Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It began one evening in True Cross Town. One calm, spring evening after the festival, everyone was relaxing at their dorms, winding down for the night. Yukio, having just gotten a call, stood up and grabbed his exorcist gear. Rin was eager to tag along, wanting to learn from a hands on point of view.
“Come on, Yukio! It can’t be that bad!”
Sighing, Yukio replied, “Alright, Nii-san. But you have to stay with the group. No more running off.”
Yukio quickly informed him of the situation, A small demon had gotten loose when some rowdy teenage group damaged the shrine where it was sealed, letting it loose to wander the city. According to exorcists tailing it, it was indeed small, childlike in appearance. It had blonde hair and a short tail and wore traditional garb. Its eyes were red, and it seemed to be searching for something.
Hearing the description, Rin couldn’t help but think it just might be Usamaro. He already knew they were starting at the shrine, and, having seen it before, hurried down, practically leading his brother. Yukio was quite perplexed at this development, noting the determined look in his elder twins’ eyes. Rin already seemed to know the way, without hearing a single direction. They quickly caught up and noticed the other exwires had been called as well.
“Okumura, reporting. What’s been happening?” Yukio asked.
“It’s been running wild all over, so we’ve called in every available exorcist we had. It hasn’t hurt anyone yet, just seems to be searching. It returns here every so often, so we’ve posted a few exorcists here to keep watch. We’re sending out parties to track it down but it’s very fast and can shift to another form. It looks like a green rabbit with red markings. When the search teams become fatigued, we have them switch with the team here,”
“I see.”
Rin had listened acutely, catching every word. He knew then that it was definitely him. He waited for orders, hoping he’d be able to find him first, before he got hurt. He wanted desperately to move, to search, but he knew if he stepped out of line, it would only hurt him in the end. So he stood still, tail twitching in agitation. He wasn’t a very patient person, used to doing things on his own.
The other exwires noticed this, and decided not to comment. After receiving orders, Rin did his best to track Usamaro. He chased for a long time, but couldn’t find him. Eventually, he was called back to wait at the shrine. It was getting late, the air cooling and giving a slight chill. As he stood at the shrine, he became worried. At this rate, Usamaro would get tired, and it would be too easy for someone else to catch him. He might catch a cold. He was probably very frightened, and rather hungry. The exwires noticed how stressed Rin looked, and decided it was time to figure things out.
“Man, you look awful. Normally you’re ready to go on missions like these, but tonight you look like shit. What the hell happened?” questioned Suguro.
“Alright, but you gotta trust me, okay? I know this demon. His name is Usamaro. And he’s-“
“Wait, you KNOW him? How?!” exclaimed Izumo.
“Do you guys remember the festival? Back in winter? He was accidentally set free then. I decided to take care of him. I gave him that name, and he was fine. He didn’t really cause trouble or anything. He just….he’s a time turner, I think. That’s what I heard them call him. He can eat memories and make people forget. He didn’t do it to cause trouble. He just wanted to play. He’s just a little kid. By the time he learned, it was kinda too late. The town was getting overrun with demons of all kinds, and to save everyone, he changed time. He made it so he never got loose in the first place. And….he made everyone forget. Everyone but me and one other exorcist. This guy was from the Taiwan branch and he said he was from the clan who originally took care of him the first time he caused trouble. The reason I’m so worried is cause….I thought of him as mine. My responsibility. If he’s back, then I want to get to him first. He’s… he’s still mine. He needs someone who cares. Even if it’s only me.”
“Oh….that’s….pretty big.” Said Shima.
“Alright. We’ll help. Count us in.” Suguro easily agreed, ready to help Rin.
“Thanks. I’ve been worried about what they’ll do if they catch him.”
As they waited at the shrine, coming up with viable search plans, Rin was still glancing around here and there. He waited, looking for a sign. Just as they had gotten the order to go search again, he saw it, a little kid with a fluffy, yellow tail, and blonde hair arranged in buns that looked like ears. He let the rest of the group know, and took off sprinting, hoping to catch him before anyone else.
Faster and faster, he tried to catch up. Even Kuro was helping as much as he could. The chase finally ended with Rin grabbing his hand just as he was about to run into oncoming traffic. After a quick discussion about safety, Usamaro hugged Rin, having missed him just as much. A quick word with another exorcist ended the search and had everyone meeting at the Vatican to settle things.
Rin immediately spoke up, all but demanding that Usamaro be placed in his care. Carefully perched on Rins’ hip, Usamaro avoided the gaze of the Vatican leaders. The room frightened him, and he was rather tired and hungry. He wanted to be home with Rin, eating something yummy, and reading a story before bed.
Rin explained the situation, and vouched for Usamaro. The other exwires even stepped up to speak as well, Finally recalling the events, and even stressing the fact that Rin seemed to know how to expertly care for Usamaro, and keep him out of trouble for the most part. Then, in an unusual turn of events, Mephisto, who had been watching from afar, stepped in and asked Usamaro to speak.
“I just wanted to play. Everyone seemed so unhappy about having to work, and I thought maybe I could help by making them forget. I didn’t think anything bad would happen, but something did. So I fixed it by making myself disappear. I’m sorry for causing so much trouble. I won’t do it again.”
The Vatican had trouble believing this, still thinking demons to be mindless creatures of malice, or merciless beings of evil, but they couldn’t argue. Rin had jumped through their hoops, played by their rules, so they too, had to follow them. They allowed Usamaro to stay, with a few conditions. He had to be checked on once a month to see if he was behaving as he said he would. Yukio, being so close to the situation was unqualified as he might be affected. A randomly chosen exorcist would review things. Usamaro had to behave, or he would not be sealed, but exorcised completely. Rin himself would be in trouble as well. All exorcists in contact with Usamaro, whether of rank or still in training, would check in with their superiors concerning their tasks and any and all work, completed or uncompleted, to ensure no one had forgotten. There would also be checks performed on all exorcists in contact with him, to ensure no personal memories had been affected either.
Rules in place and understood, Rin and Usamaro were cleared to leave with everyone else. Mephisto decided that proper housing was in order, as the old boys’ dorm wasn’t in the best state. The twins had everything temporarily moved while Mephisto changed a few things, rebuilding the dorm in just a day. He created an Illusion that would last about a month, one to hide the appearance of the dorm, and make it look as though it were under construction. He also decided to change the dorm to make it co-ed, with rules attached, and moved the exwires and a few of the exorcist teachers into it as well. That first night back went a little like this.
First, Rin tried to wrestle Usamaro into the bath. That went about as well as expected. Thankfully, the rest of the group living in the remade dorm needed baths as well, due to all the running around. There was no class tomorrow, so everyone had a nice hot bath. The new Bathrooms were larger and cleaner, with the water heating easily, making it easy for everyone to relax. After finally scrubbing down Usamaro, that is.
Second, Usamaro was very hungry. Rin knew a late night meal was needed, and set to work, making the Yellow Special in the New Kitchen. The newly upgraded kitchen was spacious, with what looked like state of the art implements and accessories, making it easy for Rin to cook. One plate was made for each of the residents and one for Kuro too. It was a little strange, having such a large group, but once they had a bite of Rins’ cooking, everyone relaxed, and conversations started up.
Third, everyone had been completely exhausted by all the literal running around. They all prepped their new rooms. Everyone was too tired to notice it at the time, but everything was clean, shiny, and rather new looking. The rooms were bigger, with much better beds, and the air conditioning and heating systems, along with everything electrical had been upgraded as well. Their belongings had already been moved in thanks to Mephisto, who had been feeling oddly generous that night. After a story, Usamaro and Rin crawled into bed, falling asleep as soon as their heads were laid on their pillows.

Chapter Text

Although adjustments had to be made, every person in the newly renovated dorms quickly settled into their daily routines. Shiemi still stayed in the storehouse at the exorcist supply shop of course, but she did visit the dorms more often. She would often bring flowers, and even planned out a rooftop garden to be built eventually. Rin had adjusted to the changes with a surprising amount of grace, while Yukio looked on, dumbfounded at just how responsible his brother actually was. Usamaro loved having more people around, especially Shura, who quickly became the 'favorite aunt'. She would spoil him rotten if it wasn't for Rin getting on to her about it. Izumo actually preferred more private dorms and baths, so she was quite happy with the new room. The Kyoto trio didn't mind very much, especially since it meant getting to eat Rin's cooking more often. They would never admit it of course. Nemu was himself about the situation, which was about as well as you could expect.

The exorcists currently staying at the dorms as chaperones took a while to warm up to Rin, but eventually they got used to his presence at the very least. It would take a little bit longer, and a few events showing the true Rin to convince them that, while he was the half demon son of Satan, he was nothing like his father and wasn't even evil at all. On this fine Spring afternoon, they would witness one such event.

It started with Shiemi bringing and unusual bouquet into the building. It looked very much like catnip, but with vivid blue flowers, and blue streaks on each leaf. This particular plant had the name Polquepa, but would soon earn a fitting nickname. A few minutes after placing the flowers in the dining area, Rin, Usamaro and Kuro made their way downstairs, after Shiemi had already moved on to visit Izumo. They had noticed the sweet yet spicy aroma, and had found themselves attracted to it. Not knowing what it was, they had stuck their faces close to get a stronger whiff of the scent. Not long after, each had gotten heavy lidded eyes and a slightly slouched stance. Rin actually ate a flower from it, Usamaro sampling a petal, While Kuro consumed a single leaf. Ukobach, having had experience with this plant before, decided it was best to avoid it, lest he fall prey to its' effects as well.

Once the natural chemicals of the plant worked their way into the system of each demon, they very quickly relaxed, so much that they simply lay in a pile on the floor, dazed and staring at the ceiling. The term "high as a kite" would have aptly described the trio, as they lazed about, thoughts as sluggish as molasses. It wasn't long before one of the chaperones had come down to find them there, small giggles erupting from them every few minutes. Staring in disbelief, the exorcist shook himself, and went to find Yukio. When they arrived, a few other interested parties, (read: the entire dorm) had followed to see the commotion. They also noticed Ukobach was cooking away in the kitchen, preparing light snack foods, and avoiding even looking at the large bouquet. Shiemi had told them the plants' name, and told them it was often used in demon pharmacology, so much so that the only available information was what could be made with it. There was nothing about what the plant did by itself.

Knowing this, it was quickly decided that what they were witnessing was the plants' effect, with no other added ingredients. They noticed it was also very similar to the effects of catnip on standard felines, or cannabis on a standard human. Yukio decided it was best to simply let them come down from it on their own, and had Shiemi move the plant outside, so as not to have a repeat of the event. Konekomaru and Yukio were both jotting down notes, storing away the information for later use. Suguro had even suggested that if there were ever an angry demon that could not be talked to, developing a dart or gas with the natural chemicals to calm them might just save the exorcism of an angry god or spirit.

Approximately one half-hour after imbibing the substance, now dubbed "demon nip" Rin, Usamaro and Kuro had woken from a light doze, feeling very confused and looking into the amused faces of Shura, Izumo and Shima, the exasperated expressions of the exorcists, Yukio and Suguro, and the worried faces of Shiemi and Konekomaru.

"Mornin' sleepin' beauty!" cackled Shura. "So we discovered that the plant you ate was basically weed for demons. how do you feel?"
"Sleepy as fuck. And hungry." Rin answered honestly, while Ukobach served the snacks.

They ate what had been prepared while answering questions as best they could. None of them seemed to remember much, only that they were very relaxed and did not feel like doing much. Once all questions had been answered and the food had been eaten, Rin asked why it was that Ukobach hadn't even looked at the plant, much less touched it. Ukobach had actually answered that himself and Rin relayed the answer.

"He says he's had some before and just didn't want to get in any trouble for suddenly seeming lazy. Says he knew what it was when it was brought in and figured it was best to avoid it. He was just fine until we ate some and then he knew we'd get hungry after so he decided to make food to help us and to distract himself."

Sharing a good chuckle, they all thanked Ukobach for taking such good care of them, while the chaperones looked on in awe. They had never guessed that demons could be so docile or caring, or that half demons could understand full demons. The days' events were written into the reports they were all to do, in order to keep record of any incidents, and it was agreed that unless it was needed, demon nip was not to be brought into the building again.

Although, every now and again, no one begrudged Rin a little, since he seemed to relax and become more open to talking after having a bit.