SUMMARY
Tooru is a normal person. He does his chores in the house, goes to school, reads books on spirits and demons, stargazes, hangs out with his friends, learns how to do exorcisms, you know, the usual.
So he doesn't understand why, why, there is a demon in his room at four in the morning.
Tooru is a normal person. He does his chores in the house, goes to school, reads books on spirits and demons, stargazes, hangs out with his friends, learns how to do exorcisms, you know, the usual.
So how is it possible for him to be in this situation?!
The… being is small in size. Approximately one hundred and sixty-five centimeters of height, fluffy orange hair, pale skin and honey colored eyes. He is wearing black high waist wide pants, stuffed into some kind of… black pointy boots. His half sleeved shirt is more grey than black. It looks crumpled, but it hugs his chest from where the pants don't cover his skin up to the base of his neck. His forearms are covered with some kind of leather and cloth fingerless gloves, also black, and he wears a grey scarf. On his left shoulder there's a black pointy shoulder pad with more of that leather-cloth attached, covering the totality of his left arm.
Oh, and that pair of horns growing from his head, of course. How could Tooru forget that part?
This can't be happening to him right now.
"Hey, are you even listening to me?" the being asks, crossing his arms and pouting.
"Oh, I'm sorry, I'm a bit busy freaking out because there is a fucking demon in my room, but sure I'll give you attention!" okay, that came out a bit more hysterical than Tooru wanted.
"But you were the one that summoned me!" that makes Tooru stop in his tracks. What? He has done no such thing. He has only started his studies on summoning circles recently, there's no way he could have done it.
"I did not! I'm still learning how to do a summoning circle, let alone the ritual! And why would I summon you?!"
"I don't know, you humans do a lot of strange things," the demon has the audacity of shrugging, like it's none of his business that he literally appeared on Tooru's room at four in the morning, effectively waking him up and freaking the fuck out of him.
He's too tired to deal with this right now.
"Are you some kind of hallucination?"
"Nope."
"Of course a hallucination would say that."
Deciding this situation is way too much for him, and that it probably is indeed a hallucination product of all the reading of summoning procedures before going to bed, Tooru turns around, ignoring the indignant claims from the hallucination-demon, and gets back inside his bed. Hopefully, he'll wake up in the morning and the demon will be gone.
He's not gone.
The demon is still there - still in the middle of his bedroom, sitting with his legs crossed, and looking bored out of his mind as he blows a raspberry. Do demons even know how to blow raspberries? Apparently - and Tooru is now officially panicking because why is the goddamed demon still there?!
"Ah, you're awake. Do humans always sleep that much?" the demon doesn't stand up, simply cocking his head to the side as he asks, and Tooru can only stare in horror.
"Why are you still here?!" he is so glad all the rooms in the house are soundproof, or he would be in so much trouble right now. How could he forget to keep his voice down last night?
Oh right, he had been panicking because there's a demon in his room.
"Well, considering you summoned me, I can't really leave without your permission," the demon says it like it's a bother, like he isn't the one invading Tooru's living space when Tooru did not summon him.
"Okay, first thing first. I did not summon you. I don't know how to do a summoning ritual," Tooru calms down his breathing so he doesn't go into a frenzy like he did last night. He needs a clear head for this.
"You… didn't?"
" No!"
"Huh… well, someone in this property did, then. Don't know why I appeared in front of you though," the demon looks pondering for a moment. "You did say you were learning about it. Is your Clan part of the Priests?" there's a glint of curiosity in those honey-like eyes, almost innocent, even if Tooru knows demons are all but. He answers anyways, because there's no harm in it… he thinks.
"Yes, my family leads the Miyagi Clan. This is the main house, so there's a lot of people who could have summoned you," Tooru scratches his chin, wondering just who could have summoned this demon? He immediately discards all the apprentices and priests-in-training like himself, but that still leaves a whole ass lot of people.
Ah, what a hassle.
"Say, what's your name? You have one right?" the demon asks, and after a moment, Tooru decides it's safe to tell him. That at least he knows won't grant the demon any sort of power over him.
"Of course I do. It's Oikawa Tooru," he says with a small huff, combing a hand through his brown hair, making a face when he feels the oily texture. He's definitely taking a shower after this… situation is over.
"That's a pretty name! Nice to meet you, Oikawa Tooru, my name is Shouyou!" he looks oddly cheerful. Tooru doesn't know what to think of it.
Tooru's eyes drift towards the digital clock on his nightstand, and he tenses when he sees he only has half an hour to get ready before Iwaizumi is pounding at his door to get going for school.
Shit.
"Okay, I have to go shower and get dressed for school… don't leave this room," he remembers to tell the demon - Shouyou - as he starts running around the room to gather his things.
"School? What is that?"
"It's— you know what? I'll explain later. When I come back. So don't leave," and with that, he enters the adjacent bathroom and starts the shower.
(He opens the door again thirty two seconds later to make sure Shouyou The Demon has keep his promise. He meets a really unimpressed pair of honey colored eyes.)
Thirty minutes later, he is handing Shouyou a book, hoping it will entertain him for the day, before rushing out of his room, just in time to avoid Iwaizumi from bulldozing his way inside.
Tooru stares at his best friend with a carefully pieced innocent expression. He knows Iwaizumi doesn't buy it, he knows Tooru too much for that, but if he plays his cards well enough, Iwaizumi will leave it alone.
Probably. Hopefully.
Ugh.
"What are you doing?" Iwaizumi asks, suspicious. It's not like Tooru can blame him, since usually his best friend has to drag him out of his bed if it's earlier than noon.
"Going to school?" that shouldn't have sounded like a question.
"Uh huh. Is there something you don't want me to see in there?" Tooru carefully does not shift his expression, nor does he tense his shoulders.
"Of course not, Iwa-chan," he scoffs, turning away so Iwaizumi believes Tooru has nothing to hide. "You've been to my room before, there's nothing in there you haven't seen already."
"Oh, so if I open the door I won't find anything then?"
"No—ope." Tooru is sweating bullets. Iwaizumi is going to open the door, isn't he. He is! He's going to open it, and he's going to see Shouyou, and Tooru's life will be over.
Or maybe… not.
Iwaizumi looks at him for another long moment before rolling his eyes, moving from Tooru's bedroom door and joining him on his walk to the kitchen to grab something to eat on the way. Matsukawa and Hanamaki should be there already, most likely waiting for them - for Tooru, who's the one that actually makes them late - as they eat breakfast themselves.
He has to suppress a sigh in relief. Ah, that was close.
"Is this you friend, Oikawa Tooru?" Tooru jumps more than a couple of inches in the air as Shouyou materializes next to him.
"What the—?"
"I told you to stay in my room!" Tooru says, trying to keep his voice down as to not alert the rest of the estate. "Why aren't you in my room?!"
Okay, he needs to calm down.
"Your room is boring, Oikawa Tooru," the priest-in-training would say Shouyou is whining, but do demons even whine? Apparently, this one does. "And I heard you talking to you friend, so I thought I would come and say hello."
The nerve of this demon.
"Shittykawa," Tooru yelps, turning around. Iwaizumi looks murderous. "Is there something you want to tell me?"
"I-Iwa-chan, you see, this—"
"Someone in this property summoned me and I appeared on Oikawa Tooru's room last night," Shouyou says chirply, and Tooru can't hide the groan that escapes his lips. "Iwa-chan, are you going to school too? Can you tell me what is it? Oikawa Tooru wouldn't tell me."
Alright, Tooru is ready to die. Iwaizumi will kill him, and on his grave it will read 'Here lies Oikawa Tooru, dead because a demon called his best friend Iwa-chan'.
"Shittykawa."
"I swear I didn't do anything! He just appeared in my room last night, and he hasn't left since! What was I supposed to do?! Bring him to school with me?!" he defends himself, inching away slowly. He'll have better chances of survival if he's away from Iwaizumi.
"Oh, can I go with you?"
"No!" Tooru turns to face the demon for a moment, who pouts and grumbles something in a lenguaje Tooru does not understand fully.
In the end, the demon comes with them anyway.
"That way we can keep an eye on him. Besides, demons can make themselves invisible, right? It's not like anyone else will see him." Iwaizumi talks like they aren't considering bringing a demon to school with them.
Is Tooru the only sane person here?
"O—oh, is that a demon?" Hanamaki and Matsukawa look at the demon with wonder, and said demon relishes in the attention while Iwaizumi does absolutely nothing.
Yes. He is.
Somehow, the four make it out of the house without any of the elders - or worse, Tooru's parents - noticing the fifth companion they have with them. Tooru has to keep grabbing Shouyou's shirt to stop him from running off, and when the demon realises Tooru won't let him get away to explore, he turns to pester him with questions. Apparently, he hasn't left hell for the best part of four centuries, and things have changed quite a bit, go figure.
"So you humans finally stopped killing people when they had relationships with someone from the same sex? Huh, seems like Tobio and Kei lost the bet then," there are so many things wrong in that sentence.
"Tobio and Kei?"
"Just a couple of friends. We weren't allowed to leave Hell until recently, Queen's orders. It was supposed to go on for another couple of centuries, but since he and the King stepped down, they decided to lift up the punishment early," Shouyou talks about it like it's not a great deal, and Tooru wonders exactly how old is he. The demon doesn't look older than he does, but if he's talking about centuries… well, it is said that demons live longer life span than humans.
Also, that tad bit of information of the Queen and King of Hell stepping down is something he'll have to look into later. Tooru is sure no one in the Clan knows about this, and it could be harmful for future summonings. Not that anyone would use that spell, but…
Well, better safe than sorry.
"So how old are you, anyways?" Hanamaki asks the same question Tooru has been thinking about, and he thanks him silently.
"Me? I celebrated my fifth hundred and sixteenth birthday a couple of months ago," he says, smiling so ironically like an angel, like it's something normal. Tooru guesses it is for him. "You humans don't live that long, do you?"
"No, we don't. We all are eighteen," Iwaizumi says, and Shouyou's eyes widen like sausages.
"You are so young! In Hell that's like— you all are just babies!" the demon looks almost horrified of this, and Tooru doesn't even know if to feel offended or amused anymore.
"I guess that means we mature earlier than demons then," Tooru can't help but say, always one to let out salty comments when he can, and he has to hide the smile when he sees Shouyou pouting. He had never in his life thought he would see a demon pout. Then again, he had never thought he would see a demon in his room at four in the morning claiming that he was the one that summoned him, so there's that.
"Why were you grounded anyways? You don't look like one to cause trouble," Tooru begs to differ, but he won't say that outloud, least the demon decides to get back at him for eternity.
"A-Ah, you see, that… may have something to do with that London fire in 1666," Shouyou says, laughing bashfully as he rubs the back of his head subconsciously. Tooru, and he is sure his three friends too, stop for a moment to process that this demon, as in the one they have been talking with for the last twenty minutes, was one of the causes for one of the biggest, most devastating fires in human history.
Just who is this guy?
"You won't be starting any fires here, right?" Matsukawa asks warily, and the demon rushes to reassure them he doesn't plan on doing anything like that, which admittedly puts them a bit more at ease.
"Besides, the consequences if I do it now would be a lot harsher. Ushijima can be a pain in the ass when we mess with you humans, and Kei's already on a bad mood since Tadashi and Akiteru started teaming up to feed him again, so he won't be of any help. Politics and bureaucracy, you know." Shouyou says, rolling his eyes in annoyance, and while Tooru does not 'know', he also saves that bit of information for later.
The rest of the journey is spent in relative silence, and Shouyou turns invisible to all but Tooru when they get out of the Clan's territory, where seeing a demon would be unusual but not questioned. The redhead stops talking his ear off, and instead looks at his surroundings with awe, like he can't believe what humans have done in the last few centuries.
'Oh, just wait until I show you now the internet works,' he thinks in mild amusement, and something he recognizes as fondness.
Tooru then thinks about those words, and proceeds to panic because since when is he excited to show anything to a demon? And since when Shouyou has gone from an annoyance to something - someone - Tooru regards with fondness?
This can't be happening to him right now.
Three periods and a small trip to the vending machine have taught Tooru that this is, in fact, happening, and he is not amused in the slightest. And the worse part is that Shouyou doesn't even notice!
First, he broke a vase. That's alright, no one got hurt, and everyone blamed it on the air current. But then Shouyou decided it was funny to pick the students things, lifting them with his very much invisible hands, and letting them fall on the floor. That escalated on to doors opening and closing on their own, giggles that no one could tell where they came from, a small fire in a trashcan - don't ask - and the whiteboard full of marker lines.
Let's clarify, that this school is not a school for summoners nor is it inside of the Clan's influence. Most of the students don't even know about the Clan's existence. And when people who have never been taught about the supernatural see things flying, well… they tend to panic.
A lot.
Tooru has to drag Shouyou by the arm after the third period, and explain as calmly as he can - so, in the middle of a full blown panic - that he cannot do those things. And that he has to stop behaving like a spirit because he is fucking not !
Shouyou pouts, but ultimately calms down and agrees to stop doing weird things. Tooru thinks he looks guilty, so he goes easy on him and tells him he'll answer his questions about school and the modern world when they are back at the Estate.
The blinding smile he gets in return makes his heart beat a bit faster.
Well, at least the demon hasn't stopped calling Iwaizumi 'Iwa-chan'. No matter what his best friend does, Shouyou simply doesn't seem to get it. He still hasn't stopped calling him 'Oikawa Tooru' either. Hanamaki and Matsukawa hit the jackpot only telling him their nicknames.
After school is over - and thank the ever loving fuck because Tooru had at least two heart attacks because of Shouyou - Tooru decides he should stop beating around the bush and gets to work. Even though he doesn't know how to do a summoning, he does know how to trace energy. And rituals like summonings leave a lot of residual energy to trace, so he just has to incantate a spell and he is on his way around the Estate.
Iwaizumi has long since left, not caring enough to be bothered with the situation and deciding his Math homework is more important - a really wise desition Tooru wishes he could follow - . Matsukawa was called by the elders to review his progress from the last session - good, less eyes on Tooru - and Hanamaki went to the kitchen for snacks, though Tooru doubt he'll come back soon.
It is, for all purposes and effects, only Tooru and Shouyou, once again.
He should be more bothered by it. He really should. But all he can think about is how funny the demon actually is, if a bit socially awkward. That must just be the difference in their cultures, because overall they connect rather well.
Which is great because Tooru is having more than a few problems tracing the signal. Or more like, he's not sure what this signature means.
It's there, Tooru can feel it lurching and turning around the Estate, revolving around Shouyou like planets around their sun. This is normal for energy, it always latches to either the source or the receiver, and when tracked down, it lights up like an unmistakable trace. But Tooru has never seen this kind of signature before.
It's dark, like most demon-summoning energies look like. Black with flashes of deep blue, thick-looking and faint in presence. That means the summoner definitely has no idea they left a demon wandering around the Estate, whoever they are. But that's where Tooru ends his analysis, because the aura, the feeling he gets of it, it's… forheign. He has practiced with many different energy signatures, and yet none have ever felt like this one.
It feels powerful. Important.
"Are you alright, Oikawa Tooru?" he turns to look a Shouyou with a questioning glance. "You look conflicted, is all."
"Oh. Well, it's just… I'm not sure what I'm looking at. This is the first time I've ever seen this type of energy signature," he says distractedly, more interested by the swirl of the trace around the demon. Like this, he looks imposing, high and mighty even if his clothes haven't changed at all.
"Is that a bad thing?"
"Not… really. It's just strange. All signatures are different because they connect both the demon and the summoner, so the combination are endless. I could try to single out the summoner's end to see if I can recognize it, but your part of the connection is quite stronger. That's probably because whoever did this has no idea they ever succeeded with the summoning," Shouyou looks interested, and Tooru smiles faintly. "While I do that, we can follow the trail, and you can ask me whatever kind of questions you have."
Turns out, Shouyou has a lot of questions, but they are all things Tooru can answer with relative ease. The demon is mostly trying to catch up on the human world, and the priest-in-training takes it upon himself to help him. Shouyou's eyes open like two big plates when he is introduced to the internet and videos, but he gets instantly hooked in one of the silly games Tooru has downloaded on his phone, so he entertains himself with that while Tooru focuses on the signature's trail.
It leads them to one of the ritual rooms. There are quite a bit of them in the Estate, and the different residues of energy mix with each other, but Tooru goes to the one at the end of the hall, where the distinctive dark energy gets stronger.
When he opens the door, it's empty, but the summoning circle is still fully drawn. Whoever did this obviously does not know you are supposed to break the circle after the summoning is done so… well, the demon doesn't stay on the human realm for eternity.
He's going to have to talk with his parents after this isn't he?
Ugh.
Sighting, Tooru motions for Shouyou to follow him inside the room, closing the door behind him and locking it for good measure. It's not that Tooru isn't allowed to be here, but it's better that no one sees him wandering the ritual rooms alone, or worse, with a demon.
You know, like, what he's doing right now.
Tooru gets closer to the summoning circle as he takes something out from his bag. It's that handy book on summoning rituals and the differences between each one of them that he took from his sister's bedside table a few weeks ago to finish that essay their father asked for. She won't mind if he uses it for more… practical research.
Plopping down next to the drawn circle, Tooru pats the space besides him for Shouyou to sit up and he opens the book, flipping through the pages as he looks for any similarities.
"Do you really not remember being here before appearing in my room?" he asks looking at one of the runes closely before tsking when he realises the finishing line is different.
"Well… not really. I remember being in my room back in Hell, reading one of the papers Tadashi brought for me, and then I was just… there in your room," Shouyou must realise that isn't the normal procedure for summonings, because he also looks confused. "Do you have any idea why it may have happened? Because the energy is there, I recognize it, but this is the first time I've ever seen this room. It's nice, by the way."
"This is the first time I've ever heard of anything like this happening. Normally, demons stay inside the summoning circle unless the summoner calls a spell to let them out, at which point the energy would stop flowing through the circle and the exchange would solely rely on the summoner. The other option is they get back to Hell if the summoner breaks the circle. Seeing as his circle is still fully drawn, my only guess is that whoever did this has no idea you're here, and is too lazy to clean this up," Tooru explains the things he knows like the back of his palm by now, the knowledge engraved in his head after all these years of seeing his family performing different rituals and all his research in the many books he has read.
"That's—"
"Yes," they both agree on the silent statement that whoever did this is a complete moron and should be taught how to do proper summonings all over again starting with the basics. "Here is it!"
"What did you find, Oikawa Tooru?"
"Which ritual circle this is. There's different procedures for different types summonings, so I can't just erase a line from the circle without knowing which type this one is," then, Tooru starts reading the information, and immediately comes to a stop. This circle…
There is no way. There is absolutely no way Shouyou, of all demons…
"Are you alright?" but it is, despite Shouyou's appearance and bubbly attitude. Because there is only one demon who could be summoned by this specific circle.
"Why didn't you tell me you are the Demon King?" the words spill out of his mouth in a mix of awe, surprise, and hurt. Tooru doesn't want to think as to why.
Shouyou's eyes widen in surprise, and his lips part even if nothing comes out at first. Tooru keeps quiet, not willing to budge because he feels like this is kind of important, right?
Then, Shouyou sighs.
"I was hoping you wouldn't find out," at Tooru's presumable hurt expression, his eyes widen again, and his hand start fussing wildly. "Not because of you or anything! I didn't try to hide it or anything either. It's just… well, it's not been long since Koushi and Daichi, the old Queen and King, stepped down, and even though I already knew I would take their place, I'm not used to the new… special treatment. I guess I just wanted someone to treat me like any other demon would get treated," Shouyou says, and he looks so tiny, so unlike any image of the Demon King Tooru had in mind before.
Something inside him calms down at his demons explanation. Tooru doesn't know why - he does, he just doesn't want to acknowledge it, it's easier that way - but the thought of Shouyou actively hiding something from him bothers him greatly.
"If it makes you feel any better… you can act whatever way you want around me. I don't care if you're the King of Hell, you are fun to hang around," Tooru feels his cheeks burn red, and he thanks the partial darkness of the room. He is still able to distinguish Shouyou's blinding grin though, and his heart makes a little flip at the sight.
And that scares him. Shouyou is a demon, a creature from Hell. He doesn't belong to the human realm, and the only reason he hasn't faded back to Hell is because of the summoning that's keeping him captive. And even if he didn't want to leave, demons are not meant to wander around for long, even though they could, if they are powerful enough. Eventually, their energy must be restocked back at Hell. That's where summonings come to play, since they let the summoner and the demon establish a link so that the demon doesn't have to go back.
But Shouyou's summoner doesn't even know he's here, so when Tooru breaks the connection… Shouyou will leave.
Tooru is not so sure he wants Shouyou to leave.
The demon is fun, despite his mannerisms and occasional childishness. He doesn't behave like any demon Tooru has ever heard about. Shouyou makes him… feel things, things he has never felt with anyone else. Tooru isn't sure why, or how, he has never been a believer of that 'love at first sight' bullshit. But now he is starting to eat his words, because despite the rocky start, and the many headaches he has given him ever since he woke up last night at four in the morning, Tooru cannot get himself to want Shouyou out of his life. He just can't.
What a terrifying feeling, love is.
"Alright then, let's get you back home," Tooru has to swallow the lump in his throat as he keeps reading the book, making sure he has everything he needs to safely break the circle.
"Huh?" Shouyou looks at him for a second before Tooru's words down on him. "O-Oh. Right. Where do you want me?"
"Anywhere is fine, but it's better if you are inside the circle so the energy can spread evenly." Shouyou obeys immediately, walking so he's in the center of the circle. Like this, standing in the middle of a summoning circle in the half illuminated room, with his horns looking a lot bigger in the shadows and his clothes wrapping the air around him in mystery, Tooru can almost believe that he's staring at the Demon King.
He shakes his head slightly as if to fight off those thoughts, and instead starts reciting the spell. It's a simple incantation, one Tooru knows by heart after his father drilled it in his head. His voice doesn't waver as the lines of the circle light up in bright red and blue, forming a purplish hue that's so distinctive from the King of Hell's summoning circle.
When he is finishing the chant, Tooru kneels in front of the circle and extends a hand.
Is he really going to do this? Just one swipe, and the connection will be severed. Shouyou will be free, and he'll go back to Hell, where he belongs sitting on the throne. And Tooru… Tooru will just have to move on.
He is saying the last word of the spell when his hand touches the circle, and he erases part of it. The connection is gone. Shouyou is free to go home.
And Tooru just wants to cry.
He doesn't stand up, staring, but not seeing how the circle fades now that it has lost all its magic. The purple hue is gone, and the faint traces of black that still remain are gone like burning rope until the floor is clean of any marks, as if there never was in the first place.
It's done, he thinks, already feeling the void growing on his chest, the connection it's gone, and now Shouyou will go back to Hell, where I can't follow.
Tooru is still looking at the floor, squatting down and with his hand still pressed against the place where once was the circle, when a pair of pointy boots crosses his view.
Shouyou is squatting in front of him, and his gloved hands hold his face until Tooru is looking at those brow eyes. Right now, they look amber, glowing with something mythical, supernatural.
"Thank you," he says, smiling softly, and Tooru's heart jumps at the sight, at the closeness. "I'll miss you."
A small gasp leaves him. Shouyou will… miss him?
"You will?" his words sound hopeful, desperate for the reassurance that he isn't the only one feeling like this, that he's not the only one that fell in love with a stranger that somehow, feels like so much more.
Shouyou nods, still smiling. Tooru can see a pair of pointy teeth, part of his demonic appearance, but he can only find it endearing. He smiles back, wobbly, hesitantly, and then, Shouyou does it.
The kiss is short, merely a press of lips. It leaves him gapping, eyes blown wide as he stares at the demon, who is standing up again.
"I'll be waiting, Tooru," and just like that, he disappears, only leaving behind a trace of black smoke.
It's hard to learn how to do a proper summoning. Tooru already knew bits and pieces from all the times he had seen it during official ceremonial days throughout his life, but learning the whole process, how to write the symbols and maintain a stable connection, it can take years.
Tooru masters it in three months.
While the majority of the Clan was and still is surprised by his extraordinary learning curve, his three closest friends know he has a hidden motivation. He needs to be able to do a successful summoning to see him again, after all, and everything Tooru has accomplished has come through sheer hard work, so it's only fitting this is, too.
Now, he stands in front of the freshly drawn summoning circle, the same one he erased months ago when he first saw Shouyou. Tooru has checked three times that all the symbols have been written accordingly, and is now about to cast the summoning spell.
In its essence, a summoning spell is easy. It's the summoner's spiritual capacity what makes the spell powerful or weak, and in accordance, which demon the spell brings. A weak summoner would never be able to bring the King of all demons to the human realm.
But Tooru is not a weak summoner. He has made sure of that.
He chants with force, a steady flow of words he has learned by heart, practiced more times than he can count in front of the mirror. He doesn't stop when the lines turn that familiar purplish hue, and he forces the smile out of his face so it doesn't intervene with his pronunciation.
Slowly, that black and blue energy signature starts to form in the middle of the circle, and Tooru feels a drop of sweat trickling down his face from the effort, but he doesn't stop. Not when he's so close, not when he's seconds from seeing him again.
The last sentences come out like a yell, unwavering but piercing as he pours in all his efforts, all his frustrations when things didn't work, and all his awaiting love into the spell.
When the energy signature clears, forming a flowing line that connects it to the circle, Tooru sees him.
Shouyou looks exactly the way he did last time Tooru saw him. Same hair, same eyes, clothes, and hornes. Same smile.
He feels tears pricking in the corner of his eyes.
"Tadaima." the tears fall. He doesn't care.
"Okaeri." this is the happiest he has ever been.