Rin graduated early from Tokyo University with Honours and found a position as an intern within the National Diet - her dream job. It was an incredible accomplishment, and one rarely bestowed upon fresh graduates. The silent approval from her adoptive mother was positively deafening.
Rin knew the real work had begun, and she really was merely at the beginning. Wearing a black pencil skirt with tights and mid-heels and button up blouse, her hair pulled neatly back and minimal makeup, she pretended her heart was not trying to break her ribs within her chest cavity as she stepped for the first time, as a part of the nations' leaders, in to the grandiose government building.
'Miss Urihara?' Her mentor greeted her, bowing 'welcome to the Legislative Branch. Please follow me' Rin was thankful to have her mentor to greet her at the door – even to get her legs moving properly.
She walked through many glass revolving doors and past marble arches and walls of mirrors reflecting the shine of the polished floor brilliantly – and then entered a spacious lift with her guide.
'I'm afraid you will be thrown in the deep end' her mentor glanced at her abstractly. 'Next Friday you will be sitting down with the Prime Minister to discuss your own proposed legislation on gang warfare, in which subject your essays particularly stood out to our examination team when assessing you'
Rin thought her lungs had deflated inside her and she almost made an idiot of herself by laughing, sure she had misheard the man. Um, what?
'Miss Urihara?'
'Y-yes, sir, sorry.' Rin cleared her throat and adjusted herself as the lift finally stopped. They stepped out in to what seemed an endless array of tessellated office booths.
'No need to apologise. It's something all interns must go through, to gain the Prime Minister's trust. If you can present a thorough, well researched and rational plan to him, that he agrees with, then he personally knows that we are all on the same page. The Minister is big on focusing on the individual within his Cabinet, to ensure loyalty as a cohort.'
It made sense, but Rin could feel an instant migraine coming on at the stress of this revelation. Her mentor glanced sideways at her.
'Just never ask about the Emperor' he said lowly, that Rin could barely catch his words.
'Sorry?'
'Don't speak of the Emperor to the Prime Minister' the mentor repeated himself. 'Unless you wish to cause immediate displeasure'
'O-of course'
The man showed Rin to her desk, which was adjacent to his own. She sunk thankfully in to the swivel chair, inhaling the scent of fresh office supplies and expensive materials. She immediately began jotting notes for this presentation to the Prime Minister, when her mentor asked her to fetch them all a cup of tea. 'All' meant ten people so Rin had to make multiple trips.
The rest of the day consisted largely of her being a tea cartel, and an errand girl - it passed quickly, due to her stress levels and forgetting to check the clock.
She had expected this 'fresh meat' treatment, after all, she grimaced to herself as she sat on the train home.
Her gaze was drawn to a man sitting opposite her, who stared at her openly with the feeling of an intent Rin disliked very much. She glared at him, but unfortunately that did not make him back down. Rin gathered her things close to her and got up to move to another carriage - as if she was going to sit there and endure that creep's lascivious gaze.
Rin took out her tight ponytail and let her long hair fall down her back as she sat in a new seat next to the window; she massaged her temples and rolled her shoulders to ease the tension there. Kami. Presenting to the Prime Minister. Next week. She had to immediately begin writing something damn impressive; - she was very grateful it was on her pet topic.
Rin wrote notes until she reached her station and got out with a hoard of other people; and unbeknownst to her behind her, the weird man followed. She stopped to get a drink from a vending machine, hoping water would ease her headache and made her way out of the station.
She reached the quieter streets leading toward her home, and enjoyed the sight of bright green foliage that spilled over the balconies of the homes. Rin thought she heard panting next to her.
Looking down, she dropped her hand bag in shock.
It was the white hound.
He reached her mid-section in height, which she only noticed for the first time due his proximity.
Rin stopped in her tracks and the hound sat beside her, regarding her.
Knowing that he never appeared for no reason, Rin quickly looked around her and saw someone quickly shift in to the bushes not far behind her. Was it - ? That man from the train? The bushes certainly could not be moving on their own.
Suddenly impassioned with anger, Rin walked briskly toward the bush at the corner of the street behind her.
She wasted no time in swinging her handbag in to the bush, and she heard swearing, as the creep from the train stumbled out.
'You bitch!' He exclaimed in a weedy tone.
'Oh I'm the bitch? Staring, stalking, skulking around a lone woman – you're the bitch!' Rin spat fire from her eyes at him.
The man lunged at her, but the dog was suddenly by her side again – the stalker paused his attack mid-air and Rin watched as his seedy face slacked wide in horror – for some reason his beady eyes travelled upwards where the dog stood, and he screamed in abject horror and ran off, tripping and stumbling so shaken was he.
For appearing before his scrawny form was a man much taller, much more awful figure than he – an apparition that grew from the dog at the woman's side, becoming ever bigger and more menacing, its hair flying around in a fearsome mane, its red eyes set in a humanoid face, large fangs bared, in the midst of a preternatural blinding white light.
Rin looked down at the white hound and wondered why the creep had looked upwards in such terror.
'You know' Rin said in admiring tones 'I only ever looked after you once – I didn't even save your life – yet you have now saved mine twice, maybe indirectly three times. How do I repay you when you disappear for years at a time?'
The dog looked up at her, panting slightly.
'You seem thirsty, yet when I gave you water sixteen years ago you refused it. Do you not drink mortal food?' The last line was a jest – she did not know his true nature, of course.
The dog seemed to motion with his head to keep walking. Rin obeyed and walked alongside him in silence all the way home. She felt if she could always have him there, she would never fear anything. Rin said as much to the animal.
It glanced at her as it always did with those beautiful gem-like eyes.
She reached home, a modest little apartment, and stopped in front of it. Now it knew where she lived once more, and Rin was glad of the fact.
She knelt, doing what she had wanted to do last time - even in her delicate stockings, on the pavement, and put her arms around the hound's thickly maned neck hugging him dearly, nestling her face in his fur. He smelt of nothing she'd ever smelt before.
'Thank you' she whispered. 'You are my closest family' Rin withdrew, still with her hands in his fur, feeling its silkiness in her fingers. It was true; he was the most consistent figure in the span of her existence and he had always protected her.
'Please always be in my life' she asked and kissed the top of his head slowly before getting up. The dog was panting again; it made it seem like he smiled at her, and Rin smiled back with sparkling eyes.
'Goodbye' she said, her heart in her voice, and turned, knowing that he watched her till she was inside.
She was the train to her fateful assignment. The day had come far too quickly, and Rin had worked day and night on the legislation she would propose to begin to quell the Yakuza. Thankfully this was not an oral presentation and she would not be required to ditch her notes for the meeting. She had also obsessively watched videos of the Prime Minister to try and gauge his real personality, which was indeed a task - he was a non-descript middle aged man, and his face seemed to be a mask as all the rest of her governmental co-workers.
Rin sighed, double checking that she had her pain killers with her. If she stressed too much and brought on a bad headache she'd sure as hell need them; it was inconvenient that her period had started last night too, so that she felt extra drained today. She'd already taken some pain killers for the cramps.
Arriving at the Legislative Branch Rin was ushered in to a sleek black car not an hour after her arrival. She'd merely had time to get tea for everyone and quickly skim her notes again before a lady came to collect her, and as they reached the lobby Rin was seated in the back of the spacious low car, a dark screen blocking her from the driver. Now her stomach did flips and somersaults like nothing else as her reality set in.
Damn she should have had breakfast! She'd felt too ill too eat anything that morning, and now she would regret it. Rin popped some more pain killers in the car and swallowed them with a gulp of water.
They went over a bump in the road as she still had the water bottle open, and it splashed generously on all of her notes.
Oh Kami, no. Oh no no no. Not today.
Rin hurriedly looked around for something to soak up at least some of the moisture, but nothing presented itself to her. Hoping that glass between her and the driver was not one sided, she quickly unbuttoned her blouse and ripped it out of her tight skirt and dabbed at the papers with that. It was reckless, but it was all she could do.
Rin put her blouse back on and desperately hoped her body heat would dry it at least enough to not be immediately apparent by the time they reached their destination. Rin actually had no idea where the PM was situated, and all the windows did not allow her to see where she was going. She tried to pry apart the wet pages – but it only made them tear, causing Rin to curse multiple times – this was the absolute worst of her nightmares come true. They pulled up somewhere completely unknown – Rin hoped it was for fuel because she certainly had not enough time for her blouse to dry.
Why did she have to wear white?
Everything was going wrong and Rin had an incredibly difficult time in convincing herself that it would be ok, and that she had committed her notes to memory, and prayed she would not just get immediately rejected for looking less than presentable with her wet shirt.
Rin stepped out of the car in to a room. They had parked, in a room. She was guided in through a corridor down to a foyer sort of area where three women approached her, regarding her with appraisal.
'Ah' they all said in unison, and took Rin in to another room, which had a massive vanity and all sorts of product laid out.
She was seated, and the three women began to preen.
What the hell was this? She was not going to see the Prime Minister as his whore for Kami's sake!
They took out her hair and sprayed all sorts of product through it, brushing and curling and smoothing it till it shined and bounced down her back. They applied red lipstick, added winged liner and false eyelashes and then even plucked her eye brows; one of the women unbuttoned three of her top buttons to show her luscious cleavage, and another stood her up, ripped off her skirt and forced her in a tighter, shorter one.
Rin was utterly taken aback. What in actual –
'Are you going to change my wet shirt?' Rin spoke in a tone that suggested the ludicrous nature of changing her perfectly intact skirt, and her face, instead of the glaringly defective blouse.
The three women frowned and shook their heads. 'Of course not. It's a perfectly good shirt' they replied.
'And so was my skirt but you seemed to think that needed replacing!' Rin remarked acerbically. The women only smiled knowingly at her.
'Am I here to offer myself to someone?' Rin asked, looking in disgust at her over-painted face.
The ladies tutted 'No, don't you have your proposed legislation?' They asked as though she was stupid. Rin gazed regretfully at the tatters of it on the massive vanity table.
Rin looked at herself in the mirror. What on earth did she look like! She hadn't looked like this since she went partying as a teen. Jesus, so the married Prime Minister was a creepy old man. Rin shuddered, but knew she had to do this. Hopefully if she messed up her dialogue her clownish makeup would distract the Prime Minister from her awkwardness.
The three women put Rin back in the lobby where a man and a lady silently escorted her down four flights of stairs – and Rin entered what could only be described with the inadequate word of a palace.
The room she was in was akin to a throne room of some European King. Rin saw the Prime Minister walking towards her; he was shorter than she expected – but then, she was no giantess either.
She bowed low to him, and he begged her to rise.
'I am – ' Rin began to introduce herself only to be interrupted.
'Rin Urihara, I know. My pleasure' the Prime Minister bowed back, his voice mellow. She was extremely bewildered by his tone, and his return bow, which was a sign of respect not at all necessary to a nobody like her. This was beyond anything she had imagined, and she was disliking it more and more.
The older man, to her surprise, seemed nervous as he looked her over – not in a lustful way at all, but to almost ensure some standard was being met. He hmm'd and nodded a few times.
'Very pretty' he said solemnly 'though you'd look better in a long skirt'
'You're telling me' Rin remarked with such dry humour the Prime Minister looked slightly shocked, and merely said 'ah. The three sisters' he nodded to himself. 'Well, this way, my dear'
Rin followed him, with great trepidation, finding it rather difficult to navigate the high heels she had been forced to wear. The Prime Minister spoke as he walked her through the cavernous, luxuriously decorated hall.
'You are not speaking with me today' he said mysteriously. Rin's breath hitched in her throat. She had been so relieved when she thought she was dealing with this gentlemanly, unassuming older man. But at these words her anxieties and apprehension flooded right in, and her danger gauge went up.
'Then who - ?'
'The Emperor' as the Prime Minister said this, he swept his arm in front of him and stopped, motioning for her to continue without him. His arm directed her down a dimly lit, deeply coloured hall to the side of the throne room, and after pausing with deep hesitation, she gingerly began her way down as though she were walking the plank.
The Emperor?
Her head pounded.
What on earth was this? How had the Prime Minister, for Kami's sake, known her name?
All of this was extremely strange, and Rin wanted nothing more than to turn and run as fast as she could out of there. But she didn't even know where she was geographically or mentally.
She passed gigantic paintings of people in historical clothing, sneering down at her through the yellow candle light that flickered down the hall. Her high heels dug uncomfortably in to her Achilles heel and felt out of balance in the thick red carpet below her feet. Red, the shade of dark blood, seemed to be a favourite colour.
Was the Emperor of Japan really at the end of this damned long corridor? It seemed to stretch on – as though she had walked in to an optical illusion. It made sense that the Emperor was so secluded and secret.
So he liked his women looking like playthings? She hoped she was not about to get touched or worse. Rin would not be answerable for her actions if that was the case, even if it was the damn Emperor of Japan. Nothing raised her ire like unwelcome male attention let alone touch.
Rin breathed deeply. She was here to propose her very thought out legislation. Nothing more, nothing less. That is what she would do, then leave.
After what seemed an eternity, Rin finally reached a door at the end. It was to the right. Was the Emperor of Japan directly behind this door?
Or would she have another endless corridor? If the latter, she was taking off the heels to traverse it for sure.
Rin wondered what on earth she was about to encounter; having never seen the Emperor, she burned with such anxiety it nearly disabled her altogether.
She breathed in and with a tiny burst of courage opened the great mahogany mass of a door with the intricately carved brass handle.
Rin took one step inside and stopped as she lifted her eyes.
Reclined in a massive chair, his legs folded and resting on the massive desk in front of him, his arms up with his hands behind his head, sat the most stunning creature Rin had ever laid eyes on.
Her first thought was: they didn't dress me up for any of this god's requirements, they were trying to make sure I felt better about myself when I laid eyes on him.
A small smile curled the corner of her mouth briefly at her self-derogatory thought as she involuntarily stared at the being not five metres from her; she could feel the blush spreading everywhere.
'What are you laughing at?' Came a smooth monotone voice, perfectly suited to his appearance.
Rin did not know how this creature knew she had the slightest ghost of a smile, when his eyes were closed.
'E-Emperor' Rin bowed, suddenly forgetting that she had not shown any formality to the most ancient powerful figure in Japan.
'Close the door. You did not answer my question'
Rin roboticaly shut the heavy door and could not yet make herself walk forward, as though her anxiety had created braces about her knees.
'Oh – I – was not laughing, sir'
At this his eyes snapped open and Rin was again taken aback by his beauty.
His eyes were the colour of gold dipped in amber, which then was encased in pale diamond. The pupils were mere pin points, the light from the chandelier above making them dance like a snake's and pierce right through her.
She felt her limbs become numb and her excess of hormones create an added wave of desire over her, as she quickly looked down from his regard.
'One of us is a liar and I can tell you now, my senses never fail me. Sit'
He motioned languidly with a translucently pale hand for her to sit in the chair opposite him across the wide desk. Thankfully, he shut off those glowing orbs he called eyes again, making no other movement.
Rin made her way to the chair, cursing the heels – and trying to realise that this was in fact, a real situation, and that this god before her was real.
He was tall, she could tell, though he was so reclined, and his frame though slim, was undeniably muscular; apparent through his swift, controlled movements; like a dancer in form. His extremely long white hair did not show age, but rather glowed with an inner power.
His face – had tattoos? Or markings of some sort – which Rin found strangest of all; there were magenta stripes, and a crescent moon in the middle of his forehead. His profile was there for her to study, and his forehead dipped in to a straight perfectly curved nose; his jawline was strong yet feminine – he seemed delicate yet deadly. She noticed his ears were pointed. Rin's eyes traveled across his body and took in the high quality traditional robes he wore.
He was not of this time.
He was not human.
That much, she could tell – though she had never encountered either of the above for comparison.
To Rin's dismay, he opened his eyes just as she brought hers back to his face, and they held a curious hooded expression.
'What do you think?' He asked her, holding her gaze captive, his tone suddenly low.
Rin knew what he meant, but – did he really mean it? Did he expect her to answer? There was an intense ringing in her ears, and her mouth was almost drier than a drought-stricken canyon. It felt as though her brain was merely a white noise channel.
'I'm sorry, sir, I do not know how to answer'
The Emperor exhaled in a frustrated fashion and swung his legs down, in a quick movement he was facing her across the desk with the full force of his scrutiny. Rin wanted to duck under the desk or hide her face with her hands but the most she could do to remain polite was study her hands in her lap.
'You have such certainty about you, yet your words speak of uncertainty. What is on your mind' he demanded with an imperative tone.
This man was like the ocean, his moods and tone changing just as often.
Yet despite his third attempt at probing her for honest answers, Rin's every fibre told her to not be honest with him. She did not know why, but she felt if she told him the truth to each question, he would be displeased, or disappointed. She didn't know why. Being in his presence had made scramble of her emotions and thought.
'Your Emperor asks you a question – you cannot remain silent' came the velvety voice.
Her Emperor? The way he said it, made it seem so personal. Rin prayed to god that she could stop blushing.
'I am here to tell you my thoughts on the Yakuza, and how to deal with them. Or that is what I have been told. Is that true?' Rin asked.
The Emperor tapped his claws on the table. 'A question with a question. Alright. If I answer you must give me an answer also'
Rin nodded.
'Yes, you are here for that' he replied 'but you are also here for to me approve your position in my government'
Rin had sort of known that. But now she wondered just what it might mean. His voice was like a spell to her soul, like some bewitched music in her ears.
His government? So – did he have more control than she initially thought, than what everyone thought? Why did such a striking being wish to stay out of the public eye? Rin had a plethora of questions, yet none of them would be spoken.
'So. Tell me what you think of me, after your thorough investigation of my appearance'
Rin blushed deeply. She had hoped it was a new question he was going to ask. Damn her uncontrolled urge to gawk! She hated how he had worded it. Rin took some moments to formulate an answer that would be honest to the extent of dissuading him from repeating the question again.
'You are very impressive' Rin answered quietly, careful to not use any phrases that may be connected to attraction. Which she certainly was. But who couldn't be?
She did not see the Emperor's eyes rest on her lowered head with a strange softness.
'That wasn't hard, was it?' He murmured. 'What is it you have to say – those paragraphs locked away in your head'
Rin sighed, glad the un-rehearsed part was over. She just had to focus on not losing her train of thought – and in order to do that she had to avoid looking at him altogether.
She bent to her handbag at her side and brought out the slightly damaged papers. She put them in her lap and prayed he would not ask why her shirt was wet and her papers were also.
'Was it a personal challenge to yourself to ruin your notes to test your memory?' The Emperor's mouth twitched.
Rin was mortified by his tone and question. To Kami, could he stop studying her so closely?
'It happened on the way here' she answered, hoping to get on with it.
'And your shirt was the sponge' his eyes were twinkling though his face was stoic, and Rin knew he was teasing her though she had not looked at him to catch such a meaning.
She flashed an upset dark glance up at him and blushed despite herself.
'I apologise if the sight offends you' Rin bit back the sting in her tone. She had to be careful to really not offend him.
She did not see the demon's citrine eyes linger on the outline of her chest, and it was damn good thing she didn't.
'It does not offend me' his tone was pared back to the coolness of the first exchange.
Rin's tension was all over her body, from her furrowed brow, to her neck, shoulders, and her cramps. She wished she could kick the heels off.
Rin tried desperately to organize her dishevelled thoughts to begin her dialogue.
'I will try to make this as short as possible.' Rin began, keeping her eyes glued to the papers in her lap.
'I believe there are many ways we can begin to limit the criminal activity of gangs; they've caused far too much fear and bloodshed for too long.
I believe if licensing was mandatory for those wanting to open legitimate businesses, gangs who use legal business as a façade will not be able to operate and raise revenue for their illegal activities. The license would have to include a criminal background check, finger printing and a police check, as well as approval from a council member.
I've – personally – experienced gangs demanding protection money from businesses, and this should be made illegal immediately. Racketeering would be drastically limited if this was put through.
I also believe there is a lack of responsibility within the gangs towards their own members, which creates a divide in accountability. If the Yakuza leaders were held legally responsible for the deeds of their subordinates, I believe a much tighter reign would be held on petty crime. As well as all this, there needs to be some form of rehabilitation for gang members wishing to quit that lifestyle, or for those left without money when these laws come through. They need to be re-educated, and financial aid needs to be offered.
I am greatly concerned with the trafficking of humans – there needs to be more organised, more frequent stings, and the identities of those travelling to and from Japan should be thoroughly verified. Especially children; - too many innocent lives are being corrupted.'
Rin had spoken as slowly as she could so she did not slur or stumble on her words. She took a breath to herself as she finished and waited without looking up for the reaction of the beautiful Emperor.
'Idealism is to be expected in one so young' came the dismissive voice. Rin felt as though she had been kicked and waited with baited breath for more words. They did not come, and she looked up with anger in her eyes.
'Is that all you have to say?'
The Emperor had taken to idly playing with a pen, somehow flipping it back and forth through his long fingers. He slanted his eyes towards Rin and met her look coldly.
'Impertinence will not drive your point home, Miss Urihara, it is best you have the beverage that is about to come in to this room to cool your head'
Rin couldn't believe what she was hearing, and sure enough – there was a small knock on the door and a maid entered with a tray of drinks.
Without asking if she wanted one or not, the woman placed a glass in front of Rin and left.
She reined in her temper admirably, though it was clearly written across her face; how dare he cut her down so condescendingly!
'Sir, pardon me. But none of the points I raised are idealistic – they are practical, and have a high chance of being effective if made law'
'And are you the judge of that?' The Emperor stood as he spoke; he was indeed tall and his long pale hair swung down his back and spilled over his shoulders. He came round to Rin's side of the desk, and to her utter bewilderment sat on the desk just to the side of where she sat.
He smelt of cologne and a scent underneath which she found very appealing despite herself.
'You speak as if getting rid of the yakuza is the answer to all our problems' he purred 'yet you rid the country of one and another will rise – it is human nature – there will always be people like that, there always has been and always will. The sooner you learn that the quicker you can put your brain to better use within my National Diet'
Rin gulped and felt ill at his precarious tone and his stifling proximity.
'Sir' Rin ventured, not daring to look upwards. 'May I ask why I was expressly told to speak to you on the topic when it seems to be one you are not interested in?'
She heard the Emperor chuckle – but it was humourless and foreboding.
'Interested? Oh, I am. But I am no dreamer Miss Urihara, and perhaps your colleagues imagined you would present something of more substance to me'
Rin almost bit her tongue off to stop the quick retorts from whipping out. There was no need for him to embarrass her like this, and she slowly scanned her eyes upwards – she was not going to let him intimidate her.
She met the golden eyes that looked down at her through cold slits and she used all her willpower to maintain the gaze, her anger building at his using his height to force her to look up at him.
'If I was not mistaken I'd think you were one of them' she hissed, and immediately clapped her hand over her mouth, her dark eyes wide in shock at letting her thoughts escape her.
'Now there is the honesty I wish you'd given me from the beginning' was the Emperor's response, and she thought she detected a hint of humour in his voice – only to quickly retract that thought as she felt clawed fingers lace around her soft throat. Her breath hitched, and she dared not move a muscle, her skin burning where his fingers touched.
'If you wish to resign a position so soon started with statements like this, it is best you rehearse them beforehand however'
Rin felt herself become paler than the moon at the cold anger in his voice; she chose to remain still and refusing to say anything more. The Emperor looked in to her face for a few moments as he held her, but suddenly released her and returned to his chair, an unpleasant expression on his face. As if to distract himself from something, he picked up the pen again and idly played with it.
Rin knew this was a very dangerous man, one not to be crossed or toyed with. Yet deep within her she felt the surety that her beliefs were worth her death – even at the hands of the Emperor. No man would intimidate her, no man would subdue her with surprisingly gentle fingers around her throat, not even he.
'I won't be dissuaded from my beliefs. They are supported by years of research'
'Research?' The Emperor played with what looked like a crystal ball in his palm. 'You can read all the paper in the world but not know what anything is really like until you are in it.' His eyes slanted toward her again, considering. Rin felt a bit of hope at this expression, but still felt angry and increasingly uncomfortable whenever he watched her.
'My assignment to you, before you actually go around proposing your legislation, is to enter the Yamaguchi-gumi and get to know what its really like'
Rin sat tense in her chair and gasped, shaking her head 'But they are the most notorious! I want to destroy them, not join them!'
'How do you think Troy fell? It was by deception, not by research'
Rin fell back slightly in to her chair again, gazing at him with horror.
'I'll be eaten alive' she whispered.
The Emperor's gaze did nothing to comfort her – a dark expression came across his features as he looked at her.
'I will give you three months, then report to me again'
'T-three months? That's no time – how, where do I even start?'
'Now' The Emperor clicked his fingers, and two men instantly came through the door, both on either side of Rin.
'This way ma'am' one of them said, and Rin took one last bewildered glance at the sadistic Emperor, whose eyes she felt forced her physically back as she stood and retreated.
The liquid gold eyes of the Emperor remained glued to the shut door for quite some time after his subject had left him. The pen in his hand was snapped in two.