AUTHOR NOTE
The second installment to this fic is out, whoop! For those of you who either forgot or just came, we're still in Rin's childhood memories. Hope you all enjoy this part as well, and be ready for the third part when it comes out! Thanks for coming along for the ride!
RIN, AGE SEVEN
My fated talk with my father, Mephisto Pheles, and the rest of the clergy came the following year after my father realized that I could see the demons. Father Fujimoto wasn't really mad or anything; after all, he knew the fated day would come. However, he was sad and disappointed that I hadn't spoken up about them for seven years.
The day we had the talk was also the day that it finally sunk into his brain that I could see demons. He had a suspicion at first, but never bothered to get the concrete evidence that I could see the demons. After all, he wanted me to have a legitimate childhood, one in Assiah, not in Gehenna.
That day, Father Fujimoto caught me trying to wrestle a low ranking demon in an empty warehouse. I was late to dinner by a couple hours, distracted by the demon in the warehouse, and he had gotten a call from Yukio saying that his brother needs backup, stat. My dad asked him what was wrong, and Yukio let it slip out that he and I could both see demons.
I don't blame him for letting our secret go public.
Almost instantaneously, he and the rest of the clergy came to the warehouse as backup and the Paladin shot the demon to remove him from my presence. Afterwards, I collapsed to the ground, completely out of stamina and breath. Never in my life had I tried to fight someone and almost lose.
My father picked me up, right off the ground and held me as if I was a newborn baby again. He cradled me by his chest, telling me how much I shouldn't go walking around, attracting attention, and starting fights that I can't win by my hand power alone. I think that was hinting at something he'd tell me later.
"Let's go home," he said after holding me for a couple minutes. "We have things to discuss."
All the clergymen bowed their heads and some of them even looked sad. I had no idea why they were sad, though. Didn't we just eradicate the demon?
Saddened by everyone's faces, I asked my dad, "Why does everyone look sad?"
Father Fujimoto looked at me with a grim expression. "It's because you defied our orders again. That means we'll have to give you a punishment, and no one wants to give you a punishment."
Over the past year, my father has gotten slightly better at his ability to tell lies. I think he figured out that his lies were weak in the beginning, and due to my human aging, he had to step up the lies to something more believable. Now, Yukio can barely tell the difference between his truths and lies, and I can only distinguish them because of the way his eyes and mouth coordinate. Now, I could barely recognize the fact that this was a complete lie.
On the way back home, my father pulled out his phone and dialed the only person listed as a contact on there: Mephisto Pheles. He carried me with his left arm, not really thinking that I weighed much (I really didn't), and held the phone with his right hand. As they communicated, I managed to pick up some of the call, but not all of it. At the time, my demonic powers hadn't fully awakened yet, so my superhearing wasn't activated.
When we arrived at the monastery, I almost fell out of my father's arm. In front of the gates was a man, dressed similar to a clown. He had a white suit on and a top hat to match it, with a pink striped tie. His outfit, to me, was halfway decent. Halfway, even for a demon like him.
"Mephisto," my father said curtly.
"Shiro, how good it is to see you," Mephisto smiled, tipping of his hat.
My father sighed. "Let's get it over with. Come inside, Mephisto. We can have our more friendly talk later."
Mephisto bowed. "As you wish, Lord Paladin."
My dad put me back on the ground and called for Yukio to come stand by me. With a smile on his face, he introduced us to the stranger named Mephisto Pheles. Somehow, he already knew which twin was which (not that it was hard to tell in the beginning), but he already knew our names and who we were, which struck me as odd. Strangers shouldn't know who we were, right?
Catching my confused face, my father explained briefly, "Mephisto is an old friend of mine, and he met you two originally at birth. He's very aware of you two, enough that he's practically obsessed."
"I am not obsessed!" protested Mephisto.
Shiro adjusted the glasses on his face. "Says the otaku that keeps animes and mangas in his mansion." He escorted us all inside, while continuing his statement. "But that's beside the point. Now, hurry into the dining room, all of you. Rin, your dinner is already on the table."
"Even me?" Yukio asked, pointing to himself. He's never played the important person before, so this was different for him.
"Yes, even you," Shiro said, lightly pushing him forward. Yukio smiled, feeling more important by the second.
They all hustled into the dining room and took their seats as soon as possible. I hurried inside and grabbed my bowl of noodles, slurping them down. Yukio and I were asked to sit at one end of the table with Mephisto next to them (but opposite sides of the table). The clergymen took their seats next to them, ready for the worst outcome possible. The twins noticed that Shiro, their father, hadn't arrived in the room yet. Worried, they questioned Kyodo where he was. Kyodo merely answered that he went to retrieve something, a valuable object that belonged to someone in the room.
When Shiro entered the room, he entered with a long object in his hands. It was covered in a red sheath, and I had no idea what it was. However, my twin brother seemed to have a general idea of what it was*.
"Dad, why do you have a sword?" he asked. "I thought you only had Meisters in Dragoon and Aria." I looked at him like he just said something foreign, but he only ignored me. What was he talking about?
Father Fujimoto shook his head while laughing. "I have Meisters in all of the categories, but I choose to specialize in Aria and Dragoon. Yes, this is a sword, you are right in that thinking.. This sword is named Kurikara, and it belongs to Rin, not me."
At the mention of my name, I gasped. I had no idea that I owned a sword, and I couldn't find a memory in which I had a sword in my possession. Also, what did Kurikara mean? It wasn't a name that I would choose, and it sounded like a name from the Kyoto region. What exactly was this sword, and where did it come from?
Seeing my face, Shiro continued, "...but I am not going to hand it over yet, because I haven't explained the matter and the consequences of using said sword. Trust me, the consequences can be severe if you were to use this sword." At this, my face fell, and Shiro grinned.
Father Fujimoto sat down next to me at the table, since Mephisto had already taken a seat next to Yukio. He looked over to his old friend and colleague, and their eyes betrayed their thoughts to each other. One was prepared to explain everything, while the other had a smile of triumph. One had lost the deal and was about to lose the most precious things he's ever had in his life.
He sighed and decided to not hold anything back tonight. "We have a few things to explain tonight, and it concerns everyone in this room right now. I ask those who are already informed of the situation to please hold your tongue until the end, because this will take a while." Shiro looked over at the twins, who were holding their gazes at him, refusing to take their eyes of him for a moment. Yukio had an idea of where this was headed, while I was completely in the dark.
Shiro grabbed one of the coal tars and squished it in between his fingers so that it wouldn't escape. "This is a coal tar, right Rin?" I nodded, seeing the black creature with its wide, yellow eyes looking at me. "How long have you been able to see them? The demons, I mean."
Straight to the point like always. I thought about the question for a moment, and answered, "Forever." At this, everyone in the room gasped, and some almost looked horrified. I wondered if I had said something wrong. Yukio looked at his twin, shocked at the answer. Apparently, he had been told that I couldn't see them, but they were wrong.
"That explains a few things," Shiro muttered, before moving on. "Rin, what I am about to tell is already knowledge to everyone in the room, your brother included for a good portion of it."
At that, I glared daggers at his foster father. "Huh? Are you saying that you kept secrets from me, old man?" Then I looked at my twin brother. "And you didn't tell me that you knew things that I didn't?"
Yukio nodded, feeling guilty about it. But he had sworn to his father that he wouldn't tell his brother anything so that he could keep his normal life and not be bogged down by his heritage.
"Sorry, Rin, but we hadn't anticipated you seeing demons since birth. We thought that your powers wouldn't awaken until your teenage years, at the earliest. Clearly, we were wrong, but are you ready to hear the truth about yours and Yukio's life?"
Without hesitation, I nodded. "Yes." My eyes portrayed the massive amount of strength I had, along with the amount of seriousness I was taking this.
Shiro held up two fingers. "This world consists of two dimensions that mirror each other. One is the material world Assiah, which is what we live in. The other is Gehenna, a place for the demons. Neither of them are supposed to interact at all, but the demons of Gehenna possess humans in Assiah anyways to interact with us. That's where we Exorcists come into play. We are in charge of eradicating the demons and sending them back to Gehenna before they cause major damage in Assiah. However, there are instances of irrevocable damage done in Assiah that were done by the demons. You and Yukio are both part of that group. Both of you are the sons of the evil demon king of kings himself, Satan."
This statement earned a gasp from Yukio. "Huh? But I thought that demons couldn't have babies with humans in Assiah. It doesn't make sense logically."
Shiro scoffed. "There are half demons born every year, most losing their human parent in the process, and many go on to become Exorcists. The Vatican doesn't care about your ancestry, unless you happen to be the child of a demon king, though no one's ever gone on to become an Exorcist if they were the child of a demon king that we know of."
"Then wouldn't it destroy my chances of becoming an Exorcist?" Yukio asked, realizing what that meant.
Shiro shook his head. "As far as we know, Rin inherited all of Satan's powers at birth. Because you were weak at birth, you handed everything over to him. Therefore, you shouldn't have much of a problem becoming an Exorcist. You may have to go through several tests to verify that you do not have any demonic power, but those shouldn't be a problem." At this, Yukio relaxed, glad that he could still move along the path of becoming an Exorcist.
I stopped for a second. "Yukio, how long have you been doing this?"
Yukio put his finger to his chin, wondering how long it has been. "Three months, maybe? It hasn't been long, though the amount of information I have to retain a week is certainly a lot."
Shiro nodded. "Close to three months sounds right. After all, you haven't passed the test to become an official Exwire yet." Yukio looked more irritated at this comment, but my dad ignored it.
"And here I thought he had at least become an Exwire," Mephisto said. "It shouldn't take this long to become one."
Shiro glared at him. "You haven't allowed us to administer the Exwire test at the cram school, so I didn't feel the need to pressure him so early." He glanced over at us again. "But that is not why we're here today. We're here to discuss the future plans, not current, aggravating ones.
Humans in Assiah, demons in Gehenna, they interact with us anyways. You both are the sons of Satan, blah blah blah. Moving on, when you were born, Mephisto and I found you laying beside your dying mother. We were on a mission to execute the sons of Satan if they came out their mother's womb, but I didn't have the heart to kill innocent children. I swore to raise you both under the condition that if Rin awakened his demonic power, you both would be transferred to your other guardian, Mephisto, since you two are technically related to him by blood."
My eyes widened. "You're a demon?" I asked, pointing to the clown.
Mephisto took off his hat and reintroduced himself. "Mephisto Pheles is my pen name in Assiah. My real name is Samael, the king of time and space." His eyes looked purely demonic at this, as if he was staring into our souls. I gulped. "And I'm your half brother."
I looked over at my foster dad. "Get me away from this creep," I ordered with a straight voice.
Fujimoto rolled his eyes and instructed Mephisto to put on his hat again, which he did. Then he proceeded to explain how Yukio and I came to live at the monastery for the last seven years of our lives. He also told us who our mother was, Yuri Egin, and how she was possessed by Satan the year before her death. He went on to tell us about the more gruesome things the Vatican had tried to do to halt our birth or kill us in the womb, but obviously, none of them had worked.
"Satisfied now with your birth story and how you got here?" he asked at the end. Yukio and I exchanged looks. Many details of the story could have been worded better to eliminate the more gruesome detailing, but it wasn't too bad of a story.
"Yes," we both said at the same time.
"The purpose of all of us being here today is to discuss some things. Since Rin had been able to see demons since his birth, it made the deal pointless because it revolved around the fact that all of your demonic power had been sealed tight in the Kurikara. Obviously, you remained your ability to see demons. However, if we were to uphold the deal anyways…"
"Then I get the boys!" Mephisto cheered. To me, it seemed like he was excited about being able to raise us, although my instinct was also telling me that it was a very, very sketchy idea. In a more serious tone, the clown continued. "But seeing how Shiro raised these kids, I would like to a propose a new deal."
"Which is…?"
"Okumura here is already being trained to become an Exorcist," Mephisto pointed at Yukio. Then he pointed at me. "Sometime in the next few years, Okumura here will have to either cope with his demon side in Gehenna or be killed by the Vatican. What does he want to do for the time being?"
I had options, to live or to die. I contemplated the options in my mind, but a different thought tugged in my mind. Would it be worth it or not was the real question, since no one had a clue how much longer I'd be able to live as a human before my demon side awakens fully. But the third idea was so compelling, and being the reckless person I am, I decided to go for it. "Neither."
"Huh? Brother, you can't continue living the same life that you had for the next seven years. It's dangerous!" Yukio, always looking out for me. He may or may not have forgotten how much I enjoyed this.
"Yukio, it's okay," I assured him. "I want to be an Exorcist."
At this moment, I swear two people almost lost their bottom jaws. Yukio's glasses slid off his nose and dropped onto the floor - yes, that was how stunned he was at my statement. Mephisto was shocked at first, but he warmed up to the idea right away. Inside, I could feel him scheming, as if I were a chess piece in his game.
"Interesting!" he exclaimed. "What do you think, Reverend Fujimoto?"
Shiro frowned. "If the Vatican were to find out, then you'd be executed right away, Rin. Do you know what you're getting into? Plus, you're not really the studious type at all."
My eyes narrowed. "That's because I can't sit down and comprehend any of this!" I pointed to a big wordy book in front of Yukio. "I like more practical applications than conceptual work," I huffed.
Yukio adjusted his glasses, which he had picked up only moments ago. "Brother, just admit it: you're lazy."
This earned a scowl from me, but I didn't outright say that I was lazy. Instead, I turned to his foster father. "The Vatican can try to kill me after I prove to them my Exorcism skills and my demon side wakes the hell up. Before that, no."
Mephisto laughed. "Reverend Fujimoto, you've raised quite the boy!" His wicked smile was really creeping me out, seriously. "I've made a decision!" he declared out loud, so everyone could hear. "And no one will contest me, am I right?"
"Sure," Shiro said, somewhat bored, somewhat interested in his words.
"Eins, zwei, drei!" Mephisto said, turning into a dog. While the dog was somewhat cute, knowing what the dog actually was made the dog a lot less appealing. I found the transformation somewhat odd and wretching. The clown could actually transform into an animal that could potentially be used as a spy. Wonderful. "I've decided to let the two Okumura boys remain in the monastery."
"Pay up," I heard Nagatomo say to the clergymen around him, who were digging in their pockets for spare change and wallets. They actually used this opportunity to bet on whether or not we'd stay? The idea irked me.
Mephisto transformed back into his clown form and cleared his throat. "Not done yet, folks. Now that Okumura's ability to see demons has been brought to our attention and his want to become an Exorcist, I believe that I and Reverend Fujimoto should oversee any training done by the boys."
My foster father nodded. "I can agree to that. There is to be no Exorcist training that isn't known by either myself or Mephisto done. Agree, Rin?" He looked at me, knowing very well what I'd do if I didn't agree to this term.
"Sure," I stated blandly. I didn't care, so long as I get to be alongside my brother. It would've been nice to have some freedom, but the job was most likely dangerous, with the way the adults are looking over at us right now. Yukio was probably aware of the danger, but he continued to sit there with a straight face.
"Then it's settled!" Mephisto clapped. "Okumura Brothers, you shall stay here with the Reverend and train to become an Exorcist. The Exwire exam is scheduled to be sometime soon, so study hard!" With a clap and an 'eins, zwei, drei', the clown disappeared from his seat, leaving us in the monastery.
"That damn clown," Father Fujimoto muttered, angry. He wanted to know the exact date of the Exwire exam so that he could prepare us both for it in time. "I guess the party's over tonight. Nagatomo, lead Rin and Yukio to their room. Kyodo, follow me." He started to walk out of the room, my sword in hand. I guess I wouldn't be getting it for a good while.
As we were escorted to bed, I watched my foster father lead Kyodo to a different room, worry lines etching on his face. It was clear that he looked almost a decade older right now, rather than his usual forty year old self.
This would be a long six years to becoming an Exorcist, no doubt about that.
NOTES & AUTHOR NOTE
*: Yukio's already been training to become an Exorcist before this scene. It's been approximately two to three months since Shiro asked him if he'd like to become an Exorcist, and of course, he accepted.
How did you guys like this part? I tried not to focus on their more defining characteristics as fifteen year olds, but the starting point of their defining characteristics. Also, Mephisto Pheles was an odd person to write about, and to write in. Anyways, if you liked the second part of the introduction, please leave a review below! Thank you everyone so far for your great reviews, I appreciate them all!
