Illiesku had been gone when Rin woke up, Mika had returned as tired as ever,

and work at the tea house was, well, work. Now she was following Illiesku through the

second tier of the city. Yet another place she had never been before. The temples and

administrative buildings towered over her making her feel smaller than she already was.

"Where do you perform aptitude tests?" Illiesku asked.

"Huh?" said Rin, tearing her eyes away from the towers of the Temple of the Six

Tailed Fox peeking out over the walls.

"Next gate on the right." Answered the man Illiesku had asked.

Illiesku bowed and pulled Rin along the wall.

"Please do pay attention."

"Sorry."

Rin suddenly found herself in a small room with a large desk and an important

looking older woman staring at them. Illiesku pushed Rin forward.

"How much for the aptitude test?"

The woman scanned the both of them with an accusing eye. "Clearly beyond

your budget."

Rin lowered her eyes. The lady probably had a point.

"Thou can not know by clothing alone what mine purse holds." Illiesku retorted.

Rin didn't look up at the woman, but she imagined the frown that must be there.

Even if thou could afford our test. Thou clearly could not supply payment for the tuition."

"If thou will not administer thine test, then I shall hath to fetch mine patron and

thou shalt hath to deal with him."

The woman let out a throaty snort. "Fine."

Even if most of the conversation was going over her head, she understood the

finality in that last word. Illiesku dragged her back out into the open street while

grumbling to herself. It really wasn't a surprise. Rin wore a simple, cheap, shirt and skirt.

Even Illiesku, who seemed to have a preference for pretty things, wore the basic styles.

Sure Illiesku’s skirt and shirt were slightly better, but not to the quality of a noble or any

of the other uppity ups. Rin wondered if Illiesku had resorted to the Imperial dialect out

of habit or in an attempt to look wealthier.

“Wait a minute! A'te, are you really from the Capitol? Or was that a lie?"

"A lie."

"So where did you learn Imperial?"

"I learned Oni. Which slowly became Itean. Which slowly became Imperial Itean.

It is your empire's trade language."

"You mean it's what we use to trade with other nations?"

"Yes."

"Oh... It's very fancy."

Illiesku looked down at Rin walking beside her. "Is it? Why?"

"It's the dialect nobility uses."

"Ah. So it is proper speech."

"A'te? Where are we going?"

"To get some clothes."

“Clothes?”

“Yes. There is a saying. Clothing makes the man.”

Rin frowned, but said nothing. That made no sense.

Rin stood outside one of the many abandoned buildings. Things still didn’t make

any sense. Illiesku had purchased pre-made men’s clothing and was currently

“changing”. When the door did open Rin stumbled backward and fell on her ass.

“How is this?” asked Sung Wei while smoothing out the wrinkles in his shirt.

“Ah! I ah! I…”

Sung Wei sighed. “Rin. I am not actually the Inspector. I am just borrowing his

face.

“I, um, ok.”

“Come. Let us get this test over with.”

Rin was once again following Illiesku down the streets of the second tier. This

time however the demon was Sung Wei because apparently she could just do that. At

will. Anytime she felt like it. Illiesku claimed there was a mass limitation and that

humanoid forms were easier to control, stating “anything more than two tentacles is

beyond me.” Rin found the whole thing confusing at best and just had to accept it.

They entered the same room as before and the receptionist paled. She got to her

feet, bowed, and said, “Inspector. Shall I fetch Master Matsumoto?”

“Not necessary,” said the fake Sung Wei with a dismissive gesture. He pushed

Rin forward. “I would like to have her tested, apparently I need to be present?”

The woman bowed low. “My sincerest apologies Po. I’ll have someone here right

away.”

“What is the fee?”

“Fifty Standard Silver Po. One moment.” The woman left the room.

“Hrm.” Growled the Inspector, or the demon impersonating the inspector, or

whatever. “Fairly certain that is a discount. Apparently Inspector Tomokazu is more

important than I thought. Or perhaps it is his fox friend.”

Illiesku had fifty Standards on the counter before the woman came back. Rin

gave the fake Sung Wei a nervous look as a smartly dressed young man led Rin to the

back.

Rin often felt physically drained after a long day of work at the teahouse. This

however, was a first in the realm of mental fatigue. Make this object glow. Do it again.

Do it faster. The physical, or mental/physical, or metaphysical tests were challenging,

but doable. The higher concepts they tried to test her on went well over her head. They

gave her six seemingly random facts then asked her a completely unrelated question.

Apparently she was supposed to extrapolate the answer, but they refused to tell her

what extrapolate even meant.

Sung Wei, or rather the demon with Sung Wei's face stood up when Rin

wandered back into the front of the office.

"Well?"

Rin handed him, her, whatever, the paper she had been given. She couldn't read

it. Illiesku scanned the document and frowned. Rin watched as they took the paper to

the receptionist, slammed it onto the desk, startling the girl and said, "what the hell is

this shit?"

"Uh well," she said nervously and looked over the sheet. "It says…"

"I know what it says. It doesn't say enough."

"I'm sorry. W-would you like me to find High Magus Mastu…"

"I would like to speak with her tester and get the answers I came here for."

She bowed. "Of course Po. One moment Po."

Illiesku turned toward Rin. "I may have misread into the relationship between

Sung Wei and the mage. If he shows up, run."

Rin stared at her with wide eyes. "The pudgy kitsune guy?"

"Yes. That one."

The receptionist returned with the man that administered most of her tests. He

was older, balding, and had a distractingly large mole on this right cheek.

"What seems to be the problem Inspector?"

"Your assessment does not tell me much of anything about the kid's aptitude."

"I think it quite clearly states her aptitude. The girl is stupid."

Was that what the paper said? She was stupid. All those questions, all those

random, make this mendelian glow, tests determined that she was stupid. Rin knew she

was uneducated, perhaps a little naive, but not stupid. Then again, what was she to

these people other than just a poor peasant. Perhaps she was stupid. She clearly didn't

understand the tests. Hell, she didn’t even understand half the words they used.

"Can she power a rune?" Fake Sung Wei asked coldly.

"Likely up to the first circle yes."

"Can she make low end magic items?"

The man sighed. "It might be possible to teach her to do something simple and

repetitive, but I am sure you are already aware In-spec-tor that dealing in magical goods

without Temple oversight is illegal."

"Of course. I am just running a test to prove a point to Saito." Sung Wei turned.

"Come along Rin."

Rin obediently followed, eyes locked onto the floor.

The uncaring city passed by without Rin’s notice. Illiesku may or may not have

stopped at a shop and there was the obligatory buying of vegetables and millet. Rin

didn’t even bother to bow to the shrine when she entered the tenant block. She could do

it twice tomorrow morning. Illiesku pulled out the tiny table and her writing implements.

“Did they have you power a rune?”

“Huh?”

“Did. They. Have. You. Power. A rune?” Illiesku asked again, this time clipping

her words and making Rin cringe.

“Ah, yes?”

The demon frowned. “Yes or no?”

“Yes.”

“Come here.”

Rin scooched up to the table and looked at the pattern Illiesku had drawn.

“Power that.”

“But it’s just paper.”

“Did they not teach you to power a drawn rune.”

“N-no.”

“Agh.” The demon, once again pretending to be an Oni-Kai, pinched the base of

her horns. She scooted back and patted the space in front of her. “Come here.”

Rin, as always, did as told, settling in with the table in front of her and Illiesku

behind. After some adjustment, Rin found herself with one of Illiesku’s legs on each side

of her and the soft front of the demon pressed into her back. Illiesku rested her chin on

Rin’s shoulder and grabbed each of the Akumajin’s wrists in her hands. She placed

Rin's hands on the paper, fingers spread out, Illiesku's hands covering hers, fingertips

extending out past Rin's smaller digits.

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"Now channel into the rune like they showed you."

Rin tried. She tried hard, but nothing happened.

"Do you have it?"

"It's not working." Rin said solemnly.

"Of course it is not working. The Arcanum likely had filled runes. This is simply

paper and mundane ink."

"Oh." Apparently she wasn't failing just yet.

"Now, the rune should simply glow. You merely need to fill the lines with energy."

"How do I do that?"

"Did they not show you?"

"I think they wanted me to do something like that, but they wouldn't show me

how."

"Tchie!" Illiesku swore. "I want my money back… Imagine your energy as water

and the lines in the paper are ditches in the ground. Fill it all at the same time."

Rin tried. And tried. And tried some more. It really wouldn't matter how hard or

how long she tried. There must have been a good reason for people at the Temple to

consider her stupid. She let out a long sigh and hung her head.

"What?"

"I can't do it."

"It has only been ten minutes."

"I can't do it."

“Why?”

Rin let her head drop. “Because I’m stupid.”

There was some shifting as Illiesku moved her arm. Then there was a loud

resounding thwack that emenianted from the back of Rin’s head.

“OWW!” Rin grabbed her head and tried to rub away the pain.

“Uneducated. Not stupid. There is a difference.”

“The educate people think I’m stupid.” Rin argued, still rubbing the sore spot.

“I have likely forgotten far more than the total combined knowledge of every

person in that building. Compared to me, is not every moral a blubbering idiot? Have I

ever implied you were stupid?”

“No.” Rin pouted.

“You will try again. Visualize your energy as tea filling an oddly shaped cup.”

“Fine.”

Roughly thirty minutes later the rune was glowing. After another thirty minutes,

Rin could turn it on, off, and vary the intensity of the glow. Apparently that was just the

start of Illiesku’s lessons in magic as Rin was now staring at a half dozen dead bugs.

“Attempt to say, hkrei.”

“Krei?”

“No. You need to tighten your throat. Hkrei.”

It took a while to get the odd sounding word. That was, if it really was a word.

“Hkrei is light. It only means light. Imagine the thresh-light as hkrei. Now take a

torchbug in your palm, fill it with your energy, and desire that energy to become hkrei.”

The bug was gross, but Rin didn’t argue. She didn’t want to be flicked in the head

again. So she sat there for who knows how long yelling a strange word at a dead bug.

She tried asking the bug to become light, thinking the bug actually was light, telling the

bug to be light, and a whole host of other angles. Sometimes Illiesku showed the

inevitable patience of a mountain, this was one of those times. When the bug finally did

become a spot of light exactly like the thresh-light illuminating her tiny home, she

screamed and tried to throw it away. The light fell to the floor and continued to glow as if

nothing happened. After a few more bugs became little thresh-lights, her new task was

to make a pebble shine with light without the bug. Once that was accomplished, she

was to make the pebble shine without saying a word.

Rin was tired. She had been staring at the damn rock for what felt like hours and

the horrible little thing refused to glow. It was mocking her. A pleasant tingle in her neck

brought her back to her tiny apartment. The thresh-light, the real one in the corner, had

almost burned away. She was still sitting with Illiesku pressed into her back. The fake

Oni-Kai’s left hand had found its way into her small clothes. The fingers moving in her

pubic hair. Illesku’s right hand was up her shirt, one finger gently circling the areola of

her left breast. Soft kisses ran up her neck and behind her ear.

Rin found herself frozen. A mixture of fear, surprise, and sensual pleasure

overwhelming any ability to think.

“A… A’te?”

“Hmm?” Was Illesku’s response before running her tongue up the edge of Rin’s

ear.

She stopped at the point. Rin could feel the demon’s lips around it. Her teeth

gently nibbling. Her tongue rubbing the point and sending electricity through Rin’s body,

causing her toes to curl and her tail to twitch.

“St-stop?”

All movement ceased, then she released Rin’s ear and pulled out of her clothes

with an annoyed groan. Rin stood up. Her joints protesting the action.

“I… I’m done for the night.” she said before heading out to use the latrine.

The courtyard of the tenant block was dimly lit and the air was cool. It helped

clear Rin's mental exhaustion. Slowly over time Illiesku had been weedleing her way

into Rin's comfort zone. She didn't know if it was the influence thing or if it was just the

general closeness, but she was finding it harder to resist the demon. Rin was fairly sure

she wasn't into other women, but the line seemed to blur with Illiesku. Rin rubbed her

neck where Illiesku had kissed it. It felt good, and that was the part that bothered her.

Rin entered her apartment to find Illiesku had set the beds out. Apparently she

was staying the night again. The demon didn't have a place that she lived. Rin wasn't

even sure Illiesku needed sleep, but she seemed to enjoy it. Without a word Rin

stripped down to her small clothes and lay down in her spot. Staring at the ceiling, she

debated how to ask the question nagging at her. It wouldn't be polite.

"A'te?"

"Yes Rin."

"Um. Are you. Gay?"

"Rin. I am a genderless primordial entity. That term does not apply to me."

Right. She had been Sung Wei earlier today. How had that slipped her mind?

"So… Is the Oni-Kai your true face?"

"No."

"What do you actually look like?"

"I do not remember. My self image varies depending on how long I stay as one

thing or the other. There are a few constants. Wings, a tail, tattoos, an infection

originating from my right eye, and that damnable limp."

"Oh…"

"Do you wish to see?"

Rin thought about that for a while. She really tried to find a reason to say no. "I

do."

"You will need light."

Rin sat up and reached for the thresh-light.

"Rin. The spell."

Well that was going to take some getting used to. Rin focused her energy and

said the word. A small light like that of the burning thresh-light winked into existence.

She placed it on the wall behind her.

A hand pushed her back into her bed and Illiesku rolled on top of her. Rin drew in

a startled breath at the sudden action. It was still Illiesku, Rin could see it in the face.

The left iris was red and the shape was a little different. Her right eye was inky black.

Tendrils of black followed the veins in her face, running down her neck. Her hair was the

same shade of black. The Oni-Kai horns that protruded from her temples were gone.

Instead she had larger black horns that came out the sides and curled around framing

pointed ears. Her skin was pale and flawless, covered in pulsing green tattoos that

flowed over her shapely body. She had a perfect neck, perfect shoulders, perfect

breasts, waist, and hips. A tail similar to Rin's poked at her side and great batlike wings

extended from her back.

"Well?" asked the demon.

Rin didn't really respond to the naked demon on top of her. Illiesku always slept

naked and it just now became awkward.

"Rin?" Illiesku poked her in the forehead with a spaded tail.

"Huh?"

"Your thoughts. Mostly I am curious if the lust aspect is affecting you. If the eye

does not bother you, then the lust should not either, but it has been a long time since I

have tested that and eternal life does not come with an eternal memory."

"Lust?"

"Do you feel horny?"

"Horny?" Rin put a hand on one of her own horns.

Illiesku facepalmed. She grabbed Rin's face, bent over and kissed the dense girl.

Rin blinked as their lips parted.

"Do you wish me to stop?" asked the demon.

Rin opened her mouth, but words didn't come out. She gave a small and unsure

shake of her head. The next thought to cross Rin's mind was one she never expected to

literally taste. Illiesku had a long tongue.

***

Rin woke just before dawn as she always did. The temperature had decreased

during the night leaving the world coated in condensation. An unpleasant feeling that

added to the already odd tacky sensation of skin to skin contact. Rin often woke to

Illiesku's arm or leg over her, but this morning she found herself unusually tangled in

long lithe Oni-Kai limbs. She worked in the dark to light the cook fire as she did

everything morning. Setting alight the thresh-light and heading out to the well for water.

Only upon returning to Illiesku dressing for the day did she realize that she could have

just cast the light spell. It was going to take time to get used to that. That said, they

wouldn't need to buy the thresh-lights anymore. One less need.

"What do you want?" Rin asked Illiesku who was combing her hair with her

fingers.

"Hmmm. I would wish to tie you up and fuck you while your sister watches."

Rin stared at Illiesku. Eyes wide and mouth agape as she tried to process that

statement.

"Or perhaps I would wish to tie up your sister and fuck her while you watch."

Illiesku looked Rin up and down. "No. I wish to tie up both of you and fuck you together.

You two are almost like twins. Do you think you would be into that?"

Rin opened and closed her mouth a few times. "I… I meant, what do you want for

breakfast?"

"Oh…" The demon considered it for a moment. "Both of you. But I have to

decline. There is somewhere I need to be."

Illiesku bent over, gave Rin a kiss, and was gone. Rin just sat there confused.