Alia's POV

Just when I raised a fist to knock, the door swung open with a creak. It got caught me off guard as Yukio was all dressed up in his black uniform to leave for the early afternoon. Going by his expression, he was clearly not expecting me. "Miss Tanaki," he greeted. "What are you doing here?" His eyes drifted to the purple book at my side. Shit. What do I say? I awkwardly rocked back and forth on my feet. Does he know that I know?? "Erm, I...I am here to see Rin," I answered with a fake perky smile.

My act seemed to confused him a little. "Is that so? May I ask why?" He replied. I ran a finger through my hair, trying not to let my smile turn into a cringe. I have a bad habit of doing that. At least, that's what all my friends say. "Oh, I just wanted to get his opinion on certain...food joints by the Acadamy," I lied. "Yeah, I'm trying to get to know the area better. Is that cool?" Yukio nodded. "Of course. How are you feeling? Whether you're aware of it or not, you displayed quite the episode yesterday."

Whyyyyyyyyyydid you have to bring that up I'm trying to forget about that T-T

He was my teacher who had to deal with this and now he's asking me face to face. "I took too much NyQuil," I blurted. He was taken aback by my sudden response and gave me an odd look. "Why were you—"

"Well, you see I thought it was DayQuil but nope it wasn't and when silly me realized it, it was too late," I rambled. "Have a good day!"

I left a puzzled Okumura on the front porch as I hurried in. As I wandered down the halls, it hadn't occurred to me if Rin would've already been in their room or not. I mean if he wasn't, how would I find him? This was a four story building! When I arrived at their dorm, the door was already wide open. I peered inside and sighed. Just as I thought. An empty room. Oh, well. I guess I'll just call him or something. I retrieved my phone from my back pocket and got ready to dial the number as I was about to look around.

When I spun around, my head slammed into another.

"OW!!"

I was bent over rubbing my forehead with Rin in front of me holding his own. "Damn, what was that for?" He complained. I scoffed at him and wanted to yell, but my head was throbbing too much. "You're the one who caught me by surprise!" I hissed. "Jesus Christ, what is in your skull?! Rocks??"

Great, now I'm going to have another bruise. I usually don't care about those kind of things, but smack dab in the middle of my forehead? "What are you even doing here?" Rin asked, giving me a funny look. My gaze lowered to his dark tail currently brushing the floor. I blinked a few times and tried to ignore it. My arms crossed as I looked him in the eye. "I'm here to talk."

He blinked a few times before rubbing the back of his neck. "Right..." his voice trailed. Rin stepped around me to enter the dorm, waiting me to follow. He sat on his lower bunk and looked at me expectantly. Right. I inhaled while tucking a strand behind my ear and clutched the journal to my chest. "I will keep your secret." His posture seemed to relax some at my words. The smallest sigh of relief was detectable from his lips as his focus shifted to the floor. "On one condition," I suddenly added.

Rin locked his eyes back with mine. "Like what?" He asked, his voice filled with uncertainty. I dramatically smacked my book on the desk which made him jump a little. He curiously made his way to it and peered at the cover. "What's with the diary?"

"It's not a diary."

Rin withdrew at my tone, his eyes awkwardly darting away. I frowned at my actions. I didn't intend to sound so harsh, but I didn't keep diaries. I was much too old for that kind of thing. I cleared my throat and flipped to the first page, picking up a pen lying on the desk to etch in the date. "I study you as a project: your condition remains confidential. Deal?" I proposed, keeping my gaze on the lined paper.

"Wait, what? A project?" He repeated cluelessly. "What do you mean?" I located a doctors bag on the floor beside one of the bunks with a stethoscope peeking outside of it. What is medical equipment doing in their room?? Absentmindedly, I approached the tools and removed the stethoscope. "You claim to be half demon. Yet there are no official records of any kind of demon in the kingdom animalia, and if there was, the possibility of one breeding with a homo sapien is another question all together. But your phenotype is an entire different kind of startling evidence that says otherwise. So I'm going to confirm everything for myself," I simply explained as I gestured for him to sit down in the chair by the desk.

Let's just say this guy had the most bewildered expression I've ever witnessed it was almost sad. I slipped on the stethoscope and held an eartip to an ear. "What the hell did you just say??" He asked. I sighed before pressing the diaphragm of the equipment to his heart. "Hold still," I requested. "Basically, there's no evidence of anything supernatural—not until I met you, anyway. I'm going to see how it ties up with everything scientifically, after all, there's bound to be an explaination—there always is...your heart rate is normal." I took off the set and grabbed the rest of the bag before putting the back.

Rin scratched his head and tried to look at what I was writing down. "Wait, so like...you're going to experiment on me?" He realized. "That's not legal!"

"You're not legal," I muttered.

Rin's POV

This girl is crazy!! What is she going to do to me?? As if reading my mind, she put down her pen. "Don't overreact, I'm not some mad scientist poking and prodding you with electric needles," Alia sighed. When I opened my mouth to say something, she stuck a thermometer in instead. "Think of me as a nurse doing daily check ups. And who knows? Maybe you'll find out something interesting about yourself. In the mean time, I'll be recording your data—body temperature is normal: 37 degrees Celsius."

How were things happening this fast? Wasn't she freaking out two days ago? And now I have my own personal doctor?

A part of me wondered if she was actually okay. If she was really okay with all of this...okay with me.

From there on, Alia continued to do everything a normal check up would include; she checked my blood pressure, looked at my throat, and flashed a really bright light in my eyes. I yelped and shielded myself. "You're not supposed to look at it!" She chided. I rubbed my eyes and muttered to myself. "How can I not?! You stuck it right in my face!" I complained. She rolled her eyes and laid a hand on her hip. "I'm checking your dilation. You don't actually fix your eyes on the light, so focus on the next thing closest to it."

Without warning, Alia shot the beam of light back in my face. I squinted at first, but darted my eyes to something else. I found that her advice worked; when I ignored the light, my eyelids began to open more. I fixed my gaze on her, noticing a red spot left on her forehead from when we smashed heads. My eyes wandered down and met hers. They were light brown with the tiniest specks of green around them. What's that color called...hazel? She was in deep concentration and kept staring into mine.

"Gahh!" I suddenly winced and shoved her hand away as a sharp pain shot into my eye sockets. Alia gasped and clicked off the flashlight. "I'm so sorry, I must've had it on too long!" She quickly apologized. No kidding. I covered my eyes for a few seconds until they stopped aching. "That hurt," I groaned.

"Um—well, good news! Your eyes work."

"Is this really necessary?" I wondered aloud after she told me to say 'ah.' I made a weird muffled sound as she grabbed hold of my mouth. "Ommph—wha ya dwine??" Her fingers pulled back my lips so she could study my teeth. Why does she want to see my teeth??

"Wow, they're remarkable," Alia awed. "They're perfectly straight, did you have braces?"

"No...?"

"How many times a day do you brush?? Do you floss frequently? They're so white and completely in line—even with these fangs. Although, they're barely noticeable from a distance, you can definitely see them if you pay attention up close..."

Like you're doing right now?

"Okay, first, chill out and stop stretching my face," I replied while pushing her hand off. Alia sheepishly pulled her arms back. "Ah...sorry, I just—sorry," she apologized again while avoiding my gaze. She went to scribble something in her journal. "Sometimes I get ahead of myself, just let me know if I'm too much." Too much of what? "I have a rather intense personality," she added, as if knowing what I was thinking.

"What do you mean?"

Alia shrugged at my question. "Doesn't matter. I wasn't planning on sticking around much longer anyway."

"Why?" I asked. "You'd probably fit right in once school starts back up. I mean, you're rich and seem really brainy and stuff." I heard a sharp exhale from her nose. She held up a pair of tweezers before her and studied them. "Heh, thanks, I guess. But this place really isn't my style."

I know how you feel.

"Then why are you here?" I wondered. Alia shrugged and ran a hand through her hair. "It's my punishment," she replied with a sigh. Without another word from her, I felt a sharp tug from my scalp. "Ow!" I yelled, grabbing the sore spot on my head. Alia nodded in satisfaction as she eyed a hair pinched in the tweezers she held. "What was that for?!"

"How else am I supposed to get a DNA sample?" She responded as if I should already know this stuff. "Because I don't do saliva." I crossed my arms and rolled my eyes. "At least that would've been less painful," I grumbled. Alia huffed at my complaints, then tucked the strand of hair in a tissue before slipping it in a page of her journal. "Stop whining, it's only a pinch. I wonder how on earth were you able to survive vaccinations," she remarked.

"Whatever," I muttered. I really wasn't in the mood to put up with anymore, but it was either this or she exposes me. After she finished invading my privacy, she put away all of my brother's equipment back into his doctor bag before plopping it back next to his bed. Alia licked her finger then flipped a page in her book, jotting something down with her pen. She inhaled a bit as she made herself comfortable in one of the chairs at a desk. "Okay, now for some questions," she informed while tapping the pen to her chin, staring at her new page in concentration. Her eyebrows crinkled in thought. "You stated you were half...demon. So one of your parents are human, correct?"

I scooted back on my mattress and leaned against the wall. "Yeah, my mom is," I sighed. "But Yukio and I don't know much about her. We never met her." My eyes darted back to her, wondering what her reaction was. Alia opened her mouth to say something, but then paused. "I'm...sorry. Wait...so Yukio is just like you? You both share the same set of parents, right??"

I shook my head and ruffled my hair. "We're twins, but Yukio is completely ordinary," I explained. Her face scrunched up funny as she formed a puzzled expression. "You must be fraternal twins," she guessed. I nodded in response. Alia suddenly threw herself back into her seat in frustration. "That doesn't make sense though. How can he be normal? If you share the same parents, he should also...well...unless his 'traits' are somehow dormant, I guess it makes sense somewhat," she thought aloud. Alia sat back up and rested her elbows on her lap. Our eyes met as she tucked some hair behind her ear. "So you were born like..." She hesitated as she slowly scanned me up and down. "This?"

Just say it. Say how much it bothers you.

"No, I..." My mind went back to the time when I first opened the Koma sword. I bit my lip at the ugly memory and tried not to think about it anymore. "I wasn't always like this, but I kind of grew the tail and everything just a few months ago," I explained, making sure to leave everything else out. Especially the part about being the son of Satan. I don't think she'd take that well. Alia blinked a few times as she looked at me strangely. "What?" I asked.

"Uh—" She broke herself out of her small daze and awkwardly turned her focus to the sunlight pouring out of the window. "Um, I mean...most teenagers just go through puberty, but...wow."

"Hey, don't get any weird thoughts!" I snapped as I jumped to my feet. "It wasn't anything like that, it—" I bit my tongue to keep myself from saying something stupid. She could never find out the full story. I already got myself this far into this crazy mess. I couldn't afford to dig myself a deeper hole. "Never mind, forget it," I muttered. "Anything else you wanna know that's not TMI?"

Alia rolled her eyes, clicking her tongue in annoyance as she crossed her legs. "Hey, you're the one taking it in a weird way. And I'm just doing my job," she simply defended. This time, I rolled my eyes. "You're not my doctor, you know," I quipped while crossing my arms.

"Well, from now on I am, so deal with it."

I huffed at her stubbornness. Something tells me I haven't even experienced the beginning of it. After another minute of listening to her scribble more stuff in her journal, she set it aside on the desk next to her. "Alright, so what kind of diet do you follow? Keto? Vegan? Paleo? Vegetarian?" She inquired, neatly folding her hands on her lap. What the hell? Aren't vegan and vegetarian basically the same thing? And I don't even know what the others are. I paused as I just scratched my head. "I dunno...I just eat whatever?" I guessed. "A little of everything?"

Alia sighed through her nose while uncrossing her legs before she slapped the journal shut. "I guess that'll do for one day. I don't think I can handle any more."

YOU can't handle any more??

She stood up and pulled her phone from her back pocket to check the time.

Alia's POV

According to my smartphone, it was two thirty. I tucked it back into the pocket of my jean shorts. I took another deep breath for what seemed like the hundredth time today. My eyes closed for a moment as I placed a hand on my hip while standing before Rin. "Look, I'm sorry I'm all up in your business, but you're not the only one internally flipping out about what happened. I need to make sense of things in order to get through this. It might not make any sense to you, but...this is something I just have to do," I slowly explained. "So please understand."

Even though I've seen all I've needed to see to be fully convinced, it was still...too much to process. I knew it would take time for me to adjust to my new disordered reality, but I just had to take it day by day. To help me understand my new world better, I'd just have to use my allies, logic and science, to help make sense of all this until then— which would take a while.

Rin drew in a slow breath as he lowered his gaze to the floor. "Yeah..." He replied. "I guess I get it. I'm just surprised you're still talking to me." I eyed the journal in my hold as multiple thoughts ran through my mind. Keeping my focus on it, I carefully picked my next words while gradually sidestepping to the open doorway. "I am too," I admitted. "You are rather strange and like nothing I've ever seen...and to think I barely even know you. But my curiosity always gets the best of me, you see. Until next time, Rin."

I turned on my heel to barely meet the door post face first. After my eyes widened, only inches from the peeling wooden finish, I slowly blinked. Real smooth, Alia. I heard a tiny snicker from behind. "See you 'round, Ali," Rin answered with amusement. I didn't have to be facing him to detect the smirk in his voice clearly. I spun around, making my loose hair brush against the wall, and gave him an emotionless stare. Did he just call me Ali?

When he realized his slip up, his smirk faded before his blue eyes darted away. "Sorry," he quickly apologized. "I wasn't teasing, it just...slipped out, I guess. If it makes you uncomfortable, I can just call you Tanaki—"

"No!" I bursted. Ew, god, no. He'd sound just like my personal assistant and everyone else at my old school. Just listening to people call me that all the time wore it out, and I don't care if it's for formality's sake. I noticed Rin was taken aback by my sudden sternness. I cleared my throat before trying again in a calmer tone. "No. I don't prefer to be called by my surname much. Ali is fine." I softened my gaze, causing Rin to relax a little. He got up from the lower bunk and stretched his arms. "Okay," he yawned. "Just let me know if I say something that bothers you. I don't really have a filter."

I couldn't help but chuckle a little at his statement. I could relate. "Oh, don't worry, I will," I responded with a smirk. I gave him a lazy wave of goodbye, then made my exit out of the room.

After leaving the old boys' dormitory, I spent the rest of the afternoon shopping for extra clothes, shoes, and school materials and such. But my brief stay with Rin Okumura was the only thing occupying my mind. It was duller than I expected. His vitals were all normal, and the only way to tell he was different was his appearance. I guess I was hoping to make some sort of internal breakthrough. But of course, his birth was nothing special, and his diet was totally normal for any typical teenager to my disappointment.

There was nothing interesting about him, except for his physical features. Those elvish shaped ears were hard to spot sometimes with his messy dark hair, and the baby fangs peeking from behind his lips were definitely unique. Especially the long, curling tail swaying freely...that was a dead give away. Though, the most captivating trait were his unusually blue eyes. The odds of them holding such strong pigment were incredibly low. Only eight to ten percent of the world's population are born with blue eyes and less than two percent of that portion have that extremely rare brilliant blue.

Despite all this, there must be more to him than what meets the eye.

Still, I can't let myself get too absorbed in all of this. Even if I'm not too concerned with that Cram School, I have to be prepared for regular school which isn't too far off. I've never attended a private academy or anything, so...other than uniforms, I really don't know what's coming. I just don't see how people can wear the exact same thing every day. I may be from a rich family, but I always attended a regular school with regular kids. Unlike a public school though, a high ranking academy like this expects to maintain a perfect image with uptight rules, so most students here will probably be hella boring.

I definitely won't complain, after all, the probability of juicy high school drama is undoubtedly low.

...

I'm baaaaaaack :3 decided to update more for the next month or so, hope you liked!

~ Sapphire out