As Shiemi and I had reached the last batch of pansies, the smell of fertilizer was finally beginning to get to me. The smell lingered on my bare hands and most likely on my clothes, great, guess I had to do laundry tonight. As we sat there talking, well she talked while I listened, she went into detail of the stories of Amahara her grandmother had told her before her passing. The way she talked, with a face full of hope, determination, and fascination at the thought of coming across the only garden that was created for a divine purpose. However, the way she described it, with the fact that it was God who created the garden disgusted me. God creating the garden of Amahara? Don't make me laugh. How dare he take credit for something he had no part in making. How dare he take the credit of my dear brother who spent years, decades, centuries in creating the perfect paradise on Earth.
I watched her with a steady gaze until I heard Yukio's voice behind us.
"Nee-san! What have you gotten yourself into now? I can't believe it, I leave you alone for one minute with a clear rule not to leave the front of the house, and here you are." There goes my dear little brother, believing he has the authority to order me around just because of the way I make myself out to be when in front of him.
"Aw, c'mon Yukio, I was just hanging out with Shiemi here. She's pretty cool and knows a bunch about plants, I think she'd make a great herbalist, heck, even an exorcist doctor like you."
I watched as my brother's shoulders relaxed at the mention of Shiemi who was currently watching him with excitement filled eyes, so he likes her too huh? Behind him, I saw an older women watch Shiemi with both a worried and stern expression across her features. Her gaze turned to me, sizing up my fertilized filled hands, my dirtied clothing, and my sheathed sword lying only an arm's reach away to my left. Then her eyes followed the fallen gate and her eyes widened and looked back at me in what felt like seconds. I continued to watch her movements as she reached for something in her kimono, an agrimony flower. I watched as she plucked each of the five yellow petals and let them be blown by the wind. My eyes narrowed only just as one of them flew by me and grazed my right ear, leaving a small burn in its wake. Agrimony, a defensive herb used to banish evil spirits and deflect hostile magic, my eyes darted between both Shiemi and her mother. Don't tell me they're witches. I've heard stories of witches from my brothers, in some shape or form each of my brothers and I were attached to a form of witchly magic, but it was Amai-nii who had a deeper relationship with them. It was no wonder the Moriyama family owned a herb store and had a garden filled with different types of plants each of them held their own purposes in both exorcisms and potion making.
I smiled at the women, hoping it would appease her mood towards me, in regards of the newly discovered information. I knew she and I were thinking the same thing at the time, she must be strong to have figured it out so quickly. Her gaze finally lifted off mine as she saw that I would cause no harm to her daughter and herself. Instead, she looked at the legs of the young girl.
"Shiemi, allow Yukio to look at your legs." A stern voice indeed, this witch, she meant business.
Confused, Shiemi lifted herself up from her seiza in order to get into a better position for her legs to be looked at. As Yukio thanked her, she moved aside one part of the kimono to allow Yukio better access of examining her unblemished leg.
"Shiemi? How did those marks leave you already? They were there only moments ago!" exclaimed the elder Moriyama.
Yukio removed his hands from Shiemi's leg seeing as there was truly no signs of any more roots on her person. He looked up at the girl in question, looking into her eyes and trying to figure out the reason for it. The confused girl's green eyes met mine when she was asked not knowing how to answer it.
"Are you talking about the green root like marks that ran up and down her leg Moriyama-san?" The heavy-set women turned to me as I asked and cautiously nodded and I could tell she was trying not to reach to the nearby Anise seeds that were on the working table.
"She had them when I first talked to her, but in the middle of our conversation, they vanished! It was freaking creepy."
"That's right! Rin was telling me that she read about these markings in one of her books. She said they were caused by a demon, a Dekalp, right? As we began talking about Grandmother they just disappeared just like that, I didn't even feel anything when they were gone."
I nodded to clarify her statement, and that's when I felt Yukio's gaze on me. I turned to him and tilted my head as his eyebrows furrowed at the mention of me diagnosing the cause of the roots. His teal eyes bore into mine as he was trying to read any expression that could possibly give me away but to no avail. His gaze turned back to Moriyama-san, who looked impressed at the mention of me diagnosing the cause, but at the same time alarmed. I smiled at her in return again.
"Nee-san told you?" Asked an uncertain voice provided by Yukio.
"Yukio," I began, "I do know how to read. I found it really easy to memorize Earth type demons as some were affiliated with herbs that I use for culinary purposes." Take the bait, take the bait little brother.
"Oh, I see." He took it. "If Shiemi-san no longer has roots on her legs it's safe to assume that the demon has lost interest in her or has probably died while in the process of trying to possess her. If that is the case, I would like Moriyama-san to take precautions and place extra wards around your home and garden as to not allow any demons to trespass. If you want, I can even place them myself right now, I'm not busy after this."
"Angelica," I muttered.
Yukio looked at me with confusion across his features, and before he was to ask the question that was running through his mind I answered.
"An angelica herb can be used to protect someone's home from evil spirits or demons by sprinkling it in the four corners of their house it can create a protective shield. Just use the root." I intentionally left out the part of it being able to dispel hostile magic when worn from him since exorcists have yet to encounter any knowledge on witches. And I believe that the Moriyama family, the coven they are a part of, and others would like it that way until they came out themselves.
Aw, Yukio looked impressed. You better be little brother, because I am not done yet.
Not by a long shot.
"Okumura-chan!" I jolted awake at the sound of my name being called by a male voice next to my desk.
Looking up I noticed Adachi-sensei looking down at me with a stern glance before faltering his gaze when he met my eyes. He knew my grades would not suffer because of me taking a nap, so Mephisto probably warned him, that and he heard that I entered the school with his recommendation. I rubbed my eyes with no shame what so ever as Adachi-sensei continued his lesson on demon history and made his way to the front of the classroom. As he was doing so, I could feel a familiar glare being burned into the back of my head. From the corner of my left eye I could see it was the delinquent looking guy, and from his expression, he looked pissed. I heard him mumble something about why I was even here or something like that. But I ignored them and brought the textbook to a stand before falling asleep behind it. I don't give a flying mint bunny what they think about me.**
I could hear Adachi-sensei sigh once more before ignoring me and getting back to the lecture, but that did not stop… Shit. What's his name? I'll call him Rooster for now. Anyways, Rooster, growled at me as he saw me getting comfortable to continue my needed nap. Wow, he went from rough guy to nice guy to rough guy again since I first met him. This week was too tiring, first an annoying Dekalp, then Belial-san gave me a new training regiment sent by my dear older brother and right after I began to play around with some ingredients for a new recipe I was planning. It's truly futile to resist the lure of sleep.
That lure hit me throughout the rest of Demon History, which was a joke by the way as exorcists have been given no information near important for them to have by Mephisto. Then Demon Studies when I was questioned about Coal Tars, least powerful demons my ass, they were created for a reason. Third, Grimoire Studies, which was a bore, so I ignored to the best of my abilities.
And now I finally find myself in Demon Pharmacology, with Yukio standing in front of us with our graded tests in hand. Here goes, if I didn't get the highest grade dear Amai-nii would be disappointed in me and then test me again, but demon-royal-family-style. No, never again. Ever.
Next to me, I noticed sweet little Shiemi fidgeting in her seat, her shadow was doing the same thing while smiling towards Yukio's direction.
"You cool Shiemi?" I asked as Yukio began calling out names one by one.
"It's just, this subject is my specialty! I know I did great on it, I just do!"
"And you probably did Shiemi, but you usually call them by a nickname," looking at her expression I saw it fall as I stated this information. "Wait, please don't tell you wrote down the nicknames."
"Um.."
"Moriyama-san," at her name, she sighed and walked toward Yukio in shame. "It's great that you use your own names for the plants but when it comes to tests, make sure to use the proper names next time okay?"
"OK." Replied Shiemi with a dejected voice.
"Suguro-kun."
So that's Rooster's last name, it fits, but Suguro? Where have I heard that name before, it sounds familiar to me, but where? As I was thinking all this, Suguro-san was walking right past me with a glare directed at me. The hell is his problem?
"Excellent work, Suguro-kun," came an approving tone from Yukio as he was being handed his grade. As he turned around we caught each other eyes, blue met brown, curious met arrogant.
"What?"
"Nothing, if little Yukio gave his approval then you must be good. Don't judge a book by its cover and all right?"
His raised an eyebrow at my statement and looked down at his test in turn. He lifted his gaze back to mine and turned over his test to show me his grade.
At the top of the page printed in red pen and in medium-sized font was the number 98 underlined twice.
"98? Nice."
"What's that supposed to mean? I studied to get this grade unlike you who keeps sleeping in every goddamn class that we've had for the past week. Unlike you, I have a reason to be here, I have an actual fucking reason for becoming an exorcist." Hissed the male.
"I'm sure you do," I stated. "What's my grade Yukio?"
"100," said Yukio with confusion laced in his voice. "A perfect score Okumura-chan."
As he was handing me my test Suguro-san's eyes widened as he saw the same red font on the top of the paper with the highest grade possible written across. Giving him a smug smile in return.
"Just because I don't pay attention in class, does not mean I haven't studied either, unlike you all, I can't learn sitting down. I can't look at a textbook and memorize it, I have to actually observe the plants and practice the methods they teach us. So don't you dare assume that I don't study.
"Don't judge a book by its cover you shit." With that final statement, I grabbed my belongings and headed out the door to take our scheduled fifteen-minute break before Practical Athletics with Tsubaki-sensei.
To say the least, Practical Athletics was, eventful. Truly.
First was the bringing out of the Leapers so we could get see their movements, next was the "volunteering" of two students (read: Suguro-san and me, please do so now) so they could jump into a pit with one to get used to their movements. Fun.
After that came the kicking me down while running in the pit and hitting the cement face first, Suguro-san being pulled away by our teacher and being told that I was a "special case" who got into True Cross by the Dean of Academy himself. Then informed about the Blue Night and how it affected the male to grow a personal vendetta against Satan. That was a heart-wrenching story, and I wish that there was a way to turn back time and stop it from occurring to those innocent during mother's failed execution.
Finally, Tsubaki-sensei left class early due to his so-called "Kitten," why the hell did my brother allow this type of behavior in his beautiful Academy? Which led to the currently stupid bet that Suguro-san was proposing.
I looked at Suguro as I gave him an answer,"Yeah, sure. It sounds pretty interesting, however, I'm not gonna do it."
"What?"
"A Leaper looks into the eyes of the people around it and it reads their emotions. If any agitated emotions are located from the person, then it moves in for the attack. What would happen if I messed up? I'd die, and I would really not like that, thanks for asking.
"Also, I've got my own ambitions, and dying for something as a petty bet like this one, yeah, thanks, but no."
Next thing I know he is sliding down the sloped wall leading back into the pit with the Leaper. What an idiot. As he stood there I watched all three of them, the Leaper, Suguro-san, and his shadow. It was that moment when he exclaimed his ambition, "I'm gonna defeat Satan!"
My eyes glazed and hardened as I heard him speak those words to all of us in the room. Defeat my father? No one in their right mind has once been able to that, not even when my brothers and he were sparring eight to one. A difficult feat to overcome indeed.
That's when I heard the laughter, an annoying high pitched disbelieving laughter coming from the one I nicknamed Eyebrows. I don't mind people joking on the matter of defeating my father, I may not even mind people in general, however, I mind when people begin to laugh at someone's ambitions.
Next thing I know, the shadow coward, Suguro flinched, and the Leaper saw red before it pounced on the male. Screams in terror followed from the surrounding students before I decided to be both stupid and smart and jumped into the pit like the stubborn headstrong demon princess that I am, and straight into the mouth of the Leaper.
As the Leaper's small-sharp teeth bit into me, it drew out only a trace of blood that had me react in a defensive manner. As my blue eyes pierced its own beady black ones its fear became evident when it saw my eyes flare up in a wake. I gently grabbed its vocal sac, and patted it with my right hand, as it unclenched its small fangs from my being. When it finally let me go from its jaw I turned angrily towards the humans behind me, and with a projecting voice, a voice that I knew they would have to listen to. But not just them, I was also speaking to Yukio, who was currently hiding in the shadows phone in hand, and to the person on the other side of the phone, Mephisto.
"Listen here, and listen good Rooster. Get lost, 'cause you're not the one who'll defeat Satan, that job, belongs to me.
"Hey, Eyebrows!" the girl I called out looked down at me in shock. "I could give a shit load on what kind of person you are, I could give a shit load if you want to joke around. But don't you ever, and I mean ever dare to make fun of someone's ambitions. If you do it again, I will fucking laugh in your face and laugh at the ambitions that you have. Now, if we are done with class since Tsubaki-sensei left, I think I'll be leaving now."
Dragging Suguro-san's bewildered dazed body toward the foot of the ladder and away from the Leaper, I began to climb up myself. Reaching the top I could feel the wary glances from my classmates, some were in an accusing manner, others, like Shiemi, were worried. Speaking of my classmates I looked at the strange duo in the background, their gazes felt emotionless and curious as they followed my every movement. Strange, they don't act like teenagers, heck they don't act human. Catching Shiemi's gaze I looked at her with a soft smile, "See you later Shiemi."
With that, I walked out the building toward the locker room.
My lesson: Ambitions make a person stronger.
*Website used: herbs-protect-evil-spirits/
**Get the reference?
Hi, writer's block sucks. Depression sucks. Sorry.
I felt like this chapter was needed to make the story flow, I tried to make it different as much as I could from canon, but it turned out a bit more difficult than it should have been.
Word Count: 2985