Candy kept a candle burning by her bed that night, staring at the light orange flame that danced with the slightest breeze. She liked candles. Not the smell, but the way they looked when they burned. She liked to make the flames dance in front of her, making her smile. Sometimes, she tried to touch the little flaming jewel, only to pull her finger back and promptly place it in her mouth. Sometimes, she placed a picture over the flames and watch the people slowly shrivel away. She didn't know any of them; they were discarded pictures she had found on the ground. She'd make up a story behind them and then destroy them.
Outside her room, she could hear her uncle and the two boys talking about Rin getting a job. Candy smiled. That guy with a job? Impossiblè! He was to rowdy for one, and god forbid if he saw a demon! Then again…could he even see demons? He didn't notice those coal demons outside even though they bumped into his cheek repeatedly. She wondered when he would find out.
Sitting up in bed she wrapped her arms around her knees and hugged them close to her chest, resting her chin on her knees. It was two in the morning and she was wide awake. Back home she would run back and forth in her room to tire herself out, but she felt that would be disrespectful in a hosts home. She looked at the cell phone next to her bed, thinking if anyone would be awake. Sure they would, but who could she talk to? Sarah hated her after Candy talked smack about her carrying around a picture of her ex for months and would be caught stroking the picture longingly. Dan? Nah, she only talked to him if she needed a favor. She had no one to talk to…
Amaimon laid on the floor by his brothers desk as he looked through his manga, trying to find a certain picture. He wanted to know more about the human female he had watched earlier in the night. "Brother? What are these things?" He asked, holding it up so Mephisto could see.
Mephisto signed two more papers before turning his attention to what Amaimon was referring to. On the manga page was a human female who had just removed her bra, and Amaimon was pointing specifically at her breasts. A dusting of red spread over the older demons cheeks, "Amaimon? Where is this coming from?"
"What are they?" Amaimon asked again.
"They are breasts, brother dear. Female humans have them."
"Why?"
"Primarily to feed young human infants."
Amaimon turned to manga to face it, looking at the breasts before turning it back his brother, "females allow infants to devour their flesh?"
"No, brother." Mephisto said, rubbing his temples, "when a human female conceives a child, her breasts will produce a substance called 'breast milk', the baby will then suck on the mothers nipple to receive this milk." Amaimon only stared at him blankly. "Those circles on the breasts are nipples." Amaimon now stared at the page again, lightly tracing the lines of the page.
"What's the covering?"
"It's called a bra, it supports a woman's breasts. For some strange reason females don't like their breasts bouncing around, so they use bra's to support them and hold them in place. Amaimon, why do you want to know?"
"That girl from earlier, I saw her undress." Amaimon stated as though it was a well known fact.
Mephisto jumped in shock, his blush deepening, "you watched her undress?! Amaimon, that is very frowned upon up here!"
"But in Gahenna the female demons don't cover up, I wanted to know what a human female looked like." Amaimon flipped a few more pages and held the manga up, "what's that?"
Mephisto ripped the book from his hands after seeing he was pointing to an image of a thong. "Brother, you must never watch a girl undress unless she allows you to!"
"Should I go back and apologize? Maybe she can explain things better." Amaimon said, already heading to the door.
"NO! She must never know you watched! Brother, things are different here in Assiah, you could get into serious trouble."
"You can? How strange, aren't all bodies the same here?" Amaimon looked down at his own to see.
"Females are strange in this world, they rarely ever like men seeing them un-clothed."
Amaimon looked up in thought, how strange this world was…
"How did you sleep, Clawdette?"
"Farely well." Candy lied, sitting at the table with Father Fugimoto and Yukio while Rin cooked.
"You scared of the dark?" Rin asked over his shoulder.
"Huh? Course not, why do you ask?" Candy asked, puffy up some.
"When I went out for a late night walk I saw a candle on in your room." Rin said, flipping an omlette in the pan.
"I catch ya peeking in my window again something going up your ass, pal." Candy warned, brandishing a fork.
Rin scoffed at her and dropped an omlette on her plate, not caring that it fell half on the counter. Candy growled at him but at none the less.
"So, Candy, when are you starting school?" Yukio asked, smiling kindly.
"T'day, I got my final transcripts in my bag, just need to drop 'em off and I'm done." She said, fighting to get a piece of onion on her fork.
"I hope you like it, my first day is tomorrow." Yukio told her.
"Any tips? I think you know more about this place than I do." Candy asked, turning to him. She liked Yukio better than Rin, that was a fact.
"Well, it's a really big school, so I recommend trying not to get caught running."
"Clawdette, we need to talk about something before you go." Fujimoto said, taking a sip of tea. Clawdette nodded.
"I'm ready now, I just need to grab my bag." Fujimoto stood and told her to meet him in the main building when she was ready before leaving. Candy gulped down the rest of her omlette and stood, bowing to the two boys. "It was nice meeting you two, hopefully we meet again." She said kindly before going to retrieve her bag.
Fujimoto was waiting for her at the alter, kneeling in prayer. Clawdette kneeled next to him and crossed herself, also giving a half hearted prayer. Fujimoto stood, never looked at her as he took out a key. "There's something your father told me to give you, Clawdette. Something important." He walked to the alter and inserted the key into a hidden key-hole, opening a hidden passage. The air down there was cold and smelled mildly of musk. "Come."
Candy followed obediently behind him, seeing that the room beneath them was small and only contained a wooden dresser type thing. Fugimotto ignored this and opened a hidden compartment on the side, pulling out a long, slender object. "This is rightfully yours, Clawdette." He said, handing it to her. Clawdette took it, feeling the weight of the object in her hands. The long wooden shaft, if she placed it on the ground, reached her shoulder in height and and ended in a two foot long curved end. The end was flat and curved slightly and wrapped in a red silk clothe.
A naginata.
Candy inspected the shaft, seeing interecate gold symbols.
その血液を汚染されていないものを守る
地獄の悪魔を破壊
光の純粋な世界からそれらを取り除く
影にそれらを追放する
"What does this mean?" She asked, pointing to the characters.
"They are what you shall live by from now on. 'I protect those that are not contaminated by the blood. To destroy the devil of hell. I rid them from the pure light of the world. I expel them into the shadows'. You come from a proud heritage of exorcists, Clawdette."
"But my father-"
"Didn't want to worry you, so he kept you hidden from your true path. What do you know of your real family?"
"Nothing. He never told me anything…."
"You look just like your mother, dear. And you have your fathers eyes and fighting spirit." Fujimoto said, tenderly lifting her chin so he could look her in the eye. "Your parents were good friends of mine. I knew them well. I was the one who blessed you after your birth. Now you must continue their work."
"Work? What work?"
"As an exorcist, it is your duty to rid the world of demons. It will forever be your purpose, to expel the hounds of hell back from whence they came. Why do you think father Hensen trained you to fight so well?" Fujimoto moved his hand to her shoulder, giving her a reassuring squeeze. "I know you're confused, Clawdette, it's only to be expected." With his free hand, he undid the silk wrapping from the naginata's blade. Candy looked at it, half dazed by everything. The blade was shiny, like it had never been touch before. It almost hurt to look at it. "You must fulfill your destiny, child."
"Fighting demons? Sending them to hell? Sounds easy enough…" She muttered, trying to lighten the mood. Fujimoto smiled and took one of her small hands in his.
"Now the blade must know you are its master." He told her, guiding her thumb to the blade. Candy's body tensed, waiting for the sharp sting of the blade cutting into her skin. When Fujimoto slid her thumb down the edge of the blade a single tear escaped her eyes. "Now, smear the blood on the blade." Candy did as she was told, marring the perfect surface of the metal with her crimson blood. She stared at her reflection, her eyes looking back at her through the redness. As she watched, the blood seemed to shimmer, slowly retreating in on itself, forming characters on the blade in dark red.
最も純粋な血によって
済んだ
(A/N: This reads "By the purest blood – Done")
The characters lingered there in the wetness of her blood before slowly joining with the metal and disappearing forever. Candy looked up at Fujimoto. "You will face many challenges, Clawdette, but you will always have friends."
"But…Rin…He's…"
"Human…for now. His powers are seal in the blade of a sword." He said, turning to the dresser thing (A/N: No idea what it is…). "So long as it remains closed, his powers will not awaken."
"But if it happens."
"Use your judgment. That's what Father Hensen trained you for."
Amaimon sat on the window sill of his brothers office, watching the students walk around to their classes beneath him. "I don't see her…"
"It's early, Amaimon, she'll be here." Mephisto said absentmindedly.
Beneath the window, Behemoth jumped around happily, wanting attention from his master. Amaimon paid no mind to him as he chewed his thumb nail in thought.
"Brother, I'm bored, can I go out and play?"
"No, you'll just go and try to find that girl." Mephisto said, turning over some papers. Amimon puffed out his cheeks and looked out the window again.
Candy was going at a dead sprint again, this time zooming into the streets to avoid crowds, earning her some honks from angry drivers. "Sorry! Stressed out here!" She yelled back apologetically, making her way to school. Sure, starting a new school was stressful, but hey, why not throw in the fact you're a member of an exorcist family and you've just been giving a magical naginata. Candy had decided to name it Eri, meaning "My protector". After all, naming a weapon was one of the best ways to have a connection with it.
Candy made a sharp turn, nearly twisting her ankle as she did. She was in some alley way and she could see the school in the distance. "YEAH BOY!" She cheered loudly, lifting Eri in the air and slamming the base of the staff down near the base of a fence that blocked the alley way, sending her flying over it with ease. "I fookin' love this thing!" She cheered, jumping off a ledge at the end of the small walkway, hitting the ground running. Maybe she should go back to free running! She was the best in her old town, after all, her training did give her an advantage. She was making fast ground and she loved it. Something about the new object in her hands made her want to lose her entire being in the moment, to let herself run on forever.
The school was closer now and Candy couldn't help but marvel at it. The thing was like a giant city! She became more joyful just looking at it! "Watch out, bitches! A new exorcist is coming for ya!" She cheered, jumping down from a public walkway into the streets below.
Amaimon had left the window and was now eyeing the jar of sweets on his brothers desk. He had just eaten his last candy piece and wanted another very much. "No, brother, you can't have it. Those are for the students."
"Am I not a student?"
"No, you are a guest."
"But if a student comes here they are guests, and you must be kind to guests, so by that I must be a student." Amaimon said, lifting the lid.
"Put it back." Mephisto warned as the door flew open behind them.
A very flushed Clawdette ran in, jumping over the coffee table and stopping in front of the desk. "Sorry, am I late?" She asked, panting slightly.
"No, no, you're actually a half hour early." Mephisto said, smiling at her. Candy smiled back, fairly proud of herself.
"Here are the rest of my transcripts." She said, reaching into her back pack and pulling out some papers. "If they're a little wrinkled it's 'cause I fell down a few times on my way here."
"Well, someone was in a hurry." Mephisto said, unfolding the papers and checking them over.
Amaimon was still kneeling by the desk, looking over the edge at Candy. Her face was a bright pink that was nearly red at her cheeks. She looks like a lollipop, Amaimon thought to himself, unconsciously licking his lips. Candy took notice of him and smiled.
"Hello, it's nice to meet you again, Amaimon, am I right?" She asked, extending a hand to him.
"Yes, I'm Amaimon." He said, taking her hand awkwardly and shaking it.
She smells like coconut…and grape jolly ranchers…
"Everything's in order, dear, if you'd be so kind as to wait while I set up your schedule I'd be so grateful." Mephisto said, gesturing to the couch.
"Sure, no problem." She said, walking to the couch, placing her naginata carefully down on the table. Mephisto eyed her weapon for a moment. A naginata? Why would a girl be carrying that around?
Amaimon stood behind the couch, looking over her shoulder as she twiddled her thumbs around. She didn't seem like other females to him. He leaned further over her, now nearly looking down her hoodie. She must have run very far, there was a thin layer of sweat over her breasts. Amaimon couldn't help but lean further down, he was nearly touching her cotton candy hair. She didn't seem to pay him any mind as she stared off in the general direction of Mephisto. She did smell like coconut and grape jolly ranchers!
"Amaimon?" Mephisto asked, glancing up. The younger demon stood quickly and nodded. "Would you show Miss Morose to her dorm room? It's in building 213."
"Yes, brother. Come." He said to Candy. Said girl jumped to her feet, grabbing her bag and weapon and followed after him.
"What is that you're carrying?" Amaimon asks, pointing to her weapon.
"This? I got it from a family friend, it's a naginata. A Japanese weapon."
"May I see it? I'm quite curious about Japanese culture."
"I don't see why not." She said, holding it up to him. Amaimon went to grab it but when his finger touched the cool wood he felt like he had just placed his hand in a furnace. He eyed it suspiciously, reading the engravings.
A demon killer. She was an exorcist?
"Why do you have it?"
"Well…I don't really know how to tell the story…but it's very important to me." She said, holding it closely.
"You're not a normal human…" Amaimon thought aloud.
"What?" Candy asked, not truly catching what he said.
"Oh, nothing, nothing. This way, follow closely, you might just lose me." Amaimon teased, running down a nearby hall.
"Oi! Don't you dare challenge me!" Candy laughed, running after him.
"YAY! This is fun!" Amaimon cheered, skidding around a corner. Candy was only a short ways behind but she was losing him with all these turns he was making. Candy growled and took a leap forward, gaining three feet. She was now close enough to grab his tattered jacket. As long as I stay this far behind he won't be able to out run me. She thought, determination coursing through her blood like a drug. This felt…almost right. Chasing him like this. "Keep up, Sweets!" Amaimon called back happily as he turned down another hall. Candy followed, having to jump and run on the wall for a few steps before jumping to the ground. This hallways was a dead end. She saw it ended in an open window.
"Hey! Watch out!" Candy yelled at him. Amaimon only laughed and turned to look back at her, a wide smile on his face.
"Follow meeee~!" He cheered, jumping through the window. Candy swallowed and decided to follow. She held the naginata close to her body and threw her weight forward, the blade of the weapon leading her out of the window. When her feet past the window sill she knew she had to land carefully. Amaimon was falling in front of her, laughing like a maniac. The roof on the next building was fifty feet beneath her.
Fourty.
Thirty-five.
Twenty.
Fifteen.
Candy twisted her body, angling herself so the back of her shoulder would take the brunt of the impact.
Five.
She felt the hard surface his her shoulder and cause her to roll. She allowed this to happen twice before planting her feet down and jumping up-
Straight into Amaimons waiting arms. Candy could only blush when his thin but muscular arms wrapped around her thin frame.
"Au..uh..A-Amaimon…?" Candy asked, looking up past her bangs.
"That was fun. We should play more often, you can teach me so much." Amaimon said happily, hugging her closer.
"The hell can I teach you?! Not to jump out windows?!" Candy raged, flames burning in her eyes.
"No, about females." Candy stopped short and looked at him.
"Females? Dude, buy a book."
"I have many, but their nothing compared to a breathing female." Amaimon said, taking a step back and grasping onto her left breast. "What do you use these things for?" He asked like he was asking how to use a computer program. Candy's face turned crimson as she tried to swipe his hand away, but Amaimon only tightened his grip. "When you tell me I'll let go." He told her, still holding firm.
"Fuckin' perv!" Candy yelled, trying to pry his fingers off. His long, talon like nails were nearly digging into her flesh. "Fine, fine! Their used to feed babies! When I give birth I produce milk that the baby drinks! There's this fatty tissue in there that secretes it."
"Oh, is that all? I thought there'd be more. Is there more?" He asked, his nails threatening to pierce her milky skin.
"Ow! Ah, sometimes women use them to get guys' attention! Their like guy magnets."
"So it's a way to obtain a mate! The bigger the breasts, the more sustenance they can feed an infant, thus the strong the offspring will be!" Amaimon said, voice raising in joy. "You'll definitely be able to find a mate, then!" He added, giving her breast a squeeze before releasing it.
Candy's face was still deeply read as she glared at him. "Girls don't like being touched there!"
"You didn't put up a fight when that boy did it last night." The green-haired teen pointed out.
"H-how the hell did you know that?!"
"I saw you perform your nighttime ritual last night. Oops, I wasn't supposed to say anything!" He said, placing a hand over his mouth.
Candy only stood there, too shocked to move as she let this information sink in. "You…saw me…naked..?"
"Only your torso." Amaimon pointed out.
Candy growled deep in her chest, tightening her grip on Eri and letting her bag fall to the ground. "That's it, screw being the directors brother, I'll kill you!" Candy screamed, undoing the silken clothe around the blade.