* 4 years later, Thursday, 11:18am, Japan, Shibuya, somewhere in the school's hallways *
(Y/n) rushed through the hallways of the high school, navigating the building as quickly as she could to get to her next class of the day. She was already running late, but she wasn't thinking about time at all.
She had been gone most of the week due to her yearly medical checkups and tests she was forced to take by the government. Everyone was supposed to take them when you were part of the Imperial Demon Army, but she knew the tests run on her were different from the standardized ones everyone else went through. Her checkups were exhausting and exaggerated, to say the least.
Besides, it was no secret they had been recollecting data on her for their ulterior motives since the very start. Takeo probably knew what they were using all the information for, but (y/n) was afraid to ask. Also, the government wanted to make sure she was not a threat to them.
Was she? Maybe. She didn't know virtually anything about herself that Takeo hadn't said—she felt like she had amnesia, but this amnesia was of a past life—so she really couldn't tell if she was a threat or not. She didn't want to be one...
That's why she was fine with being tested on. She could discover more about herself with their help, maybe discover what and who she really was.
She had several theories, but she believed one the most: she was possessed.
She had seen possessed people before, and since Takeo refused to answer most of her questions about herself, she—and the government and everyone she knew—believed she was possessed by an exceptionally strong demon, which just happened to be Takeo himself. Possessions so strong had happened before in history, just not as successfully.
Judging from everything she knew, (y/n) really believed she had been an experiment once and had successfully been a host to Takeo as a demon for her whole life. It would explain a lot of things about herself.
Takeo knew the truth. But again, he was a bitter jerk who refused to tell her the truth about herself.
The hallway came to an end and she took a sharp left toward the classrooms. Her backpack bounced against her back as she skidded to a stop in front of a door and opened it. "Sorry I'm late, I—"
(Y/n) cut herself off, stiffening when a wave of cool darkness washed over her, and blinked at the inside of the classroom.
Students lied on the floor or passed out over the desks, everyone either out cold or looking completely disoriented. There was no teacher and the room looked like it had withstood an explosion inside. Tension floated thick in the air, followed along with the aftertaste of ash and blood—a demon had been let loose, and (y/n) recognized the distinct cadence of this demon's presence.
At least she wasn't late to class.
"Guren..." she mumbled to herself, feeling suddenly exhausted. She closed the door silently and turned on her heels, mentally mapping the missing students from the class: Yuu, Kimizuki, Yoichi, and Shinoa.
She knew Shinoa had been transferred to Yuu's class for "classified" reasons she didn't even want to know about. Those two not being there, along with Kimizuki, who was an exceptional student, and Yoichi, who was the purest cinnamon roll and a whole bunch of hidden potential mixed in a human, meant Guren was planning to do something bad.
"Takeo, where's Guren?" she finally whispered, starting to make her way back the way she came.
On his way to get three students to make a contract with a demon from the Black Demon Series, came Takeo's answer, echoing inside her head like any other thought, except this was sharper and she hadn't thought it.
"Who's with him?"
Yuuichiro, Yoichi, Kimizuki, Shinoa, and Second Lieutenant Sayuri.
"Guren, that jerk..."
She frowned, getting the urge to punch Guren in the nose for even daring to get the idea of making a contract with a demon inside the poor boy's head. Yoichi might have been mentally strong, but his feelings were fragile. His soul and body wouldn't be able to retain a demon without some help.
"Takeo, can you get me there before it's too late?"
Only in exchange of blood.
She rolled her eyes at his greedy response. He was supposed to follow her orders, they had a deal, but he never followed the rules because he was going to keep possessing her either way. "Fine," she grumbled finally, "but get me to them first."
She could almost see Takeo grin triumphantly in her mind. Deal.
One second, she was running through the school building, the next, she was falling into a type of abysmal black void. All the sense of reality disappeared around her with a shrill screech of air displacement. Her hair whipped in front of her eyes as she fell, her whole abdomen feeling like it was going to be ripped away from her by gravity. Shutting her eyes tightly, she held her breath and waited for the falling to stop.
With the sound of crashing waves and wind sighing around her, (y/n)'s ears popped and she fell on her butt. Her spine curdled with the thin prickling of pain when it connected to the ground roughly, and she resisted the urge to yelp in pain.
"(Y/n)?"
She opened my eyes, squinting at the faint contrast of light from the void she had just gotten out from and the real world. She was underground, just outside the elevator where Guren and the rest had come through. The place was colder than it should have been in a warm spring morning, but there was a feeling of thick danger that overwhelmed the coolness of the air in (y/n)'s mind. She didn't like this place at all.
Guren was staring down at her, amusement and confusion shinning through his expression. He rose a thin brow. "How did you get here?"
(Y/n) pouted, innerly whining about the rough landing Takeo put her through. She was sure he had done it in purpose since she couldn't control shadow traveling like he did and he found abusing her quite funny.
Shadow traveling wasn't her favorite way of getting from one place to another, but it was the quickest and easiest way to do so. All Takeo needed was a shadow to get her into and one to get her out of. He could usually control the toughness of the travel, but he just loved to see her land on her butt every time he literally hauled her out of the shadow instead of easing her out. She just hoped her blood was as sour as her mood when he asked for his part of the deal.
She remembered Guren was still expecting her answer and the girl dusted her uniform skirt, shrugging. "I came out of your shadow."
"Well, that's not creepy at all," he deadpanned.
She rolled her eyes once again. "Aren't you going to help me up?" (y/n) sassed, reaching like a child for his hands, fists closing and opening expectantly.
He snorted, but finally pulled her up, dark mauve eyes amused.
"Thank you."
"So, (n/n), what are you doing here?"
Suddenly remembering why she had come, (y/n) redirected her anger at Takeo's rudeness to Guren. She glared at him, changing her whole attitude. "You're a jerk, Guren—where are they?" she demanded, crossing her arms in front of her chest and trying to stand taller even though he still easily towered over her small form.
He rose an eyebrow, acting dumb. "Who?"
"Oh, please! Just tell me where Yuu and the others are."
"No clue what you're talking about," he chimed, expression blank and feelings perfectly hidden and he shrugged, palms up.
Frowning, (y/n) peeked behind him at the huge double doors leading to the ceremony room, then she returned her glare to him. Harrumphing, she walked around him to the doors, knowing perfectly well Sayuri was with Yuu and the others in the room already.
Guren caught up to her with a light jog, a hand rubbing the nape of his neck and a vague, innocent smirk playing in his lips. "Alright, alright, you got me," he admitted finally. "But they want to make the contracts, you know, (n/n)? You can't possibly want to stop them—that'll just get them more fired up."
The (h/c) shot the older man a look, searching his eyes for anything that might make her believe he didn't have ulterior motives. She found nothing and sighed, defeated. She hated not knowing what people were thinking and planning.
But Guren was right no matter how much she hated to admit it.
(Y/n) knew Yuu good enough to know that he would fight for his right to a weapon, and she could just imagine Kimizuki and Yoichi being as stubborn. It was useless for her to try and stop them.
Besides, Takeo whispered in her ear, his voice ghastly and cold even though he wasn't really there, the quicker the Seraph of the End surfaces, the better for both of us. Let them make the contract.
(Y/n) pursed her lips, slightly worried for whatever the outcome of this whole ordeal would be. She knew little to nothing about what this "Seraph of the End" deal was about, but Takeo had always talked about it. And about fate. Either way, Takeo wanting this to happen didn't reassure her at all, but she knew he must be right—he always was about these things. And all (y/n) could do was follow along with fate's plan.
Finally, she said, "If something happens to one of them, I'll blame it all on you, Guren."
Guren smirked, hiding the smile behind a gloved hand. "Aw, you'll get mad at me? Why would it be my fault if one of them isn't strong enough?"
The girl shot him a look, and Guren rose his hands in surrender. "Alright, fine—but I won't be making any promises on their safety."
"Just take me to them."
"I'm starting to wonder who's the boss of who here," Guren joked, but he was no longer smiling as he lead (y/n) to the double doors. He pushed them open, and the doors slid open without protest or any sound. He let her pass, then he entered himself, allowing the doors to shut behind them just as quietly.
The hallway outside was cool, but the room was freezing. Looming statues of demons towered over them, their expressions pulled in snarls or cries, each looking strangely similar to the next but having a completely different aura from the rest. Under each statue, a weapon was held on a cushioned stand—from knives to bows to axes, each different. The room was dark and the weapons almost seemed to glow, reflecting unseen light in their sharp edges.
(Y/n) shivered, the hairs in the back of her neck prickling. She thought she heard whispers calling her name, but she pulled her mind from them, deciding to focus on her classmates and friends.
Yuu, Yoichi, and Kimizuki were collapsed on the floor, each with a weapon in hand, passed out as they each tried to seal a contract with the demon in each weapon.
They were all out cold, and (y/n) had to reassure herself they were fine several times before her heart finally slowed its pace in her chest.
Second Liutentant Sayuri was standing to a side with Shinoa, bouncing from foot to foot nervously. She turned when she heard Guren's and (y/n)'s footsteps coming inside, and her nervous expression tightened anxiously. She didn't say anything, however.
Shinoa grinned cheekily at (y/n), and the (h/c) offered a small smile of her own in return.
Something seemed to change in the air. It was the slightest pressure change that made the cold of the room weight down then vanish again. (Y/n) turned to Kimizuki, feeling the strain of the atmosphere had come from him.
As soon as her gaze had landed on him, he opened his eyes. He stood up a little shakily, but regained his balance quickly, and smiled cockily at his new twin swords. He showed them to his little audience, eyes widening in wonder when he saw (y/n).
All the girl could do was smile and shrug vaguely at him, happy he had a contract and feeling the slightest bit of relief wash over her.
Kiseki-O, huh. Nasty Fake* if you ask me—the human will have to fight forcefully for control with him.
(Y/n) hummed in wonder at what Takeo had said, but refrained from asking any questions. Kimizuki was strong enough to fight the demon he had made a contract with. She was more nervous about the other two boys.
Yuu woke a minute after Kimizuki did, gasping and jolting upright.
"Oh! Did it go well, Yuu?" Guren asked, expectantly looking at Yuu as he sat up.
Yuu smiled, pulling his new katana to his side. "Of course it did!" Then he noticed (y/n) standing behind Guren, and his smile widened, green eyes sparkling. "(Y/n), you're back! I'm so glad!"
A knot uncoiled from around (y/n)'s throat. She could breathe a little easier now that Yuu was okay, and she waved at him, suddenly excited to see him too. His happiness was so contagious.
Drown me in holy water, Takeo laughed incredulously, interrupting the girl's surge of a good mood with his echoing voice ringing in her skull. He made a contract with Asuramaru.
(Y/n) felt something cold slide down her spine, and her mood was cut short by a feeling of dread.
That name rang a bell. She felt a sense of deja vu—it was one of the moments when she felt like she had to remember something, but that strange amnesiac state of mind came over her and she found only fleeting feelings and blurry images in shades of grey.
All she knew for sure was that the name made her remember fate.
And currently, she didn't like how fast fate was working.
She was still in the dark about some things, but Takeo knew, and the sharp smile she could almost see in her mind's eye told her Yuu making a contract with this Asuramaru demon wasn't exactly good. Why? Only he knew, and he wouldn't want to tell her, like everything else she ever wanted to know.
"Don't act so damn cool."
(Y/n)'s train of thought was interrupted, and she shook her head, pulling herself back to the real world and her very real worries.
Yuu looked up at Kimizuki as he neared him, his expression now null and bored. "Kimizuki, you succeeded too?"
Kimizuki rolled his eyes. "Isn't it obvious?"
Blinking, Yuu started to stand, eyes averting from Kimizuki to (y/n), then to a further corner of the room where Yoichi was still passed out.
As if on cue, the atmosphere gained weight again, and this time the pressure didn't release. Dread pooled in (y/n)'s chest, and she whipped around to where Yoichi was still passed out on the floor. She held her breath, feeling the pressure in the room crushing her release with an explosion that engulfed Yoichi in flames. She shielded her eyes with a hand, cursing internally.
Second Liutentnat Sayuri yelped in shock, and Yuu and Kimizuki both gasped, thrown off balance by the sudden explosion.
That was the answer to Yuu's question, but Guren still stepped forward, hand on the hilt of his katana but unfazed as the fire extinguished and Yoichi disappeared in the blink of an eye. "Yoichi wasn't strong enough," he said, not an ounce of pity or any feeling at all in his voice. "He's been turned into a demon." He pointed a finger up toward the high beams in the ceiling, where a figure now cackled madly, twitching and mumbling incoherent things.
Yuu gasped and Kimizku recoiled in shock, recognizing Yoichi's twisted form clinging to the beams, bow in hand, laughing madly down at them. Two small horns protruded from his head, and markings had appeared on the skin of his face—they were similar to the markings (y/n) got, but these were inky and black.
He was being possessed.
(Y/n) winced. She knew things would end badly, she just hadn't believed it would be this bad. Instinctively, she flexed the fingers of her dominant hand, wanting to summon Takeo as a weapon but refusing to.
This was Yoichi, he wouldn't hurt a fly. But now... she doubted that was true when he was turning into a demon, murder in his yellow slitted eyes.
Guren turned to Yuu and Kimizuki, eyes hard. "Now that you have weapons, it's your duty to use them to get rid of the demon that has appeared." He turned to (y/n), and she wasn't sure if what he said next was directed at her specifically or not, but it still chilled her to bone. "Yoichi is gone—kill the demon."
*Fake: Takeo's way of referring to a vampire-turned-demon, which are technically all the demons held within cursed weapons.