okamoto's desk.

Shima let out an indignant noise of protest. "This guy was totally egging me on! Hey, Koneko, Bon, back me up here would ya?"

Yukio really would have to thank Shura for all her meddling one of these days. Smoothing down his exorcist robes, he slid out from his hiding spot to enter through the room's door properly. "I hope I'm not interrupting." He said with his best copy of the Paladin's grin.

From there, it was all too easy to spin a tale of whole group punishment. He lectured a bit on the importance of teamwork, hoping his script didn't sound too obvious, before offhandedly mentioning he'd be locking down the dorms for the next three hours.

Despite the idiot fronts they put up, both Shima and Okamoto eyed him up as he left. Surely they suspected something. But that wasn't Yukio's problem.

He took his spot up in the rafters with his coworkers and procured his own notebook. As expected, it didn't take long for the class to start gossiping and bickering between each other. Shima was the most outspoken of them all, though Yukio was pretty sure the other teen was only being annoying out of boredom.

Even sooner and the lights in the room flickered before dying completely. The students shouts of alarm drowned out by twin groans from the freshly summoned humanoid naberiuses.

The corpses shambled closer and Yukio would be lying if he said he wasn't tensing up. Shiemi took in a deep breath before calling, "Nee-chan!"

From her familiar's belly sprang large, thick roots that filled the room so thoroughly they became a wall. Yukio felt a flare of pride in his gut before Shiemi collapsed under the strain of summoning so much at once. She had really come quite far in such a short time...he made sure to note her amazing potential in his review.

It wouldn't hold forever, but thankfully Konekomaru and Suguro seemed to have a handle on things. "Koneko, you start with the beginning, and I'll start from the middle. We're bound to hit the Fatal Verse eventually."

"Yeah, and the naberius are gonna seriously freak!" Okamoto pointed out. "Who's gonna protect you while you try out every verse in the goddamn book?"

Suguro nodded over to Shima. "Shima, you've still got your K'rik, right?"

The teen in question nodded, though he looked incredibly nervous. "I may or may not have snuck it out from my brother's stuff...uh, but, Bon...I can't really..."

"Then hand it here." Okamoto said, butting in again. He had one hand out, gesturing impatiently for Shima to hand the weapon over. Yukio had the sudden urge to click his teeth. His dad thought he could be friends with a guy like that?

"Eh?" Shima asked, "no way! This is a family heirloom! I can't just give it to random guys in my class!"

It was hard to see through the darkness but Yukio was pretty sure Okamoto had just rolled his eyes. "Now ain't the time to be worryin' about shit like that! You can't use it, and I can. So hand it over before the naberiuses figure out how to chew through wood."

Shima was still hesitating when Suguro laid a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Give it to him, Shima."

"But Bon-!"

"He's our classmate, right?" Suguro interrupted. "Then we should put our trust in him. He says he can do it, so let him do it. Besides, I'll be relying on you to watch over Moriyama-san."

He was a good leader, Yukio noted. Easily able to defuse the situation and say just the right things to put people where they'd be most useful.

Shima still hesitated, but he eventually relented, passing the K'rik into Okamoto's waiting hands. The look Okamoto gave Suguro was an odd one. Something Yukio couldn't readily place. He would almost call it surprise, but the other teen was grinning before Yukio could really study his expression. "Thanks, Bon!"

"Don't mention it." Suguro huffed, dropping into a seated position with Konekomaru. They began to recite and, on queue, the demons beyond the wall began to screech in protest.

Yukio knew they'd be short on time. The Fatal Verse they were looking for was at the very end of the book, after all. Still, they had a strategy and were working together as a team. What else could a teacher really hope for?

The demons worked steadily at the wall of roots and when they eventually broke through, Okamoto was quick to beat them back. He didn't use the K'rik properly, in fact he seemed allergic to its actual functions. Instead wielding it more like a big, metal stick. Granted, it was working for him. But Yukio made a note that Okamoto could benefit from more specialized Knight training. His basics were solid, and if given a traditional pole arm, he could even be somewhat impressive.

But he could be doing so much more. Yukio wondered idly what the boy would look like with a sword in his hand.

Of course, the students managed to exorcise the demons right in the knick of time. Once both summons had been reduced to ash, the teachers made their grand reveal.

His father was supposed to be the one here, Yukio couldn't help but note disappointedly. But, of course, there were two horribly wounded students to care for. So he drew himself up high and gave his best smile to the gathered students.

"Congratulations!" He heard himself say. "You've all passed this exam! You can now be called exwires in training. Your real education is about to begin. I hope you're ready."

His students reacted in a few different ways. Most were relieved or cheering, though Shima looked kind of pouty still. Okamoto had gone to Shiemi's side and was carefully supporting her weight. Yukio pretended it didn't bother the hell out of him. He couldn't intervene. He had to stand tall as their teacher and fully separate himself from their personal lives.

It would be so much easier if his dad were here.

God, where was Shiro?

Chapter Text

As soon as Izumo had been cleared by the weird old man, Rin was chomping at the bit to get her alone so they could talk. But it’d attract too much attention if he was hanging around her room all the time, so he’d texted her that he’d be at one of the inner courtyards by the fountain.

He was about to go bouncing off the walls by the time Izumo actually made it to the fountain. She took her sweet time walking over, but while she’d rolled her eyes, she couldn’t quite smother how shaken she still looked. She took a seat next to him and sighed.

Rin stared straight into the side of her head. Willing her to say something, acknowledge something, so he didn’t have to break his terrible, awful, shitty-ass news first.

Izumo sighed again, louder. “Look. Neither of us have good news, but I know mine is worse so just spit it out already.”

“Hah? How do you know yours is worse? Mine is terrible!”

“Mine is catastrophic.” She insisted.

Rin puffed himself up in agitation. “Yeah? Well I called our handler and told them you were injured and that I failed so they could be showing up here any minute now to cancel the mission! Beat that!”

“They’re not going to care that I got injured.” Izumo said with a roll of her eyes. “Honestly, they were probably just annoyed you broke no-contact for that.”

Rin felt that self-same righteous anger well up inside of him. He hated how Izumo was so certain she was disposable and less-than everyone else. Because it just wasn’t true! “I promised my brother I wouldn’t let you get hurt.”

“Yes, and your brother never actually reads the mission reports unless it’s a dire emergency—which, I will remind you, it wasn’t.”

“It was!” Rin said, leaning into her space until she was forced to meet him head on. “It was absolutely an emergency! That naberius was brutal!”

Izumo’s stern outer layer softened under the heat of his gaze. She sighed, quieter this time, and as the air left her so did much of her bravado. She slumped into herself. “Even if I die, they have other options for the mission. I’m not special.”

Neither of them enjoyed the reminder of Izumo's sister. What Rin enjoyed even less was how certain Izumo looked as she said those horrible words. "You're special to me." He said.

"You-!" Her face was burning brightly but he refused to let her stop him from saying what needed to be said.

"It was an emergency when you got hurt. I was so scared! You don't know what you look like when you're hurt! It's scary!"

Izumo's face was brilliant red but she finally turned her dark red eyes his way, trying out her harshest glower. "That's rich coming from you. You want to talk about scary?" She jabbed a finger into his chest. "You've never seen yourself fly off the handle. That's scary. And I don't just mean how violent you get."

Rin frowned. He wasn't quite sure he was following. Izumo liked to leave some things out of what she said sometimes. He was always terrible at reading between the lines. "If I get hurt, I'll heal up super quick. You don't have to worry about me in a fight, Izumo!"

"That's not-!" Izumo cut herself off with a low growl. "That's not what I meant. But I'm still going to worry about you when you get hurt! If you get to worry about me, then I get to worry about you. Unless you have some reason why it has to be skewed one way?"

"Well," Rin started, unsure, "because I'm me, and Izumo is Izumo."

The look she sent him could level cities. "You aren't making any goddamn sense."

Rin huffed, crossing his arms over his chest with a sudden wave of self-consciousness. He wasn't sure how else he could say what he meant. How could he explain that Izumo was precious because she was Izumo? That he was fine because he'd been through worse and was better for it? That, fundamentally, her life was valuable? That his was signed away the moment he was created?

He didn't get the chance before she tossed her hair over her shoulder. "Onto worse news," Izumo grumbled. "The Paladin's suspicious of us."

"Well, yeah, I thought we knew that already?"

"When I was sick, he threatened to alert the headmaster if I didn't become a double agent for him."

"WHAT!?" Rin shrieked, jolting to his feet so quickly he nearly tumbled off of the fountain completely.

Face reddening again, Izumo grabbed his arm and yanked him back down next to her. "Shh! Keep it down!"

"Keep it down?" He whispered back, feeling a bit manic. "Keep it down? You're telling me to keep it down at a time like this?"

"Yes!" She hissed. "It's already bad enough to have the Paladin on our tail we don't need to draw any more attention to ourselves!"

She was right, but that only made Rin grimace harder. "What do we do?"

Izumo released her vice grip on his arm. She took in a deep breath to centre herself before letting it out slowly. "First, we need all the facts we can get. He said you'd be helping out in the kitchen for dinner during camp. Did he say anything to you?"

"Uh..." Rin wracked his brain to try and remember the finer details of their conversation four days ago. "He apologized for cornering me at the start of the school year and teased me a bit. Also asked me to be Okumura-kun's friend. I think he said something about me having questions for him but we never really got around to that."

Izumo hummed, thinking. "Did he do anything when he teased you? Would you say he acted like Fujimoto-sensei or...something else?"

"I dunno," Rin shrugged with one shoulder. Where was she going with this? "He messed up my hair and keeps saying stuff about how I need to 'act my age'? He's certainly weird. But he only ever says that stuff when we're alone."

Izumo's stare hardened and Rin got the distinct feeling of being a bug pinned to a decorative board. "Sounds like he likes you."

"Ew! Gross!" Rin leaned over and pretended to vomit all over his shoes. "Gross, gross, gross!"

Izumo shoved hard at his shoulder and he could hear her how hard she was blushing in her voice. "Not like that, moron! I mean it sounds like he has a soft spot for you. Like a parent, or something."

Between the two of them, Izumo was the expert on what parents were like. "For real? I just thought he was being weird."

"It's just a hunch," she shrugged, "but if I'm right, it would even the playing field a bit." Seeing his blank expression she continued. "If he's got a soft spot for you, then we can use that to get some power over him."

Rin hummed, thinking it over. It sounded like a good idea, the kind of thing the Illuminati would recommend for tactics. But he wasn't really sure how they were supposed to use a soft spot like that. Or, more accurately, he had no idea what to do to play into whatever idea Fujimoto-sensei had of him. "What do you want me to do?" Izumo was the better strategist between them, and he trusted her with everything he had. If she asked him to do something, he'd do it.

"He said you should try acting your age more, right? So, what if you tried to act more like his son?"

Rin grimaced. "No way in hell am I becoming a clone of the four-eyed-mini-sensei."

Izumo scoffed, picking at the ends of her hair. "You don't have to go that far. Just try approaching Fujimoto-sensei like a normal teenager. Ask about girl problems, or something. If he wants to hang out for whatever reason, say yes. Get in close, and get as much information as you can out of him."

He nodded sharply. He could definitely do that. "Are you gonna accept his offer?"

Izumo hesitated, and since he'd known her for so long, he could read the tension building a line along her shoulders. "I'm not sure yet. I think...I think we still need to get more information on him before I can make a hard decision."

"What happens if we can't find anything out before the Exwire exam?"

"I'm...I'll think about a back up plan." She said, eyes cast down to her shoes.

"If you haven't said yes or no before the exam," he started, "then you should say yes right at the last second. The headmaster is a demon king, and an especially annoying one at that. He might let you off if he thinks it's super fun to watch you squirm, but he'll probably be around and messing with you for the rest of your life. Fujimoto-sensei is human. And old. He'll only be able to cause problems for however many years he's got left."

Izumo bit her lip. With her head ducked it was hard to see the finer details of her expression. "Maybe you're right."

Rin put on his best grin for her. "Course I'm right! When it comes to the Ba'al, I've got the most info out there."

She takes in a deep breath, her back bowing with it, before she sits back upright. Her mask of confidence fixed back in place. "Right. We've got a plan. And we have time to think up of any better ones as we come into contact with our enemies further."

"Yeah, that's more like it!" Rin cheered. "We haven't failed yet!"

Izumo nodded, more to herself than to him. "We haven't failed yet."

He let them bask in the afternoon sun and their newfound hope for success. It was a nice feeling. After a few honey-warm moments, he turned back to her. "You are okay though, right?"

Izumo kept her gaze straight ahead. Focused on a horizon Rin would never be able to find. Her sights set on a future he could neither imagine nor see. She was destined to do great things. He just hoped he'd be able to stay by her side when she did them. She didn't look back when she said, "I'm fine."

Rin chose to believe her.

///\\\///\\\

Even with a plan made, Rin was still pretty on edge. He'd called in a failure. Even if Izumo was right and they truly didn't care about his report, he should still expect a reprimand for wasting everyone's time, right?

So, with that particular flame under his ass and igniting his core in a swarm of dizzy sparks, he decided it was time to lock in. That phrase didn't really make sense to him—who'd want to be locked inside of something?—but Shima used it a lot and Rin would have to get better with normal teenager talk if he wanted to start winning over the Paladin.

He couldn't do anything about the cram school where he already knew pretty much everything, but he'd been just as neglectful of his cover-classes. Something his current grades would scream from every available rooftop if anyone ever looked at them. Rin might have been a failure at the cram school, but to be a failure at his cover, too? That's unacceptable. People only have so much forgiveness in them.

Doing his best to bite back his self-consciousness and frustration, he made his way to the school's library. It was fucking huge. Like, way bigger than anything had the right to be. Multi-levelled with grand, sweeping staircases between each floor. Bronze and crystal chandeliers sending warm light across the polished, hard wood floors. Tables and plush chairs set up between each shelf for the dedicated students to study in peace.

This place clashed with Rin's...everything so bad he felt like someone's forgotten hangnail just walking inside of it. Still, he forced himself to push those weird feelings to the side and delve deeper into the stacks.

He already had all the books assigned from his classes, so he just had to find somewhere to actually read them for the first time. He settled on a smaller table tucked into a corner and bracketed by shelves on cooking. None of these rich kids would have any reason to be studying these kinds of books, so he figured it'd be private.

Rin started with his history book. He cracked it open, flipped to the very first page, and forced himself to read every single word. Man, the introduction was already so dry. And he was kind of thirsty now that he thought about it. He idly wondered if there were any drinks allowed in the library. He could demolish a lemonade or something right about now. He jolted as he realized he'd read a full page without actually understanding any of what the words had said.

He huffed, another annoyance, why couldn't he just focus? Whatever. Maybe he could come back to history and get started with literature. That had to be more entertaining anyway.

Twenty minutes later and he was about ready to bash his head into a wall. "Why can't they just say what they mean in smaller words?" He mumbled. "What does ingratiate even mean?" Rin considered getting a dictionary but...he had no idea where those even were. He didn't want to be stared at if he got up and started searching around. It'd be even worse if he had to ask someone.

So. Literature got tucked away for the time being and he was on to math. It was numbers, not words, so how complicated could it really be?

This is how Suguro found Rin, face down in his book and hands tugging at his hair, a short fifteen minutes later.

"Okamoto?" The other boy said.

Rin jumped, the page of his book tearing away harshly from his skin as he righted himself. "Oh. Hey Suguro."

Suguro squinted down at him, a few books tucked under his arm. His brow was heavy as he seemed to debate something in his mind. He sighed before facing Rin head on. "Do you mind if I sit here?"

The demon blinked up at him for a few seconds before nodding. What the hell? "I mean, there's plenty of other tables around. Not sure why you wanna sit at this one, but I'm not gonna kick you out or anything."

"Maybe I wanted to talk to you." Suguro grumbled as he set his books down. Gentle, in that studious, book-loving way of his that clashed with all his piercings and cockscomb hair. He was hard to read. And even harder to figure out. He was made up of a lot of opposing pieces, but if Rin were ever asked, he's not sure he'd be able to say that any one piece didn't fit Suguro perfectly.

Rin gave him time to start talking but the other teen just opened up one of his books and started reading. What the hell! "So? Did you want to talk?" He asked.

Suguro's eyes flicked up from the page he was reading and then back down. "Not right now. I gotta finish this chapter first."

Man, the nerve of this guy! Rin knew he was a hard-ass about training and whatever, but this was on a whole other level! It was hard to believe anyone could care so much about studying they'd put off a conversation with a peer for it. Well, whatever. Rin huffed and focused back down on his math textbook. He'd come here to study, so he should be studying.

The numbers all seemed to jumble and twist every time he tried to focus on them. The book would throw out different strings of numbers and symbols and only explain what he was supposed to be doing with them after he'd bashed his head against the problems for two pages.

He fisted his hand in his bangs, tugging them sharply out of the way. He was going to be stuck in this library for the rest of the year at this rate.

A sigh from his table mate got Rin to look up from snarling at the math. Suguro was fishing around in his bag. He pulled out a long metal clip and slid it across the table to Rin.

The demon stared at it wordlessly.

"It's for," Suguro mimed brushing his hair back from his face, "you know. Keeping your eyes clear while you work."

"Oh," Rin said. There was that weird feeling again, just like when Suguro had convinced Shima to hand over the staff. He hadn't been expecting the guy who called him lazy to see him in any kind of good light. And yet...Suguro kept surprising him. "When do you want it back?"

Suguro looked at him like he'd grown a second head. "I don't want it back, I'm giving it to you. I've got plenty since Koneko started ordering Chi's Sweet Home merch and dumping all the headbands on me. Just take it."

Rin picked up the clip with one hand, the other clenching over his stomach. Seriously, he couldn't read this guy at all. He slid it into his hair and shook his head a bit to test how well it held its place. It was really solid. And Suguro was just...giving this away? No catch, no nothing? "Why're you bein' nice to me?"

The other teen's brow grew even heavier as he scowled. "Do I have to have a reason?"

"I'd just like to know. 'Cause as far as I knew you hated me for being a lazy piece of shit in class." Rin said. He'd rather just skip to the point.

Suguro huffed, tucking a finger into his book to keep his place as he closed it. "I'm man enough to admit that, yeah, you piss me off with all the day dreaming you do in class. I'm also man enough to admit that I was bein' an asshole to you with the leapers. If the way you tried to defend me to our gym teacher over something that was my own damn fault and boot boot camp is anything to go by, you care about your comrades. You're strong, and you fight to keep other people safe. So I figure you can't be all that bad."

Rin just stared at him. His brain was having a hard time connecting the words he'd just heard with his very own ears to the words he'd just understood with his very own brain. Suguro thought of him like that? When the other boy said it, it almost made Rin sound like some kind of fairy tale knight. Like Rin could actually be a hero.

He's not sure what compelled him to lean across the table. But Rin suddenly felt a debt land neatly at his front door to the guy across from him. "I wanna confess something. Come closer."

Suguro held up a decent looking 'no-way-in-hell' expression for a few seconds, but once Rin started beckoning him with his hand, the other boy just sighed and leaned in too.

"I only daydream in class 'cause I already know all the shit they're lecturing about." He confessed.

"No way. Are you some kind of undercover teacher or something?"

Rin snorted and added a playful, or something, in his mind. "Nah, nah, nothing like that." He said. "My family's just really intense about demons. I've been training for this stuff for like, forever."

Suguro hummed and stroked at his chin scruff. "Is that right? Where can you find Dekalp?"

"Hiding in grasses and flowers."

"Which domain do Quilin fall into?"

Rin faked a yawn into his hand. "Spirit, kin of Azazel. Come on, give me a challenge."

"Fine then, you asked for it." Suguro said with a wicked grin. "An old man is possessed. He's found by his neighbour two days later, foaming at the mouth, with dark trails of scorched floor across his house, the flesh of his legs burned, and tearing through his pantry for any kind of plant. The exorcists manage to calm him and declare he was possessed by a salamander. Were they right?"

Rin hummed, there were a few demons that immediately sprang to mind but he needed some more details first. "What did his house smell like?"

"Sewage," Suguro said.

Well, that sealed it. "Nah, they were dead wrong. It was probably a Bonakon and the guy's insides were ruptured from all the flaming shit that came out of him." Rin replied with a smug little smirk of his own.

Suguro leaned back in his chair, his smile shrinking into a much more earnest one. "Damn, you really are good. Are you any good with weapons?"

Rin snorted, his smirk growing. "All kinds, though I'm the best with martial stuff and even better with a sword. I don't have one yet, but once I get my hands on one...oh, man, I'm gonna be unstoppable."

Suguro had a new expression on his face. One that made Rin feel ever weirder. It looked far too open, almost excited, stretched over top of a desire for a challenge. "You might have one weakness that could stop ya dead."

"Oh, yeah?"

Suguro glanced pointedly from Rin's open math textbook and back to the teen. One eyebrow raised. "Two words. Basic algebra."

Rin felt the tips of his ears go hot. He crossed his arms with a dramatic huff. "As if that'd ever be relevant to fighting demons."

"No," Suguro allowed, "but it's pretty damn useful for things like grades."

The demon groaned loudly at that. Suguro was right but that didn't mean he could just rub it in Rin's face like that.

The other boy just chuckled though. "How about this, Okamoto. I'll help ya out with your normal school work, as long as you agree to train me with weapons and demons. We got a deal?" He held out his hand across the table.

Rin considered it. Really, truly weighed the pros and cons of the deal. On the one hand, he'd get a tutor for all this hard, boring, normal shit. On the other, he'd have to be even more careful than normal so he didn't end up really hurting a guy he actually found pretty cool.

Still, Rin took that hand—warmer than he expected, and not nearly as rough—and shook it. Grinning with maybe too much teeth. "You've got a deal."