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"Exwires! Gather round!"
With a click of her tongue, Shura dragged her butt over towards the rest of the exwires. Her first year class only had about four of them, aside from herself- not that she'd wasted any time in trying to get to know them.
What was the point anyways? They were all girls.
Crossing her arms, she listened with one ear as their teacher explained the details of the mission they were on. They were really only here to provide support, as expected of their rank. The only difference between an exwire and a page was that exwires got to go on missions sometimes.
Honestly, she'd rather not be here at all.
"Hey, is that him?"
Shura lifted her head, turning to glare at the real reason she'd rather be anywhere else. Fujimoto Shiro had the audacity to catch her eye, sending a faint smile her way. Clicking her tongue, she tore her gaze away from him. He'd apparently become the Paladin or something since he'd ditched her in that orphanage, saying some crap about how he didn't want to get her involved in the adult's mess.
...well, she'd got fucking involved in it anyways.
That night had been hell. For hours, they'd hidden in the dark as the orphanage burned around them. It had been absolutely decimated, only a few trainee nuns surviving Satan's rampage. All of the senior nuns, including the abbess had died in those blue flames.
(Sometimes she swore she could still smell burning flesh.)
Looking up at the mansion in front of her, she narrowed her eyes. It was beyond rundown- it was practically dilapidated at this point. There were still places where she could kind of see how grand the western style mansion had been at one point, but they were few and far between. A demon of some kind had apparently taken up residence inside and had started preying on unsuspecting ruin explorers.
The stupid idiots just kept coming- hence why they were all here.
Well, her job was to just set up a base camp with the doctors inside the main foyer. They would be providing first aid and helping to map the mansion- the demon's influence had turned it into a labyrinth or something. Someone had even set up a clunky laptop for that purpose, while someone else was setting up battery powered lights over the table they'd spread out the physical blueprints of the mansion over.
"Whoa, look at that guy."
Shura frowned, following the gaze of her fellow exwires-
-and stared.
She'd heard rumors for awhile now about the first generation nephilim that worked out of the Japan branch, but she'd never actually seen him until now. He would look almost human, were it not for the long, thin horns that sprouted from his forehead and the white tail that trailed behind him. His hair was a shock of white-blue, that he'd tied up into one of those short ponytails. He wore a katana on his hip, and had a cat sidhe curled up on his shoulders.
Unexpectedly, he caught her eye.
For a moment, he blinked at the sight of her- before he flashed her a grin and waved in her direction. His eyes were an impossibly bright blue, glowing in the dim light of the evening- which somehow just served to enhance the faint bags underneath them. There were white snakes tattooed on his right forearm, almost blending in to his pale skin.
...for some reason, she waved back.
The nephilim perked up at that, his grin growing wider. She almost thought he would talk to her, but instead his attention was pulled away by another exorcist.
"Huh? Do you know him, Kirigakure-san?"
Shura's shoulders jerked, and she abruptly lowered her hand. Her classmates were staring at her curiously.
"Nah," she said, "-I've never met him before."
Her classmates just exchanged a look, before shrugging. Shura let her gaze trail back to the nephilim, blinking in surprise. He was talking to Shiro- and from the look of it, they seemed to know each other. The nephilim was staring at something he was showing him, a thoughtful expression on his face.
He wasn't bad looking, but...
...nah. Hachiro would never want a nephilim for a sperm donor.
"Okay! Everyone divide into your groups!"
Shura yawned, wandering over towards the Doctor's station as she watched the three main groups split up and venture further into the mansion. A few ranked exorcists had been left behind to protect everyone in case the barrier failed, but otherwise the bulk of their fighting force was seeking out the demon that was hiding somewhere.
Naturally, Shiro was among them.
The nephilim was too, but that didn't surprise her. First generation nephilim were rare, so having one around was considered an asset.
Folding her arms, she leaned against one of the tables they'd set up. If this mission went as usual, she doubted that they'd see any action here. She huffed at the thought. She wasn't sure what she'd been expecting from exorcism cram school, but she'd expected it would be more intense than this. Hell, the handful of years she'd spent as Shiro's disciple had been more exciting, and he'd barely let her do anything either.
Time ticked by, tracked by the gradual setting of the sun. The three teams radioed in periodically, but so far no one had found the damn thing.
Hm?
That was odd. The pair manning the radio were whispering furiously to each other. Subtly scooting a bit closer, she did her best to listen in to what they were saying.
"-lost contact- group B."
Shura's brow furrowed. Lost contact? That didn't sound good.
"Oi, are you okay?"
Snapping her head up, Shura watched as a lone exorcist staggered into the foyer. Their coat was ripped, and they had their hand pressed against their side. They came to a momentary stop in front of the barrier, before stumbling inside. The Doctor in charge rushed towards them, a pair of her classmates trailing behind, ready to assist.
The hair on the back of her neck stood up.
Something wasn't right.
Before she had the chance to say a single word, the exorcist feel to their knees and vomited black sludge. Her classmates yelped and jumped back- but the Doctor who'd approached the man wasn't so lucky. The black sludge lunged at them, shaping into an arm to strangle the man with.
"It's the demon! The demon's here!"
Yeah, no shit!
Yanking her uniform ribbon off, Shura placed a hand on her tattoo and summoned her sword.
"Oi!" Shura yelled. "Over here!"
The demon abruptly turned in her direction, made all the more obvious by the eyes it had added to its otherwise shapeless form. It lurched towards her, but she dodged out of the way, biting her thumb and spreading it against the flat edge of her sword.
"Kirigakure Style, Art of the-"
Before she even had a chance to finish, the air around the demon rippled and it disappeared. Swearing underneath her breath, Shura cast a glance around her. Where had it gone? It had obviously needed a vessel to get past the barrier, so it couldn't have-
Something grabbed her foot.
A swear escaped her as the demon rippled through the floor, dangling her upside-down. Her sword slipped from the grasp, clattering against the floor.
Of course, the realization hit her just a little too late. It had turned this mansion into a labyrinth. The shitty thing could twist dimensions.
The sludge monster had a mouth now. She didn't like where this was going. With a grunt, she swung herself up, tugging at the sludge in an attempt to free her foot. She was only fifteen! She was supposed to have another fifteen years ahead of her!
The sludge just entangled her hands. Ripping one free, she yanked one of her kunai from her leg holster, but the damn thing spewed more sludge at her, entangling her free hand. If she tried to use a fire spell like this, she might just burn herself.
Gritting her teeth, Shura racked her brain for potential options. The Arias that they'd left behind had begun to chant, but she didn't know if they'd finish in time. There was a lone Tamer ordering its familiars to attack the demon, but it was fending them off while bringing her ever closer its cavernous void of a mouth.
It had teeth now.
"Let her go!"
Something flew past Shura's head, piercing the demon in its cavernous mouth. For a moment, nothing happened-
-then it burst into flame.
The demon shrieked, letting her go as it staggered back. Someone caught her, exhaling in relief. Looking up, their eyes met.
A core of red blazed in the nephilim's pupils.
"Hey," he said, "-uh, you okay?"
Shura nodded, grateful that the nephilim quickly set her down. In the background, the Arias finished their chant- and what was left of the demon dissolved into ash. The nephilim's cat sidhe picked up his katana from within its remains, carrying it by the hilt back to him.
The nephilim beamed, crouching down to stroke the cat sidhe's ears. "Thanks, Kuro!"
The cat sidhe meowed, setting the katana down in front of him. Shura eyed the blade with a frown, her gaze darting towards the white and silver sheath the nephilim slid it back into. That was strange- she'd never seen a design like that before. Demon swords were rare, so the Order had most of their names and appearances archived.
Hers was the first new one in their archives in generations- and that was only because the Order hadn't known it existed until Shiro had brought her here from Aomori.
"...something wrong?"
The nephilim was staring at her- rather intensely, too.
"No," Shura said shortly, "-I'm fine."
Clenching her fists, she felt her nails bite into her hands. She couldn't believe she'd ended up the one who'd needed to be saved. Exhaling, she went to pick up her sword- and was promptly greeted by one of her classmates.
"Kirigakure-san! That was so cool!"
Shura blinked, glancing back at her classmate. They'd mostly just treated her with the same indifference she gave them, but now they were just staring at her with bright eyes.
She swore she heard the nephilim snort.
"No," Shura held up her hands, "-I didn't even do anything."
"But you still jumped right in! We were too nervous to even do anything."
"Really?" The nephilim asked, ignoring the hesitant way her classmate just sort of nodded her head and quickly dismissed herself the moment he approached them. "She's right! That's pretty cool!"
Shura's lips twisted into a frown, glaring at him. Was he mocking her?
...but he was just grinning broadly, his tail lazily waving. He actually sounded sincere.
"...thanks," Shura said, "-what's your name anyways?"
"Me?" The nephilim blinked, pointing at himself. "I'm Okumura Noctis."
"Noctis?" Shura arched a brow. "The hell kind of name is that?"
Noctis' cheeks turned a deep shade of red, his tail lashing behind him. "Shut up! It's cool!"
"Cool?" Shura said. "Really? How old even are you?"
"I'm nineteen, thanks!" Noctis said. "What about you?"
"Me?" Shura asked. "I'm Kirigakure Shura, age fifteen."
"Fifteen?" Noctis blinked. "So you're a first year exwire?"
Shura frowned. "Yeah. What about it?"
Noctis grinned, his tail wagging happily. "Nah, it's nothing."
Shura's frown deepened. What was up with that? He almost looked amused. Crossing her arms in front of her, she gave him a once over. In hindsight, him being only nineteen should have been a given the way he was dressed- he was wearing a short exorcist coat over a t-shirt with a hamburger design printed on it, and ripped jeans. His boots were so grungy, they looked like they were about to come apart.
He didn't look like a serious exorcist at all, she thought.
Huh. She guessed that was an option too.
"Hey," she said, "-do you know Shiro?"
Noctis blinked- but if he was surprised by the informal way she'd address the Paladin, it didn't show.
"Yeah," he said, "-we live together."
Shura's brow twitched. "Hah?"
"Yeah," Noctis rubbed the back of his neck, "-honestly, I was kind of uncertain about it at first, but the kids seem to be getting really attached to him!"
Shura blinked. "...kids?"
Noctis beamed, reaching into his pocket to pull out his wallet. Shura leaned forward, staring at the picture he showed her. Two dark-haired children were staring at the camera- the one with glasses was smiling shyly, while the one with the missing tooth was grinning broadly.
They both had a core of red burning in their pupils.
Shura looked at the photo, then looked back up at Noctis. "...you're a father!?"
Noctis laughed, pocketing the photo. "Well, some things happened..."
Some things happened... yeah, she'd bet!
"Kirigakure-san! We need you over here for decontamination!"
Casting a glance back towards Noctis, Shura frowned- before turning on her heel and marching over towards the Doctor that had called out to her. He was living with Shiro? Shiro was helping to take care of children? Clenching her fists, she narrowed her eyes. She didn't get it- why some random nephilim's kids?
...why not her?
I think she's mad, Noctis.
Noctis awkwardly scratched his cheek, watching as Shura stormed off. Yeah, it kind of seemed that way. It was kind of novel, seeing a Shura that was the same age as he'd been when they'd met for the first time, but maybe telling her he was living with Shiro had been the wrong thing to say?
He was just glad he'd gotten here in time.
Of course, maybe his interference hadn't actually been necessary. She might have gone on this mission in the original timeline too, and gotten out of it okay- but he didn't exactly have a way of knowing. It wasn't like she'd ever told him much about her student years.
...she was alive.
She was alive, but she still had her tattoo. Her contract with Hachiro was still active. If he didn't do something about it, then she'd die when she hit thirty, regardless of whether or not he was successful in changing the future.
He wouldn't let that happen either.
...but he didn't have Yukio anymore, either.
He'd been the one who had thought of the plan to get Hachiro to break his contract with her. Could he really do the same?
No, he had to.
It was fine. He might not have Yukio's brains, but he had eleven years to come up with a plan. That was plenty of time. He refused to succeed in changing the future, only to fail at saving Shura. Somewhere along the line, she'd become like an older sister to him.
("-is here! Take Rin and run!")
...heh. He guessed he was the older one now, though.
"Shura!"
Shura grit her teeth, making the mistake of glancing behind her. Noctis flashed a bright grin in her direction, his tail waving in lieu of his hands, which were currently both occupied. A pair of kids were holding them, staring up at her with curious looks on their faces. Judging from their outfits, they'd just come from preschool.
...huh. He really did have brats.
"What do you want?" Shura asked. "I don't remember being on first name basis with you."
"Huh?" Noctis blinked. "You care about that stuff?"
...she didn't, but why did he sound so certain?
Shura just heaved a sigh, folding her arms in front of her. "So? What do you want?"
"Nah, I didn't really want anything." Noctis said. "Is cram school already over?"
"Yeah," Shura said, "-you picking your brats up from preschool or something?"
"Yep," Noctis shrugged, "-we were about to go shopping for tonight's dinner."
The black-haired one that just looked like a smaller, more human version of his father lifted a hand. "We're making fish hamburgers! Cause it's Yukio's favorite!"
Yukio? Ah, he must mean the kid with glasses. He was watching her with an apprehensive look, half hiding behind his father's legs. Total contrast in personalities, she guessed.
"Is that so?" Shura said. "Well, good for you."
Her words had been laced with sarcasm, but it seemed to completely go over the kid's head, who just offered her a wide grin that looked exactly like his father's.
"Yeah!" He said. "I like 'em too! My favorite's sucky yaky though!"
"Sukiyaki," Noctis automatically corrected, "-how about it? You want to come with us? I already have to make it for the whole monastery, so one extra person wouldn't hurt!"
Shura just stared at him for a long moment. Was this guy for real? They'd just met, but he was already acting as if they were friends. Who in their right mind would casually invite a near stranger over for dinner?
And her? Eat at Shiro's place? Forget it! She'd rather die!
"No thanks," Shura kept her tone clipped, "-besides, can you even cook?"
"Oh?" Noctis arched a brow. "Do you doubt my skill?"
"Of course," Shura said, "-I've heard about you. You were raised in that Asylum place or whatever, right? No way they taught you to cook there."
She'd only heard horror stories about that place. No wonder Shiro had wanted to keep her away from it. It didn't surprise her at all that it had gone the way of the dodo after the Blue Night. Judging from the age of the twins, he must have had them with another orphan or something.
(She'd heard a few unsavory rumors about that, but she kind of doubted them.)
"Really?" Noctis tilted his head. "Then why don't you come over and find out for yourself?"
Shura's brow twitched. Why was he so dead set on that?
"Like I said," she said, "-no thanks."
Noctis just shrugged. "Suit yourself. I think o- Shiro would want to see you again, though."
"...wait," Shura's eyes narrowed, "-what do you mean by that?"
"You're his disciple, right?" Noctis asked. "He's talked about you before."
...he had? Shura's hand curled tighter around the strap of her bag. Shiro still talked about her? She would have thought he'd totally forgotten her by now. He was the Paladin now, right? Why should he waste time thinking about some random brat he'd picked up, only to abandon?
"No, forget it!" Shura said. "I don't care what that jerk wants."
"You sure?" Noctis asked.
"I'm sure!" Shura said.
With a huff, she stormed past him before he could get another word in. What was his deal? Was he mocking her or something?
...but he didn't seem like that type of person, she thought.
Coming to a stop, she glanced behind her. Noctis and his two brats were halfway down the street. The one with glasses who'd stayed quiet was talking to him animatedly about something- and both his father and brother seemed to be listening intently.
...did Shiro really still think about her?
Shaking her head, Shura shoved the thought out of her mind. So what if he did? What, was he feeling guilty about abandoning her or something? It was way too late for that!
...forget it. She wasn't going to think about this anymore.
And she sure as hell was going to ignore Noctis from now on. Who did he think he was, blabbering away like they were old friends or something? What a pain! If she never had to deal with that guy again, it would be too soon!
"-and this is the exorcist you'll be paired with for today's mission."
Noctis grinned at her.
Shura's brow twitched.
Of all the rotten luck! She'd spent the past month dodging his attempts to talk to her, only to end up paired with him on a mission. Why did it have to be this guy!?
"Hold on a second!" Shura protested. "I refuse to go on mission with this guy!"
Her teacher just looked at her in disapproval. "Kirigakure-san..."
Shura held his gaze for a second longer, before clicking her tongue. "Fine."
With a sigh, her teacher left the two of them alone. Glaring daggers at Noctis, she couldn't help but notice that he hadn't looked surprised by this development at all.
"You planned this," she asked, "-didn't you?"
"Nah," Noctis' grin didn't fool her, "-of course not. You're way too suspicious!"
Shura just huffed. She didn't buy it for a second.
"So," she said, "-what is this mission supposed to be about?"
Noctis turned his head, looking up at the apartment complex that loomed above them. It had to be at least twenty stories- and from the look of it, it hadn't been occupied in some time. If there was one thing she had learned since moving to a more urban environment, it was that certain kinds of demons loved places like this.
"Apparently there's a large Koks somewhere in this building," he said, "-you have naga familiars, right? I thought they would be useful for scouting."
Shura arched a brow. "What about your cat sidhe?"
"Uh," Noctis rubbed the back of his neck, "-Kuro is kind of on show and tell duty today."
Shura just stared at him. "...show and tell?"
"Yeah!" Noctis said. "Rin really wanted to bring him to class."
Rin? The other kid's name, she guessed.
"And you let him!?" Shura asked. "Who brings a demon to show and tell!?"
"Don't worry!" Noctis gave her a thumbs up. "I made sure to tell him to just introduce him as our house cat! I'm pretty sure he understood!"
Shura pinched the bridge of her nose, feeling a headache coming on. Okay, she got it. This guy was an idiot parent. She understood him well now.
"Well, I can sense demons too, but..." Noctis folded his arms in front of him, tilting his head, "-in places like this, it's kind of useless. It's hard to pin down a Koks when it's already crawling with coal tars."
"...you can sense demons?" Shura asked.
"Huh?" Noctis blinked. "Yeah. I'm half demon, after all."
Huh. She guessed that made sense. Her gaze drifted from his tail to his horns, wondering exactly what his demonic parent might have been. First generation nephilim were basically extinct in this day and age- so someone like Noctis was a total rarity. Her gaze dropped down to his katana. She'd checked the archives again, but as she thought, she couldn't find one that matched its description.
A first generation nephilim with an unknown demon sword?
Honestly, the guy was fishy as hell.
"And when we're done," Noctis grinned, "-I can finally treat you to a meal!"
Shura just stared at him. "...hah?"
"I packed us a lunch!" Noctis grinned, his tail wagging. "We can eat them afterwards, so look forward to it!"
Shura just stared at him. Seriously, what was with this guy?
Noctis grinned to himself as they headed inside. Shura crinkled her nose as soon as they stepped in- there really were coal tars everywhere. Digging out her summoning papers, she called forth a pair of small naga- and at the same time, summoned her sword.
"I should just have them scout ahead of us, right?" Shura asked.
"Yeah," Noctis said, "-I want to take it by surprise, if possible."
Made sense. Koks had a nasty habit of splitting up if they sensed danger. She really didn't feel like being led on a wild goose chase through a rundown apartment.
They cleared the first floor without issue, and moved on to the second. Noctis kept sending looks her way, but was surprisingly quiet, all things considered. He kept one hand on his katana, as if ready to draw it at any time.
Huh. Well, she guessed he was technically a professional.
"...so do you like True Cross Academy?"
Shura sighed. So much for being quiet.
"I don't hate it, I guess," Shura replied, "-save for having to deal with all the shitty rich kids. Just because they have money, they seem to think they can have whatever they want!"
Noctis laughed.
"What about you?" Shura asked after a moment. "Did you go to school? You know, after Asylum shut down."
"Nah," Noctis rubbed the back of his neck, "-I'm kind of a dropout."
Figured. His kids couldn't be any older than four or five- they were probably born sometime after the closure of Asylum. He probably didn't have the time to even think about high school, much less find someone to sponsor him. She was on a special scholarship that the Preceptor had given out to those who had survived the Blue Night, but...
Could a half demon even attend a regular high school anyways?
"Second floor's clear," Shura noted.
Noctis nodded, heading up the next flight of stairs. This place was built weirdly- instead of one continuous stairwell, they had to cross the length of the building to get to the next one. Like the mansion from before, the place was a decrepit ruin- the only signs of life were the occasional piles of trash. Probably had been used as a homeless encampment before it had become a nest for coal tars.
At least they had the sense to leave when things got weird.
"How's cram school?"
Shura glanced over at Noctis. "It's okay. Better than Asylum, probably."
Noctis huffed, but didn't respond to that one.
The third floor was also clear- and so was the fourth. Heading up the stairwell behind Noctis, she glanced up at his horns again. He was wearing some kind of silver cuff decoration on them, which matched the ones on his ears.
"...aren't those annoying?"
Noctis glanced back at her. "Hm?"
"Your horns," she motioned to her own forehead, "-how do you even hide them?"
"Oh," Noctis blinked, "-uh, I used to hide them under my bangs before they grew out. Now I just have these."
He tapped on the silver cuffs.
"Keeps people without a mashou from seeing them," he said, "-and I can just coil my tail around my waist and hide it under my shirt. Didn't really need to much while before the twins enrolled in preschool, though!"
"Huh," Shura said, "-are the ones on your ears the same?"
"Hm?" Noctis frowned, touching his ears. "Nah, these are just for decoration. I heal too fast to pierce them!"
"Really?" Shura asked.
"Not to brag," Noctis grinned, "-but regenerating is kind of my special skill!"
Shura just huffed in amusement. It was probably impressive, but she couldn't imagine it was anything in comparison to Hachiro. Thinking about him made her frown- the last time she'd seen him, the only thing he'd been interested in was if she'd had a baby yet.
...was that really all she was here for?
The fifth floor was clear, as was the sixth- though they did have to carefully avoid a crumbling hole in the floor. Shura yawned, slightly regretting having stayed out late the previous night.
"You don't like the old man," Noctis glanced back at her, "-do you?"
"...the old man?" Shura arched a brow.
Noctis flinched. "Uh. I mean- the Pal- Shiro."
Shura's lips twisted into a frown. Old man? Shura huffed. Well, he certainly seemed to be getting older. Honestly, she didn't like it.
"Yeah," she said, "-I hate that bastard!"
Noctis didn't have anything to say to that, though his tail flicked anxiously in response. Shura glanced up at him as they started up the staircase to the eighth floor- the seventh was clear. He looked like he was thinking about something.
"...why you?"
Noctis blinked, looking back at her.
Shura's cheeks flushed. Huh? Had she said that out loud?
But at the same time... clenching her fists, Shura glared up at him. "Why you? Why did Shiro throw me out, but took you in?! What makes you better!?"
For a long moment, Noctis just stared at her- before something like understanding dawned across his face.
"...I don't know," Noctis admitted, "-but I think he regrets it."
Shura narrowed her eyes, her grip tightening on her sword. He regretted it? That was impossible. If there was anything he regretted, it was taking her in in the first place. Sure, she appreciated that he hadn't just dumped her into the Asylum, but...
...but why bother taking care of her at all if he was just going to get rid of her?
"Don't give me that bullshit!" Shura yelled. "There's no way-!"
Shura's mouth snapped shut, her gaze darting towards the top of the staircase. It was faint, but she was getting a response from her familiars. There was something on the eighth floor- and whatever it was, it was big.
Noctis must have sensed it too, one hand firmly on the hilt of his sword. He pressed a finger to his lips, motioning for her to silently follow him up the stairs. Narrowing her eyes, she nodded.
Their fight could wait for later.
As they stepped onto the eighth floor, Shura had to put a hand over her mouth. The air was thick with miasma, and it burned her lungs. Her contract with Hachiro gave her a slightly higher resistance to it than usual, but this was too much even for her.
"Here," Noctis whispered, "-use this."
Shura frowned, accepting the demon repellent mask from him. She put it on, her frown deepening as he didn't do the same. Was it because he was half demon?
"Can your familiar tell what room it's in?" Noctis whispered.
"It's not in a room," Shura shook her head, "-it's in the staircase."
"Good," Noctis nodded, "-stay here."
"Stay here?" Shura narrowed her eyes. "I can fight!"
"I know," Noctis grinned, "-it can't get downstairs without passing this staircase, right?"
Oh. That was true.
Nodding, Shura bit her thumb and spread a thin trail of blood alongside the flat of the blade. "Kirigakure Style- art of the demon sword... Snake Belly!"
Her sword vibrated, elongating in a flash. Perfect for taking on a large enemy.
Noctis gave her a thumbs up, which she rolled her eyes at. He unsheathed his own sword, carefully making his way down the hall. He briefly made eye contact with her, before he slipped into the staircase. Shura stood poised at the ready, even as a burst of flame licked the exterior of the staircase.
"Shura! Part of it is coming your way!"
He didn't need to tell her that- she could see it! The damn thing almost filled the hallway- and this was only a part of it? How massive had the damn thing been?
Readying her sword, Shura stood her ground. Her best attributes were air and water- neither of which were particularly good against Koks, outside of holy water. But she didn't need to defeat it- she just needed to push it back in Noctis' direction.
"Kirigakure Style, Art of the Demon Sword," she slashed her sword in a downwards arc, "-Snake Fang!"
The powerful arc of wind sent the remnant of the Koks into retreat- where it soon found itself consumed with flames. It burned until there was nothing left- just a lingering trace of miasma.
With a sigh, Shura pulled off her mask, her lungs no longer burning. She returned her sword to its normal shape, before putting it back in its seal. The Order would definitely have to come by and spray this place with holy water on occasion, she thought.
Noctis waved at her as he headed down the hall. "You okay?"
"Yeah," she said, "-what about you?"
"I'm perfect!" Noctis beamed. "Thanks for the assist. I didn't really want to end up chasing the damn thing all throughout the building."
"Don't let part of it get away then!" Shura protested.
"Sorry!" Noctis held up a hand. "But seriously, thanks! Now let's go eat that lunch!"
Lunch? Didn't he remember they'd been fighting? Scratching her head, she watched as he cheerfully headed for the staircase, his tail wagging with excitement.
...well, whatever. She got the feeling it was more of a pain in the ass to hate this guy than it was to get along with him.
"Wha- this is good!"
Grinning from ear to ear, Noctis' tail flicked happily. "Right? I told you I could cook!"
Had he taken Shura's doubt about his cooking skills a little personally? Maybe.
There was something strange about watching Shura eat. There was something strange about watching Shura period, if he was being honest. She was so young- which was a strange thing to think, since they were only four years apart now.
...but she really was so young, he thought.
He'd thought that back at the mansion too, when he'd first met the fifteen year old version of his mentor from his timeline. She was wearing a school uniform and everything! It was weird seeing her with a ponytail again- even a short one, when he'd gotten used to the short hair.
...well, he had a ponytail right now too. His was way shorter, though!
(Ugh. He had no idea what to do with his hair. He was a time traveler, for fuck's sake! It was fine now, but what was he going to do when Rin was older?)
"Okay," Shura said, "-I take it back. You're a good cook."
Noctis beamed in triumph. Heh. See?
Oh, wait. He needed to eat too.
Breaking his chopsticks, he dug into his own meal. Somewhere along the line, he'd picked up Yukio's bad habit of forgetting to eat. Trauma or something, he guessed- though for the most part, he was trying not to think about any of it. It was easier that way.
"Trying to handle everything alone doesn't work out so well."
(Shut up, Yukio. You're dead.)
"I'm serious, you know," Noctis said, "-you should come visit the monastery sometime."
"Hah?" Shura glared at him. "Why would I do that?"
Why? Honestly, he just didn't want to leave things between Shura and his old man unresolved. He didn't exactly know a lot of the details, but it sounded like Shura harbored a lot of negative feelings over the fact that Shiro had abandoned her. He really wished she'd talked to him about it in his own timeline, but at the same time... he was starting to understand why she never had.
Of course. She'd been bitter that he'd raised him and Yukio instead.
...and now she was still mad at him. Heh.
"...revenge?"
Shura arched a brow. "Revenge?"
"Yeah," Noctis said, "-you know, they say the best revenge is living swell."
"Living well," Shura corrected, "-so what? I should flaunt about acting happy or something?"
Noctis just shrugged. "I don't know. Become a cool exorcist or something without him?"
"...huh," Shura said, "-that's actually not a bad idea."
Huh? It was? He was just throwing out random crap.
"Okay," Shura said, "-in that case, you teach me."
Noctis choked on his food, taking a big gulp of water to wash it down. "Wha- me?!"
"Who else?" Shura asked.
"No, that's..."
Huh? How had this happened? He'd just wanted to help the old man and Shura get along again! He didn't want to be Shura's mentor! He wasn't the least bit qualified! Sure, he'd been watching a lot of videos about swordsmanship lately, but...
(He'd have to train Rin eventually. He sort of had to know what he was doing this time.)
"What?" Shura asked. "Don't think you can?"
Noctis' brow twitched.
"Fine," Noctis said, "-but only if you come eat dinner at the monastery."
Shura's smug smile somehow made him feel like he'd still lost.