Chapter Two of Rin's twisted fate! Several quirky characters incoming! I'm not sure how many updates/ frequency thereof I'll be able to do. I don't know how much writing I'll be doing over the summer but I'll try to get this thing going...Ugh this is going to be a long~ story! *P.S. this note was from a long time ago I'm just too lazy to change it*
Chapter 2: Sparking the Inferno
The sky wept for the loss of Father Fujimoto. A lone figure stood apart from all the others. Yukio stared down at the tombstone, rain washing over his shoulders, sinking through his clothes. The chill in the air felt oddly appropriate. He had lost his family, his home, his peace of mind, all in a day. His knuckles turned white clutching a phone that Rin was going to use to call one of Fujimoto's friends. My fault... This is...all...Yukio slipped the cell into his jacket pocket, refusing to allow tears to spill down his face anew. "Well~ this is a rather big debacle isn't it, Yukio-kun?" A familiar patronizing tone drifted over the rain.
"Sir Pheles," he gave a nod in the demon's direction, not bothering to look. He would be dressed in that ridiculous clown suit of his. White as always, with the burgundy undervest, a cape and leggings reminiscent of both the Renaissance and Victorian England at the same time. The "all important tophat" as he was once informed was "an absolute must" with a small matching patchwork umbrella. Just imagining the ridiculous smile on Pheles' face was giving him violent thoughts.
"I'm sorry for your loss." Was that sincerity? Yukio turned, staring into the cold serious face of his superior. "Your brother...what happened to him? Rumors and speculations have already started to spread, none of it good, some of it daming." Yukio returned his gaze to the headstone. He knew he had to answer; it was not a request.
"I'm not sure myself. Nei-san probably didn't react well to all of," he made a vague gesture, "...this. They probably got into an argument." He clenched his fists again, voice cracking slightly as he tried to maintain his composure, "If I had gotten here sooner, maybe things wouldn't have turned out this way... He was taken. He tried to save father in the end but he failed...I failed him." Yukio squeezed his eyes shut and bit back a sob, the emotional wound reopening.
"So, what are you going to do about it?" The regular bob returned to Mephisto's voice.
He lifted his gaze back to the demon. "Fight." A bitter pit of irony twisted in his stomach. I sound like Rin. The determination, the drive to take back what was stolen from him, was all very much like his older twin.
The air was oppressive, stifling, like he was breathing smoke. Heat rolled off of Rin in waves. With every shallow breath plumes of fire trickled from his mouth. Every inch of his body ached. His eyes flickered open. A groan escaped him from as he tried to sit up. The wooden sloped couch he was laying on crackled beneath him. The arabian esque furnishing had apparently caught alight when he was laid on it. It was little more than bed of coals. Rin was pleasantly surprised his clothes hadn't burned off.
The room that he was in was a rough oval and seemed to be constructed of a smooth, reflective, black stone. High vaulted ceilings with tall, open, bay windows were illuminated by strange transparent green silk veils. A foul breeze rushed over the balcony just beyond, which wrapped around the far side of the rounded room. Aside from the glowing curtains there was no lamp or other light source; instead the flames that licked up his sides cast the room in an odd blue light. Rin's fist unconsciously gripped the sword as he cast his gaze around the strange place.
A pair of large carved oak doors were closed off to the right. The windows and balcony in front of him circled the room to the left. Several large black tapestries of embroidered blue and gold thread hung from the ceiling to the floor.
Rin looked at his own reflection in the smooth obsidian. His ears and canines teeth had grown longer and pointed, if only enough to be noticeable, two flickering wisps bandied about over each shoulder. The sword looked more like a flaming staff in its sheath. The glow in his iris also disturbed him. Is this really human. He knelt to brush a hand over the reflected surface. No. This isn't human. I'm not...human...Somewhat dazed by pain of the body and heart Rin staggered out onto the balcony. Gehenna spread out before him. A boiling, dark, gray-green sky above an even darker landscape. It wasn't that different from Assiah yet was entirely otherworldly. He thought of his home. His heartache deepened.
Yukio slid a key into a door's lock. The key was not made for that particular door but that didn't really matter. Today he would meet his new students. It was less than a week since Rin disappeared. He was lost in thought as the door swung open. Irritated chatter echoed through the hall. It seemed they had a chance to get acquainted. That's good.
He fiddled with the pin on his combat jacket in an attempt to steady his nerves. Glancing down the passageway toward the sound of the argument, he sighed softly and began walking. The case that he was carrying was a good weight for grounding his thoughts in the present.
A sharp female voice cut over the murmur. "That's stupid. Having that as your aspiration is childish and unreasonable. 'I'm going to kick Satan's ass?' Just how dense are you?"
"Oh really?" The retort came quickly. "Then why are you here?" It was a male student.
"My reasons are my own, I don't have to share them with you."
The likelihood getting them to work as a team was shrinking by the second when a smaller, soft spoken voice chipped in. "Ah, um, please don't fight. I'm sure sensei will be here any moment." Yukio recognized her. Shiemi, the girl who was unable to walk for a long time. A demon had taken the strength of her legs in exchange for protecting her grandmother's garden. It was killing her slowly when Yukio had exorcised it.
"Shut up!" the two bickering parties snapped in tandem.
The stained glass door to the classroom swung open with more force than intended. The students were startled into taking their seats. Yukio placed his case on the instructor's desk and glared at his students; the glare that had been practiced on his older brother. One of the boys with pink hair blanched, the bald one flinched, and the one with dyed hair looked him in the eyes. Three boys. Of the female students Shiemi was surprised, one with long pigtails and dot eyebrows looked away with a huff, and the last girl hid behind the previous. Three girls. He tried to keep his expression firm but even. Seven students. Someone is absent.
"I am your instructor Okumura Yukio. I see you have had the chance to meet one another so I'll start straight away with the lesson." He flicked open the locks on his case.
After a week of struggling Rin was at his breaking point. Every day he had to fight off his father and every night he was haunted by nightmares. It was dark, aside from his flames, Kurikara unsheathed in his hand, Yukio was clinging onto him. Blood oozed onto Rin's clothes and slicked his hands. His twin's grip weakened "Why, Nei-san?" Yukio had collapsed dead at his feet. Satan's mad laughter boiled out of Rin's mouth. He was unable to scream, unable to cry. Always to wake, covered in cold sweat, gasping for breath, with tears ghosting down his face.
He had just woken from a similar dream but this time was different; the answer was clear. His body was dangerously fragile from the stress but his will was tempered steel. Rin's eyes traced over the scabbard in his hands. I have one chance and no choice. He shoved himself up the wall and onto his feet. Leaning heavily against the obsidian until the strength returned to his legs. A wry smile flitted over his face.
Each breath of Gehenna's befouled air was poisonous and invigorating in equal measure. Rin's increasingly more demonic form thrived under the twisted sky and he was able to draw a stabilizing energy from it.
When he reached the massive chamber doors, still leaning slightly, Rin attached Kurikara to his belt. He briefly reflect on just how disheveled he must look. A week without a shower, much less a change of clothes. I guess this might actually help. He shook his head to rid himself of doubts and placed both of his hands against the door. With a great deal of effort he pushed it open and slid out into the rest of the castle.
The decor was familiar. Smooth, reflective black stone. Wall height tapestries. Vaguely arabian tables and chairs. Any large archway leading in or out of the main structure was adorned with the same glowing green translucent curtains. It would be way to easy to get lost. Rin paused, a hand resting warily on Kurikara's hilt. Where are all the guards? Distant voices echoed through the empty corridors. Sounds of revelry, music, and cheering accompanied. His curiosity piqued Rin quietly made his way towards the noise. It grew steadily louder as he approached and he could begin to make out bits a pieces of conversation. "Oh mighty Satan-sama, when might we meet this shy little prince of yours? This grand party was thrown in his honor, was it not? Yet there is no hide nor hair of him to be seen!"
Rin came to a long balcony-like hallway where a more natural light shone up from what seemed to be the throne room, decked out for a feast. Hundreds of demons were enjoying the festivities. One table filled with what looked like nobles was set the closest to the king's seat. Or, at least what Rin thought was the throne. It was hard to tell because a mostly opaque curtain was enshrouding it. The ominous blue glow made it clear who was seated there. He swallowed his growing unease and looked for a way in. He had come out on the left side and the hall continued to a covered stair on the right that probably lead right out next to the big man himself. Combing his fingers quickly through his hair, he forced himself into a slow and confident stride.
There was a guard at the bottom of the stairs who was undoubtedly drunk. Hiccuping and swaying and just rather beside himself. Rin rather didn't know how to react to the drunken demon that blocked him from entering the throne room. do i just kick him out of my way? Should I be polite? i have no idea about demons' etiquette. Wait, why am I concerned about that?! Fuck it. He brought his foot up and slammed it into the guard's back causing him to stumble forward before falling flat on his face. The crash of armor against stone startled the partygoers and all eyes turned to Rin. It feels kinda like the first time I got in a fight. Despite his growing nerves, he calmly side stepped the now recovering guard and strode into the room. He glanced around briefly, with as much disinterest as he could express, and turned to the throne's dias on his right. "Hey, Pops, we need to talk."
Gah! Already so long and I didn't get to put everything that I wanted to in this one. :'( But where I left the ending is just so perfect. Whaaaaa! Haaa. Okay so I want to get the next chapter out before the end of August but I have no idea how I'll pull it off. There is more stuff than I thought that still needs to be done before the summer is out. Groan.