This wasn't the first time Genjiro had 'accidentally' walked into the bath when it was occupied. It happened before when Nui slept over at their house, with that being the first time he had sen Nui in her less human form. She scolded him, he apologized, and he made sure not to do that again. But with Nui out for the day and Effie having just moved in, Genjiro likely forgot. Things were different this time though–Nui and his younger brother had grown up together. Effie was still like a guest, and to a girl this would be a terrible shock. Genjiro managed to get a running start, but Rashomaru wasn't going to let him go. His brother might be faster than him, however he knew it would only be a matter of time before he caught up. He couldn't keep running forever.

Despite that, Genjiro managed to run him all around town through every place imaginable. They went through the market, over bridges and down country roads, even skirting the edge of the forest. No matter how fast Genjiro ran Rashomaru was several steps behind, still keeping up. A few hours later, Yukari had calmed down Effie when there was a slam coming from the direction of the front door. They hadn't come into the house, rather it was Rashomaru dragging Genjiro by the back of his clothes before pinning him against the wall. There were clear marks in the dirt where Genjiro's sandals had gone through and the older brother was glowering down at his cheeky younger sibling. Genjiro was clearly out of breath, but not an ounce less mischievous. 

Their parents were outside, seeing the spectacle. "I didn't know it was occupied–I'm serious!" Genjiro had his hands up as if trying to appease the six foot four man glaring daggers from golden yellow eyes. "Then why did you run?!" Genjiro's eyes shifted to the side. "…'Cause I wanted you to chase me. Kinda like how we used to play tag with Nui, back when we were little~" Genjiro let out a yelp as he was thrown onto the ground, the two boys wrestling in the dirt. The former was doing his best to cover his head while cracking a grin, fending off Rashomaru's blows. "Owowowowow!" Yukari waited for a few minutes until she went to pull them apart, and made them rejoin everybody to hear Genjiro's side. "Genjiro, answer me honestly. Did you know Effie was in the bath?" 

"No…" She asked the next question. "Did you see her slippers or see any other signs that the bath wasn't empty?" He lowered his head slightly. "…No." Their father stared intensely as his wife did a thorough interrogation, adding to the atmosphere with his presence. Rashomaru's head cooled as he listened; he knew Genjiro didn't meant to walk in intentionally but it was a bad habit that had to go. "Next time, even if we don't have any guests in the house–remember to knock and ask loudly if anyone is in before opening the door. Hm?"

"Ok…" Yukari ruffled his hair, and he smiled a bit. He wasn't a bad child, just free-spirited much like her siblings and relatives tended to be. "…I'm sorry for walking in without knocking, Effie."

It was still Effie’s first few encounters with boys. Rashomaru was different since she was comfortable with him but with Genjiro she had never actually had any siblings. She hadn’t had anyone. It had only been herself. She was highly self conscious of herself still.

Effie watched the fight between the boys and she pulled the blanket closely. Listening to Yukari interrogate Genjiro made her feel awful but it had to be done. At least she would feel a lot better if he knocked.

“It’s okay Genjiro…” Effie stepped forward and hugged the boy. “I just get spooked easily. I appreciate you understanding.” Even if… He didn’t completely know her story. Rashomaru understood and maybe eventually she would fell alright telling everyone why she was so skittish.

After that day though… Genjiro started to act a little weird. Effie was concerned about him and now he was even sleepwalking. She would get up in the middle of the night just to check on him. This would continue for as long as it took… Until the night the accident happened.

It started after they had set down some ground rules for Genjiro so he wouldn't stress out Effie. They made sure to reassure him that they still loved him, just that Effie wasn't comfortable with a few things he did. Genjiro understood, and he did his best to not disturb them again. Rashomaru was happy that his little brother was able to progress, even if it was a tad late. He was very accepting towards people, one of his best traits. He was frank and wholehearted with other people, but only Rashomaru and his family knew the real reason why… What had happened ten years ago had slipped the members of the Kaname household's minds until Genjiro began acting strangely. Rashomaru didn't notice it until Effie told him. Now that his brother was sleeping in a different room he didn't think much when he heard the door across the hall open and close in the middle of the night. He saw Genjiro's silhouette pass by their room before he drifted off to sleep. 

The next morning he found Genjiro's room was slightly ajar, and his bed was unmade. Normally this didn't seem off for his carefree personality, but the way the blankets were seemed as if they had been undisturbed since he left them. If he had gone to use the toilet, the blankets would be more twisted as he rolled to settle himself back in. The blankets were like he had gotten up and didn't come back to sleep in them. Genjiro almost never woke up earlier than he did. 

During the day Genjiro seemed like his usual self, though tired and sometimes sleepy. He would doze off in the middle of the day, and in the following weeks he would stare at a faraway point in a daze. When this happened, Rashomaru would call his name and he would snap out of it, but this was happening more frequently. One night Genjiro left the house and didn't close his bedroom door. Rashomaru got up a few minutes after hearing the slide of the door, and went to see how he was doing. When he saw the door wasn't even closed–that was when he felt an uneasiness in the pit of his stomach.

He went to the bathroom with a lamp in hand, but it was empty. Next he went to the kitchen, still nothing. He then began to check every room in the house and realized he couldn't find Genjiro, and ran to wake up Effie and his parents. "Where's Genjiro? Did you hear him pass by a few minutes ago? I can't find him–he's not in the house!" Then his mother rushed past him and went to the front door, letting out a cry. "His sandals are gone!" Fear flashed in his father's eyes as he grabbed his sword and lit a lantern, changing his clothes. It didn't take much for everyone to realize something terrible had happened.

"Open up! Open up!! It's an emergency!" Nui's panicked voice came from the other side of the front door making everyone jump. Letting her in she was practically breathless, as if she had ran a long way to get here. "FIRE!! There's a fire in the forest! I don't know how it started, but I tried to bring water in buckets but it wasn't going out!" Yukari's face paled, but she regained her composure. "Nui, I need you to tell Effie and Rashomaru where the fire is. Masashi, go with Nui and call the head priest from the monastery! I will rejoin you shortly, but first I need to find something. If my suspicions are correct then…" She didn't finish that sentence, but they parted towards their respective directions. When Rashomaru arrived to where Nui had discovered the fire, that portion of the forest was already engulfed in crimson red flames.

“Demon fire,” Effie said it without even hesitating. She knew it well enough thanks to her own flames. You would need to knock the source out.

Once Nui told her Effie was in a dead sprint. It didn’t matter who or what it was. She was hopping and jumping high with incredible speed that wouldn’t have been present before that moment. She was a capable fighter who took on a whole demon clan by herself. She wanted to protect her whole family, her new family.

The distance between her and everyone else was great at that point. She was barefoot, barely dressed, and running headfirst into the fire. What she saw made her stop dead and almost fall on her feet. “Genjiro.” He was out of control and he certainly was not himself.

“Effie, you need to knock him out before this gets any worse.”

“…Yes.” She cut her palm and conjured up the sword. Swing for swing with it intensifying on each side. Now the forest was showing two completely different types of flame. One was circling the outside with a hue that could only mean Effie was doing it. It was keeping the other fire in check as not to reach the village.

However, with her focusing on the defense her offense was starting to become sloppy. She took an attack head-on. The purple-hued flames burnt hotter and brighter turning to a blood-red before settling on the hottest of flames: white.

The sword that contained Aelos flew through the fly and hurdled towards Rashomaru once they showed up. The demon transformed back into his original form and laid sprawled out on the ground. The white fire looked more of a monster than the one it was trying to contain. “This is bad… Really, really bad.”

Not one but two had now lost control within the flames. Aelos looked up at Rashomaru. “I will explain everything to everyone but not to those two… What you are going to see might shock you a bit.” He got up and curved the white flames just enough to get Rashomaru and the others in to help. “Before we go… I want to give you this… Get it on her as soon as you can.” It was the amulet that Effie had retrieved just months prior. He tucked it into Rashomaru’s hands.

There in the center stood a taller red-haired woman who had Genjiro by the neck. He was still fighting her since she couldn’t get him off the ground. “Amadrya,” Aelos yelled. “You need to let Effie go.”

“No,” there was a cry from the woman as flames whipped back at them. Genjiro was thrown at a tree and Amadrya began to advance. “I want to live.”

Aelos put his hands up. “You had your time. It is Effie’s now. I hurt as much as you but you need to let her go.” He looked to Rashomaru.

“They stole everything from me!” There were sad tears and the screams were of a tormented soul. It made Aelos flinch.

“They stole everything from me too! But you are no better now that you are stealing everything from Effie. Listen to me.” Aelos was yelling but it was only pissing the woman off more.

He saw it in a dream. It was a place he had never seen before, but it felt so familiar. It was a small house in the forest surrounded by blood-red maples. There was no path leading to the door, a boundary of large smoothed boulders dotted what was 'edge' of the yard. Sometimes that house would appear in his thoughts and he would feel himself moving as if he was going somewhere else. He didn't know where it was, but somehow he kept feeling compelled to go. When he was just about to leave the trees and go to the stone border–he would wake up. …And he didn't know why.

That night he had actually left the house, unwittingly retracing steps buried deep within his mind. Like a man possessed he walked, and walked, and walked until he somehow found the same house in the clearing, but with no sign of maple trees anywhere. He snapped out of his daze, and found himself standing in the middle of an overgrown field with the crumbling remains of a building–its wood charred black. Images started flashing before his eyes.

The interior of the house. The blurred visage of a woman's face. The memory of two doors closing shut leaving just a crack.

A reddish light shining in from outside.

Fire.

Fire spreading, consuming everything. The entire house, engulfed in flames.


It all came flooding back.

He fell to his knees, the image of the burning house that once was flickering over the skeletal structure. Grabbing his head his entire body began to shake as he heaved uncontrollable sobs. There was a voice of a woman sobbing in his mind and shouts of other people screaming at her. 


His mother. She was his mother. He remembered.


"Genjiro, hide here ok? Wait here for mama, and don't open the doors. Mama is going to be back soon, and everything will be alright. I love you…my son."


Letting out a wail, the entire field erupted into flames, burning a bright crimson red. With tears streaming down his face he set the place ablaze as his hellfire went out of control. Genjiro broke down sobbing, curled up into a crumpled heap on the ground as all the memories that had been sealed returned. He was five again, scared and alone. People in strange robes with staves and symbols were trying to kill them and his mother hid him inside a cupboard telling him to wait for her. He heard her screams, and then everything was on fire. Even though he didn't see everything, deep down he knew mama wasn't coming back.

He didn't even recognize Effie when she charged through the flames. In a blind panic he charged at her, desperately trying to protect himself from what he saw as the people who killed his mother. She was flung far out of his sight, but that was just the beginning of the danger. 

Rashomaru wasn't able to tell Effie to wait for him, she was already there when he arrived on the scene. But instead of seeing Effie anywhere, there was enchanted fire overtaking the entire area. He barely dodged being hit by a flying sword, only for it to transform into Effie's father. The white flames were unearthly and terrifying, even more chilling than seeing normal fire unchecked. Aelos quickly explained to him and gave him the necklace Effie had worn when she came back from her months of training. He told Rashomaru it was vital that he put it on her as soon as possible–and if he saw a red-haired woman, to do just that while staying alive. When the white fire parted, he jumped through the opening and began to search for either of the women. His blood ran cold as he saw the latter, grabbing his brother's throat while Genjiro tried to break free. Aelos used himself to get the woman's attention and Rashomaru quickly ran around. He desperately wanted to run and check if Genjiro was hurt, but if he didn't make the woman wear the necklace the entire town would be consumed.

"Ancestors, grant me your strength. I pray for your wisdom and power, Lord Arahabaki. Please grant me the swiftness and courage for what I must do!" He whispered hoarsely, fighting back tears and feeling his throat tighten. Channeling the power of his inhuman blood he threw his odachi aside and went into a full sprint. His weapon would only slow him down and he had no time to waste. Tackling the woman from behind, he quickly fastened the necklace onto her as she reacted, sending him hurtling across the burning field. His entire body ached, even with his mother's bloodline the blow he took was painful. Pushing himself up, he forced himself to run towards Genjiro. The only way he was able to find him was because he was in the one spot where the crimson flames were the strongest. Throwing himself onto his brother, he held on tight as his entire body was enveloped in searing pain. 


"Genjiro! Genjiro, I'm here! Your brother is here!" A voice was breaking through the cacophony of the nightmare. Genjiro thrashed as something was holding him down, but the voice kept talking. "It's ok, you're safe. Everything is going to be ok. Your brother Rashomaru is here, and I'll be here to protect you no matter what…" Hot tears rolled down his face as he finally stopped struggling and he collapsed, crying himself to sleep. The crimson flames were extinguished and completely died out. The ground was completely scorched and blackened, but it was over. Now all that was left was for Effie to return too.

What Rashomaru didn’t know was the woman who he had tackled was the very woman he wanted to save. It was hard to describe but as he went to calm Genjiro down the white flames grew even more intense. “My baby!” There was a cry as the redhead got up and attempted to pull the necklace off.

“Is dead… Just like you are.” Aelos yelled as he got closer to her. “Now, stop this.” His voice was gentle as he got down on her level. “Let her go.”

There was uncontrollable sobbing from the redhead as she screamed in pain. Binding magic from the necklace crept across her skin. The white flames faded down into the purple and finally extinguished. There laid Effie on the ground where the redhead had been before. Aelos placed his hand on her neck and felt for her heart. Good, she was still alive.

He pulled his arms around her and lifted her up. She was so light but she had always been compared to the tall demon. He cradled her in his arms like she was a baby. “I promised you an explanation. Let’s get these two back to the house.”

Once they got Genjiro and Effie settled into another room to sleep, Aelos was seated on the other side of the table compared to Masashi, Yukari, Rashomaru, and even Nui. “You must have realized by now that the necklace has binding magic on it.” If Rashomaru didn’t notice he doubted it got past Yukari. “Three thousand years ago I was married to a woman named Amadrya. She was strong and resilient. A human just like Effie, well sort of. Before we were married the sundering happened where Verya fell. The god that her clan worshiped became corrupted and asked for all of her apostles to be killed or worse.”

He took a deep breath. “Apostles of her god were virgins… and they soiled them before they killed them. As they came for her, I came to her and made a contract with her for her soul. That’s what we do after all. We get energy from contracts and we harvest them for energy after we complete their task. I fell in love with my contract and I married her letting my blood soak with hers. I made her a demon-touched. We were married for a few hundred before she became pregnant with our first child. It had been a long hard road to even get that far.” He held a frown. “However, there were a few who weren’t happy it happened. They killed her and our child who was still in the womb.”

He had a hard time sucking up the tears but he shook them off. “Seventeen years ago I felt her enter the world again… Or at least my seal. I was concerned someone had forged my demon contract so I investigated. I found a couple throwing their newborn into the river. It was Effie. She had the very same seal that Amadrya had before her. Naturally, I assumed that it was reincarnation… but I never dreamed it was something more.”

He took a drink of tea before closing his eyes. “I raised her away from everyone near Iria. In a safe place, it was just the two of us. I taught her to survive so that one day I could let her leave and she would be safe. However, on the day she reached womanhood… Something woke up and started a massive fire. I knew the fire well enough. I thought maybe her powers had just finally woke up. Amadrya made her first appearance that night and she was angry. She remembered her death and she had felt our child die before her. She wanted blood but the people who did it have been dead for a very long time. She had no idea the amount of time that had passed. I managed to subdue her and put a magical lock on her. The only time she can come out is if Effie is in mortal danger but the seal had been cracking. Scared for you all I asked her to leave to fetch the amulet. It was the very first gift I gave Amadrya as we courted. I figured if anything could bind her it would be that. I was right but she was smarter… She had managed to throw it off to trigger the transformation during the confrontation with Genjiro. I will work on a solution to calm her down. I think if we can calm her down that Amadrya won’t hurt anyone… She is a mother who has lost the most important part of her. However, if Amadrya comes back I will lose the most important part of me again. As cruel as it is… It is Effie’s time now.”

He set his cup down. “Which leads to this request. Do not speak a word about what you saw today to Effie. Until the day she reaches full maturity she must never know because it could break her spirit. If that were to happen she will die as the primary host. Her spiritual power is much stronger than Amadrya’s to compensate for Amadrya being there. She will reach full maturity in two years on the demon holiday of harvest… I will explain everything then.”

It felt like a weight lifted off of him but he looked at the small family. “Any questions?”

"Fate…sometimes can truly be cruel." Yukari said, breaking the silence. Hearing all of this was a terrible, tragic thing, and this was nothing new when it came to love between spirits and humans. The magic was something she sensed when Effie had come back after those long months, but she wasn't sure that that aura meant until now. Oni, as they were called by humans, had been hunted and shunned by men and gods for as long as time immemorial. A mother losing her child right before her eyes…that could break even the strongest of people. She had left the world full of hate and rage. Even reincarnation wasn't enough to remove the burden of her past life. "We will keep our word. What you have spoken to us today will never leave this room. Now, allow us to tell you about Genjiro in return." Masashi's eyes met with his wife's, and then with his son's. Nui gave a nod to him, and the look in his eyes said he was willing to let Aelos hear about their second son."We took him in when Rashomaru was six years old. He was only five, and he was entrusted to me by the matriarch of the largest oni clan in Kujishoku. They found him in the wreckage of his family's home, hidden inside a cupboard. The exterior was not seriously charred despite the rest of the building having been reduced to a burnt skeleton. His mother…had just passed away." Yukari took a moment to breathe before elaborating further.

"She was killed by exorcists. From the scene, Lady Shizuka believed she had set fire to the area herself to fend them off. If they knew she wasn't alone, I have no doubt that they would have killed Genjiro too. The boy was in such a terrible state that they had to seal his memories for his own sake. But even then it didn't suppress it completely. In the first few years that he lived with us, he suffered from nightmares almost every night. I apologize for not telling you sooner, Rashomaru. I didn't want to make you feel as if we didn't love you as much as Genjiro." Masashi put his hands on her shoulders as she looked down. "Mother…it's alright. I already knew." He said. Both of his parents looked up in surprise. After a period of silence, his mother asked him in a quiet voice. "When did you know?" 

"It was a long time ago." He replied. "One night I overheard you and father speaking with someone. I don't know why I eavesdropped, but that was when I heard it. Then…I understood. Everything made sense, and I never blamed him for it." His mother's expression of relief led to her shedding a few tears. "I'm glad…I'm so glad." His parents had been holding these worries within their heart for ten years. Returning to the matter at hand, his mother turned to Aelos. "Is there anything we can do should Effie lose control to Amadrya again?"

Aelos listened closely to Genjiro’s story. Hearing it made him sad but he knew the story well from others too. It was a lot to think about and Aelos put his elbow on his leg so he could prop up his head. “Are you sure it won’t be too much trouble to keep Effie here with you? Having both of them sounds like a lot of work.”

However, it would appear that they were all a family together. That was a good thing and Effie had fallen in with some good people. Aelos thought hard for a few more moments. “Talking to her. It’s the best way I’ve found to actually dealing with her when she comes out. If you can get Effie more conscious it disorients Amadrya. Soo… Rashomaru would probably be your best bet. He’s good for her and Effie loves him a lot. You can tell when you spend most of your time monitoring her soul.” He gave a grin to the boy. “The necklace SHOULD hold… but she did manage to get it off but who knows what happened between her and Genjiro that triggered it. I was focusing on our link too much to completely understand how she managed to do it.”

There was a mischievous look on his face after as he tried to make things a bit better. “I’ve decided that if and when you want to marry Effie… You have my permission.” He looked a little too giddy. “I’ve been excited about saying something like that for a long time. Raising a girl is dangerous.” He laughed and looked at Rashomaru. “I have faith in you that you’ll keep Effie tame. As long as she doesn’t put herself in danger… The seal will hold. For two years you’ll have to keep the seal safe and then after that, she should be in full control.”

There was a little movement and the noise died down. The sliding door almost slammed open as Effie yawned and stretched. She looked disoriented. “Daddy…” Effie almost drop kicked him. “What trouble are you causing this time?” Aelos caught her foot and threw her into Rashomaru.

“Nothing. You should be resting… So rest.” Aelos chuckled. It didn’t look like she had heard anything. The small woman was curled up on Rashomaru now. She was dead tired and had only come out to investigate. There was grumbling from her and Aelos shook her head. “She’s so stubborn. Good luck.”

"I'm sure we can manage. Your daughter is a sweet girl, and from what you've told us she's stronger than she appears physically and spiritually." His mother said with a smile. When Aelos mentioned the possible ways to help Effie regain control over her other 'self', Rashomaru looked down in embarrassment. He was sure Nui was grinning, even if she wasn't saying anything. She was too quiet, that was how he knew. "I've decided that if and when you want to marry Effie… You have my permission." His golden eyes went wide. Looking up, he thought he was dreaming. Did he just hear what he heard? Did…did Effie's father just say he would accept him as her future husband? Rashomaru was staring dumbfounded in shock. He trusted Effie would be safe with him. And as long as she was kept out of harm's way for two more years, the danger of her spirit not being able to handle the truth would pass. They would all keep their word and ensure Effie and Genjiro would be happy. Effie's recovery was much quicker than they expected, as the sliding door slammed open and she was quick to cut Aelos short. However she still wasn't quite in top form as she was swiftly countered, thrown into his arms. He had done it on reflex as soon as he saw her flying at him. Realizing what he'd done, his face turned a bright red. His head still swimming with Aelos' cheeky warning about not having daughters and Effie's stubbornness, he finally found his tongue to say: "Thank you, I–we will do our best." 

Genjiro woke up after sleeping for three days straight. It took him a few more days after that to return to his usual self, and everyone was there for him. With the truth of his younger brother's past now confronted, he would have to weather through the next two years together with Effie until she could know the truth about herself. For the time being he would hold off telling her about Genjiro.. Once the two years were behind them, he would explain it all…