The Clock Chimes Twice

Rating. PG-15
Warnings. Genderbender with fem!Mephisto, allusions to self-pleasuring (?) and sexual fantasies but nothing explicit.
Pairings. one-sided Fujimoto/fem!Mephisto.
Disclaimer. AnE belongs to Kazue Kato.
Summary. Teenage boys are clumsy when it comes to love, and fifteen-year old Fujimoto Shiro is no different. Shiro, shame and feelings for someone he most definitely should not be thinking about. One-shot.
A/N. and here's part two of this series! still need to re-read.

It is one of those facts of life that young boys and girls tend to be very silly when it comes to love. While girls giggle and blush around their crush, boys tend to either fail to impress in a spectacular fashion, or pick on the person for whom they have feelings. It is often the case, in both boys and girls, that they fall in love for the first time, not with their peers, but with an adult, typically someone like a teacher.

As they enter their teenage years, these feelings tend to dwindle and altogether disappear as they become more involved with their friends and teachers are no longer loved but abhorred. There are exceptions to the rule, of course. A pretty math teacher or a handsome literature teacher may often unknowingly enamour one of their students.

As such, it is not hard to understand fifteen-year old Shiro's growing feelings for Lilith, someone who had become both family and mentor to him. Had it not been for her, Shiro firmly believes he would not be alive.

In the past five years following their arrival in Japan, Shiro had been living in True Cross Academy and attending Exorcist school. He'd been quickly discovered to be a very talented Exorcist, and, surpassing his peers, had managed to climb in the ranks. However, due to his age, he was deemed inexperienced and they didn't send him out on missions often. Instead, he'd been granted his own private tutor: Lilith.

For the last two years, Shiro had been spending a lot of time with Lilith. He'd learned that she hated working – teaching, accounting, whatever it was – and instead loved to leave everything to her poor secretary as she went parading around town. Shiro spent a good deal of time at the ice cream parlour whenever he was with her, and he was convinced she'd already had every possible flavour. That was not to say she was a bad teacher, she just had a roundabout way of teaching, often coming up with life lessons from small events.

(It would only be in later years that Shiro would learn that everything she told him was made-up on the spot and often a lie. At the time, however, in his boyish innocence, he'd hung on to her every word.)

He also knew she wasn't exactly human since she had not aged at all, had different powers than the other Exorcists and from the bits and pieces he'd eavesdropped on his teacher's conversation. He didn't know if she was just half-demon, or a full demon, or what. Shiro researched the name Lilith and discovered that in several demonology textbooks the name was featured prominently as Satan's wife, or at the very least a powerful, lustful she-demon.

Some of the drawings and descriptions had him blushing for days, and he couldn't look at her face for some time. Lilith found it vexing, cornering him and demanding to know exactly what was wrong since he kept avoiding her. When Shiro managed to stutter out a reply, his pale cheeks closely resembling a tomato, she had stepped back, blinked and erupted into a boisterous laugh. Horrified, Shiro wished to be swallowed by the floor, and amidst demands for an explanation and apologies ("It's not funny! Why are you laughing?"), Lilith managed to pat his head and smile ("You're a cute one, aren't you dear?").

From then on she would make it a point to bother him and place him in exceedingly uncomfortable positions for a boy his age, finding it all excessively diverting. Shiro, for all his embarrassed protests, realized somewhere down the line that he didn't mind quite as much as he should. Instead of minding, all those instances wherein Lilith would quite deliberately stretch just so, allowing her blouse to ride up just the slightest bit to reveal skin, or when she would look straight at him when she nibbled on her pens, were becoming fuel to fantasies he most definitely should not be having about someone who was more than saviour or teacher, but family.

Whatever he told himself, it was obvious his body, mind and Lilith were hell-bent on betraying him. She'd just hugged him tightly to her chest (leading to several thoughts coursing through Shiro's mind such as ohmygodIcanfeelthem and don't look down don't look down don'tlookdown), before kissing his cheek delicately (Shiro would have swooned, but he knew men didn't swoon, so instead he just froze and decided to imitate a fish) and bidding him good night as she left.

As soon as he reached his dorm, Shiro ignored the calls of the Exorcists-in-training and headed right to his room. He turned on the shower and rushed in, wincing at the cold water just slightly. Hating the world, himself and, most of all, Lilith, he forced himself to stay under the onslaught of cold water lest his fantasies get the best of him.

That night he dreamt of beautiful blue tresses, emerald eyes and all-knowing, carnivorous smiles. By the time he woke up the next morning, he knew he was too far gone, and decided to act on his feelings despite himself. Subtly, of course.

-o-

"What's this?"

"Those are flowers, Lilith,"

"I know that, kiddo, I meant why are they here?"

"Well, I guess they're for you – hey, maybe someone finally decided even old hags like you were good for them!"

"Why you little-"

What followed was a brief chase around the office, as Shiro continued to make jabs at Lilith (like a little boy pulling on a little girl's hair) and Lilith threw stationary at him. Eventually, they tired, and fell back on the couch, the flower vase staring at them innocently from the small table. Lilith snorted, and then took one of the flowers out of the vase to smell. She then looked at Shiro, and smiled – all teeth and pointy canines, but to Shiro it was the most breathtaking sight he'd ever seen. As he gazed at her, transfixed, he failed to notice her arms encircling his body in a hug.

"They're beautiful, I'd like to say thank you to whoever gave them to me," she whispered in his ear, a haunting, melodious whisper that made Shiro's knees weak. Then he felt her grin, before nipping slightly at his ear and disappearing from his side.

"Lilith!" Shiro blushed, holding his reddened ear, as the woman cackled madly from the safety of her desk.

Shiro knew he'd have another complicated night, and probably more ahead. He also knew that Lilith had not taken his gift as it was meant to be taken, and that she probably did not even consider him as a potential love interest, only as a small human child she took care of.

But Shiro was stubborn and determined, and, one way or the other, he was going to make sure the one woman who'd ever interested him would know how he felt.

A/N. and yeah. i have way too much fun with italics. Lilith/fem!Mephisto is a complete tease – she considers Shiro a younger brother figure at the moment, and likes to bother him. Shiro, on the other hand, is a not-so-innocent teenager (and also a bit of a prude apparently) who is actually interested. we'll see how this relationship changes throughout the years.

i'm not too sure when the next part will be up since i leave for college next week – i don't start until later, but i'll be busy preparing and buying stuff.

comments are lovely!