Heir to the Blue
Chapter 1
January. 1988. Misaki. Kuonji Manor.
Aoko laid down on one of the two green, old fashioned couches on the Kuonji mansion lounge. The walls looked almost like they were pulled out of an old European castle. Lit by an equally extravagant chandelier and wall mounted lamps. The only thing that stood out like a sore thumb in this room was the television sitting on a table at the end of the room.
"Aoko," a young woman with black hair, black eyes, and wearing what looked like a nun's habit. "Please explain to me why your Sister is in my guest room? After she nearly killed both of us…"
"Relax Alice. I thought Soujyuro explained it to you?" Aoko said while laying down on the couch. Soujyuro sat on the spare couch between Alice and Aoko, with the same dread filled expression on his face when he saw Touko walk outside the Aozaki house and followed them here, with an infant bundled up in her arms.
"I didn't Aoko. You said you'd handle explaining this to Alice." He ratted Aoko out. She stared daggers at him until she sat up and scratched her back. She sighed as she felt another headache coming in.
"Fine. I'll explain the situation. Touko had a kid several months ago and kept it a secret from pretty much everyone due to her sealing designation status. So she made a Geis Scroll to make a deal between the two of us." Aoko raised a finger up as she explained the predicament.
"I'm surprised she even bothered to make something that serious. She must really be desperate." Alice said coldly.
"A Geis Scroll? Sealing Designation? What are those?" Soujyuro asked.
"A Geis Scroll is a binding cursed scroll that very few magi are willing to make, and once both parties have signed, they cannot break the conditions on the scroll. The two parties are given restrictions that the scroll imposes, there is no way to end the agreement besides death." Alice said as she turned to look at Soujyuro. The explanation was possibly the best one any mage could make.
"Oh so it's like a magical contract!" Soujyuro thought out loud.
"That is one way of looking at it." Aoko said with a nervous look to her face. Was it because he made Aoko realize that she signed a deal with her personal devil? The thought of Touko in her green dress turned black or red with devil horns and cackling like the devil popped in her head. It was almost too fitting to Aoko given all the hell she had to endure from her sister.
"As for the Sealing Designation..." Alice explained in a calm tone, but both Aoko and Soujyuro could tell she was still angry. Aoko cut Alice off as she picked up the book she left on the table. It was another book from her massive library that she had not gotten the opportunity to read yet. There were enough books in there to possibly read until she's laying on her deathbed.
"A Sealing Designation can be seen as 'the greatest honor a mage can achieve' or whatever." Aoko said, looking at her friend, before making a sour expression.
"Honestly, the best way to see it is that the Association finds my sister's knowledge and magecraft too valuable and unique so they want to hunt her down, cut her up, learn what they can from her remains, and then put the pieces in a jar."Aoko's expression told him just how disgusted she was over this idea. Yes the two sisters hated each other, but they'd never want to live a life of constant running and hiding.
Alice closed her eyes, almost nodding in agreement, though she thought that she could have offered a better explanation. Soujyuro however almost wanted to throw up over the thought of what Aoko told him.
"So, because of all of this, she's here in hiding because she wants her son to be safe?" Soujyuro said, almost asking both them and himself.
"Honestly I can see why Touko went as far as she did."
"It does make sense." Alice started. "But I still don't like it." The room they were in felt colder than it should during this time. Alice's anger was too great at the moment. A deafening silent pause struck the room, Aoko tempted to drop the subject and turn on her tv to see what the weather was going to be like for the week. She knew it was going to snow again but she wanted to relax and just forget this entire conversation happened.
"What were the terms on the scroll you signed?" Soujyuro asked. Aoko's head perked up, realizing that she didn't tell them the terms and conditions of the scroll. It was a good question. It affected their safety along with hers.
"Oh that! Sorry, I'd better get some tea ready because it's gonna be a lot to take in." Aoko said almost cheerfully. It disturbed her friends with how happy she is to explain something of this nature to the world of magecraft. Once she came back from brewing some Earl Grey tea for the three of them, she sat back down, looking outside for a second to see that it looked like it was about to snow once more.
"Alright," Aoko started. "To begin with, the terms of this scroll are simple. I help Touko raise and train her son, and she is forbidden from stealing my things and harming any of us."
Soujyuro looked surprised at first but it quickly turned to relief. Alice however was still in a sour mood.
"And nothing stops her from stealing my things I see." She sipped her tea to try to calm her nerves. But it did little or nothing.
"Hey, she needed that crib for the kid. It was just lying around collecting dust so I just decided to give it some use." Aoko retorted with a bit of annoyance.
"It was mine once. I simply kept it for the memories it had." Alice stubborn and prideful held her ground over what was hers and what wasn't.
Soujyuro had to think quickly. Something, anything to prevent these two from fighting again.
Until the thought of that golden wolf came back. He thought to himself how he could forget it?
"Wait. What about that golden wolf? Isn't he exempt from the deal?" Soujyuro was right, how could they forget such a beast they all faced and nearly lost their lives to. Alice's body almost shivered in fear upon being reminded of that beast. Aoko looked like she wanted to punch something.
"Best guess is that he's outside being a watchdog for Touko." Aoko shrugged her arms.
"If that's the case, I almost feel sorry for any Enforcer or mage that's after Touko. We certainly won't have to worry about feeding him." Alice coldly said to her roommates. It was an accurate observation, though cold and heartless. Any mage after Touko Aozaki would first have to deal with Lugh Beowulf. The chances of them surviving an encounter with him were already low. But if Touko gave him orders to kill on sight, their chances will be in the negatives.
"Something is still bothering me though." Soujyuro began once more.
"Aoko, you cursed her, so, how is she here?"
Aoko slumped her head down in embarrassment. It was a good question, but the answer to it was painfully obvious to anyone that knew about Touko Aozaki's more infamous moniker.
"The 'Touko' we faced wasn't the real one. It was a really, really good puppet body." Aoko's voice sounded pained with how embarrassed she was.
"Good enough to fool me even. Her own sister!" Aoko cursed at herself for not noticing it.
"A puppet? Like the one we saw at the amusement park?" Soujyuro asked, confused. The idea of the Puppet that looked like Aoko haunted him with its inhuman way of moving and durability.
"Think of it as a spare body." Alice answered him.
"Touko is by far better than anyone else when it comes to making puppets. It was only a matter of time before she made one that perfectly resembled and acted like her original body." Alice said with a voice that hinted with some astonishment. It shouldn't surprise her but it did anyway. Touko had far exceeded any expectations that anyone had or would have had for her.
"You're right on the money there Alice." Aoko jumped in as she took another sip of her tea.
"Touko is indeed the best when it comes to making puppets. I doubt anyone can match her in that field." Aoko almost wanted to throw up after saying that. Despite their sibling rivalry being deadlier than usual ones, she had to admit that her sister was indeed the best in that field.
"That… sounds pretty handy, I'll admit that." Soujyuro admitted.
"But I can also see some Mages wanting her talents for emergencies."
"Some do actually." Aoko answered his question. Her expression lightened up. Did she get an idea?
"It honestly would not surprise me if any of the Lords that put that sealing designation on Touko hired her for some jobs or bought some puppet parts from her." Aoko's expression turned towards some kind of frustration. She could have been annoyed by how hypocritical the Association can be at times.
"I see that the topic of your crest was absent from the scroll" Alice pointed out.
"Yeah. Touko knows that him being my heir is up to me and me alone." Aoko replied.
"She knows I'm still just learning magecraft so until then training her son is mostly going to be her job when he's old enough to start."
Aoko almost beamed a smile. It disturbed her two friends. They never saw her with a smile this bright. Was it because she thought of holding that infant again because he was so cute?
"So we have plenty of time until then!" Aoko said with a cheerful tone. Aoko smiled almost ear to ear. It wasn't her usual evil or sickly sweet smile. It was a genuine cheerful smile.
Her roommates almost looked like they wanted to dash out of the room like vampires seeing the sun rise. Her cheerful attitude and smile was too much. Alice wanted to curse whatever god made Aoko Aozaki this cheerful. A good minute passed after Aoko and Alice were done with their explanation and her roommates calmed down from Aoko's sudden cheerfulness. Soujyuro wanted to ask more questions but he stopped himself when Aoko checked the watch on her wrist.
"Are you going up to check in on your sister?" Alice asked.
"Yeah, but first how about we make a small agreement over Touko's living situation?" Aoko stood up from her couch and stretched a bit to loosen up her joints.
"Yes, that is a good topic to discuss." Alice replied looking up at her roommate.
"We let her stay here until Touko is making enough money to support both herself and Shirou." Aoko said while walking towards the doorway to the lounge.
"So that's his name?" Alice commented.
"Very well. It is reasonable." Alice gave in, some of her hostility went away. Soujyuro almost sighed in relief.
"Ok. I'll head up and tell her the news then."
Meanwhile in the guest room
Touko looked outside the window of the room she and her son occupied, and the sun's position told her that it was around 10:30 AM. Her glasses rested on her shirt from one of its limbs, she wore a white button up top and business slacks. On the nightstand next to the bed she slept on was a newspaper she brought from her family home with a pen tucked into the rolled up newsprint, next to it was a small notebook with a blue ribbon bookmark.
Sitting down as she nursed her son. Almost longing to just go outside and drive one of her cars without a care in the world. She then looked down at her son. Pulling him away from her breast as she laid him down into a spare crib Aoko managed to find in the mansion. Touko quickly fixed her clothes due to the winter chill the house had.
"Honestly Alice. You should just hire me to renovate this house. It could use some more modernized heating and cooling." Touko thought out loud. She tucked her son in a blanket to try to keep him warm before etching a weak rune to make sure that said heat will be maintained.
"It's going to be difficult to convince them. But I'll find a way, Shirou." She said to her son as she moved her hand down his head. His hair was black but she noticed some hairs started to turn a bit red.
"Already changing your hair color? So early on in your age too." She said as she continued to brush his head as he slowly went to sleep. Touko was curious as to why her family, a nationally Japanese one, has natural red hair. She discovered the last name that sounded suspiciously Celtic. Low and behold, that ancestor's blood is still running strong in the Aozaki family.
For a moment she forgot about all that was troubling her. The Association sending their dogs after her, third-rate mages thinking that they can score big by turning her in, and dealing with low cash to keep feeding her growing infant, herself, and her familiar. But the peace she found was interrupted when she heard a knock at the door to her room. She shook her head as she put on her glasses to answer the one knocking. She guessed correctly that it was Aoko.
"Hello Touko." Aoko said with an almost evil grin. Was she thinking of pulling some prank as revenge over something she did to her?
Aoko looked over Touko's shoulder to see that Shirou was asleep. Touko could tell that her sister wanted to play with him for a bit but was holding it back so he could sleep.
"I managed to convince them to let you stay for now. But eventually you'll need to find your own place." Aoko explained the situation. Touko almost chuckled at how easy it would be for her.
"Well, there certainly isn't a shortage in building projects that need an architect. And the Pachinko parlor to beat." Touko said confidently. She knew her talents would make sure that there was no shortage of work for her in her hometown.
Aoko was always unnerved by how confident Touko can be. Her confidence usually meant to Aoko something bad was going to happen to her. That her sister was planning some dubious prank on her-wait, pachinko parlors to beat?
'H-Hold on?" Aoko asked, a bit shocked.
"You beat the house?!" Aoko's jaw dropped.
"Hm? Well it's pretty easy." Touko put her glasses on as she answered her sister. Her tone of voice changed as she put them on. Aoko put her index and thumb on the crease of her nose. Shaking her head.
"You always find a way to come out on top…" Aoko thought. She chastised herself for forgetting that her sister was a prodigy, this was one of the many reasons how her sister became a Grand Ranked mage at the Clock Tower.
"Anyway." Touko started. She walked towards the newspaper and opened it to the business and job listings side. Aoko followed her. Curious as to what Touko was planning.
"I already found some promising projects that Misaki is planning. Can't work retail because I'd lose my sanity faster than you can lose your temper." Touko took a casual shot at Aoko.
"True-Hey!" Aoko snapped back once she processed the insult.
"What? We both know it's true Aoko." Touko smugly said with a sickly-sweet smile as she skimmed through the paper again. She blacked out some openings because they either didn't suit her skills, didn't challenge her, or were not fun.
"Tch" Aoko hissed.
"There's always being a librarian. I'm sure you'd be right at home there." Aoko said as she walked over to her sleeping nephew, careful to not wake him up.
"Promising, but I'll pass. Don't want to get too much attention." Touko paused as she checked her watch. It was now 11 AM. It'll be time for lunch soon, and possibly changing Shirou's diaper. Touko was given some supplies that her parents bought for her. Spare diaper packs and formula. But given that he's only 2 months old he'll go through it all quickly. And soon will start eating baby food.
"Do you have any money I can borrow? I need to buy some supplies for Shirou." Touko asked her sister as she put down the newspaper before grabbing her notebook. Opening it to list some of the things she needs to buy.
"I do, but you're staying here." Aoko replied quietly. She crossed her arms as she glared at Touko.
"It's safer for you to be here with your son right now. I'll handle the supplies."
Aoko dug in her heels. Touko knew that once Aoko did that there's no way to convince her otherwise. She was guilty of this herself, she did it when she went to several different schools growing up.
"Just as prideful and stubborn as mom." Touko shook her head as she took off her glasses.
"Oh shut up. You're the prideful one! God have mercy if Shirou gets this trait because he'll end up a Grand like you." Aoko wanted to shout as she snapped back at her sister. But she was still careful enough to make sure Shirou's sleep was uninterrupted.
This pride was a trait they got from their mother. It was the reason why their parents had two kids or got married at all.
Even after being told from Haru Aozaki that he is from a mage family, Emi Aozaki insisted on sticking with him to the very end. Even if it meant almost cutting ties or keeping secrets from her family she'd stick with him. She did ease up over the years but it's still there.
"You didn't deny that you're stubborn." Touko continued to push Aoko's buttons with that cheerful and easy going voice of hers. Pushing her sister to start grinding her teeth. It was too easy for an older sibling to push their younger siblings to their breaking points.
"Why you…" Aoko growled. Her blood pressure was rising. She was going to yell but a small noise next to her shocked her back to her senses.
"Huh. Guess he just wanted a short nap. Or something else happened…" Touko stood up to pick up her son. A nervous look on her face told Aoko that maybe it was time for a change for shirou.
Aoko quickly turned to the door at a quick pace.
"Well good luck. I'm taking Soujyuro with me to get you more supplies. We need to get some more groceries anyway." Aoko left the room before Touko could retaliate with a request for some help.
"Damn it Aoko." Touko cursed under her breath. The smell emanating confirmed her fears.
"Fine. I did this a few times already… better get back into practice."
Touko mentality thanked her mother for doing this while she was in a state of suspended animation while possessing a puppet body. But now it was her time once again to take care of these matters.
Touko kept her glasses on to make sure that Shirou was at least comfortable with the atmosphere she gave off while she endured the horrible experience that all new parents face.
"How did it get this bad?!"
Market district
Soujyuro looked at the predicament he was in. Almost weeping at it all. Pushing a grocery cart filled with food, baby formula and diapers, and they were all heavy items. Aoko was going all out on this simple grocery list.
He had to quickly get his casual coat and a scarf as Aoko demanded he help out. Was it because of the money in his wallet or was it to carry all of the heavy objects they're buying he did not know. But it got worse and worse for him as the cart got harder to push.
The store was one he used to work at for a short time before quitting. Soothing music played on the speakers but it couldn't soothe the dread he felt in his chest. Soujyuro understood why he was here, but it didn't mean that he liked any of it.
"Catch up Soujyuro! We have more things to get!" Aoko roared. Her demanding voice attracted a lot of attention from others in the store. Getting weird looks from some people while others looked at Soujyuro with sad faces, some almost gave an air of understanding his situation.
Aoko wore her white coat with her blue jeans. It was getting colder than usual this year in Misaki so Aoko had to wear more practical clothes to deal with the weather.
"…don't you think we have enough for now?" Soujyuro almost hesitated to ask, but he mustered up enough courage to say it.
"Huh? Of course not." Aoko turned around. Giving him a serious look that made him pay more attention.
"We've got 5 mouths to feed now. We're gonna get enough to last us for the week!"
She had a good point. The amount of food that would be consumed by that many mouths in a house would go away too quickly if it was too small.
Better to buy in bigger bulks to make up for the additional mouths.
By the time they checked out all of what they got, his wallet was almost empty. Only a few more bills left and it wasn't even enough to buy take out or food for himself at work. Or even pay for his tuition.
"I should have put some money somewhere safer…" Soujyuro said sheepishly as he carried a good amount of groceries. He knew they were gonna have to trek up the road and mountain to the Kuonji mansion. Normally this would be easy for the two but winter was in full swing.
"I really should have asked if Touko had a car." Aoko almost laughed at their situation. While mentally cursing her good for nothing pride.
"I really should have thought this out better. Sorry about this Soujyuro."
"It's alright. Things like this happen. Just make sure to have a plan nextime Aozaki." Soujyuro was having an easier time than Aoko with carrying his share. His time living in the mountains gave him the strength needed. By contrast Aoko was having to push herself with magecraft to keep and with him.
She thought that maybe she should start jogging in the morning, or just ask Touko if she could make a puppet torso durable enough to train her martial arts on.
Kuonji Mansion.
Alice sat in silent contempt in her lounge, sitting on the couch across from her was Touko with her glasses on and was humming a little song as she played with her infant son. What surprised Alice was the fact that her anger could clearly be felt across the room but the infant either didn't notice it or felt safe in his mother's arms.
Alice wanted to read a book but she would need to move to another room to do that and she didn't have the energy or could muster that energy to do it.
The sound of a grandfather clock ticking echoed in between Touko's hums and the infant's cries and giggles. With it was Touko talking to Shirou in a voice so filled with joy that it made Alice almost sick to her core.
"Honestly. You could do this in the guest room near Aoko's room."
She mentally said to herself. She wanted to say it out loud but she held it back over the sight of seeing the infant Touko Aozaki brought to this world and touched something deep within Alice. She wasn't sure what this feeling was or how to describe it. She only knew that there was a sort of warmth in her core.
"Well you certainly have a strong grip! You're gonna be really strong when you grow up!" Touko said as her son gripped her index finger. He almost tried to chew on it but was distracted by seeing his mother's warm smile. Alice had it. She could not stand it anymore.
She needed to think of something. Anything to distract herself from what she saw as an anomaly or lie. Finding the thought wasn't difficult, for Mages and Witches like her.
"How many Circuits was he born with?" Alice spoke calmly. Touko's ears perked up as she looked to the one who asked. Touko's finger was still in the grasp of her infant son. His giggles and noises still echoing across the room. Touko gently removed her finger from his grip and slowly took off her glasses as she stared at Alice Kuonji in the eye.
Touko was serious now. Still being gentle with the delicate infant she carried.
"27 magic circuits. All of them are the same quality as mine." Touko said smugly. Her tone was almost hostile and filled with seriousness. The very sound of this voice would be enough to make a classroom filled with excited children to sit down and behave.
"Hm." Alice covered her mouth as she thought of a response. It was impressive to say the lease. The Aozaki clan was in decline until Touko was born. Everyone, including their branch family the Asagi's, thought that the Aozaki clan would die out.
"Impressive. It looks like your clan is making a return." Alice almost complimented Touko, but it was more of a compliment to her family.
"Indeed it is." Touko responded with a look of pride in her eyes.
"I was afraid that my genes wouldn't win out in the end but it appears that those fears were for nothing."
"When will you start Shirou's training then? His 5th birthday?"
Alice's question knocked Touko out of her mage's pride and moment of victory. It was a good question. Training for mages was just as important as their magic circuits. Without it one would not know what their limits are or what they can do. Touko had to put back on her glasses for this topic.
"Hmmm. Maybe around 5 is when I'll start teaching the basics to him." Touko said after she put her glasses back on. Her tone and personality changed as she did.
"After I learn what his element is."
Alice looked at them while covering her mouth. Another thought occurred to her. A child trained by both Aozaki sisters. The Clock Tower, no, the Association, would be in for the shock of the century when he attends the Clock Tower in due time.
Touko is already a Grand ranked mage, any Mage going to her for training would already be at a greater advantage than most, but a child trained by her from a young age would surely be more powerful.
"What's wrong Alice? Scared about the future? Or are you thinking about a certain someone?" Touko asked and teased the host of the house.
Alice answered Touko with a puzzled look.
"Whom do you speak of?" Alice was genuinely puzzled about who or what Touko was asking about. She almost wanted to laugh at Alice's obliviousness.
AN: If you are wondering why baby Shirou has black hair turning red, it is because genetics is weird like that. I'll use myself as an example. I used to have blond hair as a baby but it slowly turned a very dark brown. If you know about younger Touko art, she used to have black hair, that is why this Shirou has black hair that is turning red.
As for the plans for how strong Shirou is gonna be. Kind of changing them now after talking to some older members of the community that have way more knowledge on the setting.
I refuse to use the wiki because it has so many errors and the moderators there defend said errors like Imperial Fist defending a single mile of land.
A good example of these numerous errors on said wiki is the difference between demons and daemons.
In the reality of the nasuverse demons are just things that possess or can intermingle with bloodlines. Think of the demons in fgo. Daemons are actual hellspawn that could possibly give warhammer fantasy daemons a run for their money with how they work and how incomprehensible they are.
I could list more but then this would be an essay and not a fanfic for y'all to read.
Now to answer the question I am sure most of you are asking, who is going to be the main girl?
Well, for starters it won't be from the FSN cast. I have several ideas for a main girl but ultimately it'll be finalized when I get to that point.
I might have a bit of a time jump either next chapter or the one after that. We'll see what happens.
Expect updates to be very infrequent due to my college and work schedule. So take your time reading this and go support Type-Moon and read Mahoyo and the original FSN VNs over on the VN website, and go read KnK, seriously it is so good, what are you doing here reading this? Go watch it.
Thanks for your reviews y'all.