The Time Key

Until Death Do We Part (Rin and Yukio)

 December 1994

Shiro was deathly still, a wounded soldier sinking into the powdery, crimson-smeared snow. 

The only sound was the swirl of wind, like spirits whispering from the heavens. Her musical laughter was gone...

Tears soaked his face, freezing into tiny rivulets.  Maybe it wasn't too late; perhaps he could die like a demon king? Let the life drain from his body and become calcified with the mountainside. He could leave Assiah and maybe find her, an angel, in the land of Spirit. But on earth, she'd been scorned as a heretic and labelled a witch. All of this was a lie.

Shiro closed his eyes, willing his warmth to dissipate into the winter's chill.  They could still be together in a life beyond this one. All he had to do was fall asleep, covered by a death shroud of snow. Yes, it would happen so fast.

Off in the distance, a soft mewling sound caused the Paladin to stir.  

Cracking open a tired eye, the world of the living focused back into reality, bringing with it the snap of excruciating pain. His body was broken, his skull cracked. Even though he was an enhanced human experiment, his flesh had been through a war.

"Fuck..."  Shiro cursed in despair. He'd forgotten all about them, that horrible burden Yuri was forced to carry.

At least, Shiro mused with sadness, Yuri was finally free from Satan's obsession, the Order, Mephisto's meddling, and his own hatred and bitterness.

It took all the effort, but Shiro willed his body to a standing position. He made his way to the small bundle of dirty rags and lifted two infants into the crook of his arm.

 He studied them closely. Their tiny puckered faces did not resemble the offspring of a demon; instead, they looked like her-his Yuri.

The human one cooed softly and had freckles, and the other, a white-haired infant, had long, feather-like lashes. Both were fragments of Yuri—fragments still very much alive.

Shiro stuck his large finger into the bundle and caressed a tiny hand. The white-haired baby grasped him tightly and wouldn't let go. 

"She called you Rin." He murmured with a wry smile, twisting his lip. "You're gonna be trouble, sure as shit. I'm going to regret this."

It was at that moment that Shiro decided.

There was no way in hell he would let anything bad happen to these two.

He owed it to Yuri. He'd take on her burden. 

She deserved to be free, 

But it wasn't Shiro's time to die. His death, after all, was decided by Mephisto.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

THREE WEEKS LATER

January 1994

Shiro had no experience raising demonic children, or any children, for that matter. He had been a trained exorcist and assassin working exclusively for the Demon King, Mephisto Pheles. 

Sir Pheles was the Director of the Japan Branch of the Vatican and ran True Cross Academy, a prestigious exorcist training school. Surprisingly, Mephisto went against his kind to protect humans and had done so for hundreds of years. Yet, despite his service, he was never entirely trusted by anyone. Demons, by nature, sought to corrupt humans for their own gain. According to the rules, Mephisto was no different than any other creature from Gehenna. Shiro had once made a deal with that devil to strike down every demon that crossed his path. But he lost the wager when he took in the halflings, much to Mephisto's apparent amusement.