Chapter Text
His heart was beating wildly. She could hear the beats echoing in her ears, followed by shortness of breath. They had just come out of a window to escape Urado, after saving Masako, and they were recovering. The latter approached him, amazed when he handed her the key she had given her. "I thought it was a dream!"
He screamed in amazement, looking at the key that was now in her hands. Monk-san looked at her and amazed and amused he said "Your powers are getting bigger every day!"
She never moaned thoughtfully as she looked at the key, making a silent decision. She would get stronger. For oneself and for others.
Naru got up from the ground and said with his usual cold and distant attitude that it was time to go back and that the house had to be burned. The SPR team then closed the Urado case, and after that day in the newspaper there was a small article about the house and the fire that broke out that burned it ... a small article about everything that happened inside. .
A week had passed since the Urado case when Mai decided to contact Gene himself. It was night and she was sleeping when Gene appeared in her dream landscape. She smiled slightly at the boy and spoke: "So Mai, I feel that you need me and you want some answers ... come on, ask anything you want"
"Gene, I need to get stronger! I want to help my friends not to put them in danger! And I can do nothing when they are in danger ... Help me to get strong" she explained seriously, begging him at the last sentence. . She looked closely at Gene as she weighed his words and after 5 minutes, which seemed like forever, he replied, "Okay. Ever, have you ever heard of Familiars?" Gene asked with that unmistakable sweet smile of his. The girl nodded slightly "yes, but I only know that they are creatures that make a pact with their master, and they are different from the shiki".
Gene smiled and nodded. "Exactly. Familiars, by the way, are demons, and they take the form of animals. The master makes a deal with the demon he invokes to make him his familiar and there are bribes to pay. The shikis, on the other hand, are ghosts. who are subdued, not always of their own free will. Now, since I am sure, knowing you, that you would summon a powerful demon, we will spend the next few weeks strengthening your mind and controlling your power. It will never be easy, but I will. everything to help you! " Gene said, looking at Mai and stroking her head first. Mai smiled warmly and from that evening Mai's training began. Two weeks passed, while luckily for her no request was made to the agency, so the evening of the rite arrived.
She took a cold shower, staying wet in a white kimono. Her salon was furnished and ready to summon a demon. The circle, the candles and the salt… everything was ready. She began to meditate as Gene had taught him, gradually relaxing her body, feeling Gene's presence in the room too. So she began the ritual:
"I invoke you my half, to become one with me. Complete each other, help each other. Separated we are half, together we are one. Strong we will become. There will be no seas, skies and lands that will not know our name. Complete each other, help each other! we will be else. I invoke you, you appear before me that the twelve divinities want to protect me! " so she finished her chant, taking a ceremonial dagger and cutting off his palm without hesitation. She let her blood drip onto the circle, which once absorbed began to glow and black smoke poured into the room. She no longer felt Gene's presence and she knew that she would now be alone. The black smoke began to clear soon after showing a kimono-clad figure. A man, a boy who only looked twenty. Blood ruby eyes and hair blacker than the night. Just looking at that majestic figure did she immediately feel complete. Mai thought excitedly, looking closely at the figure.
"Hello human. You made me wait ages before you deign to appear!" she exclaimed the demon in a deep voice and a smirk, far surpassing Naru's narcissism. Mai smiled tenderly, shyly apologizing. The demon shrugged her shoulders as if to say that he didn't care and she wanted to get it over with quickly.
"Let's get moving. I have things to do and your friend is worried about you." the demon said nonchalantly and with an elegance that Mai could only dream of, she knelt down to reach his height. He cut off the palm of his hand, taking Mai's as well and joining them together.
"I, the first of the twelve demonic deities, make a pact to become a familiar!" exclaimed the demon. Mai winced and hissed slightly as he felt the wound on his hand start to burn, getting hotter and hotter, as if at any moment the spot was about to catch fire. As it began, so it ended. He looked at his hand with his eyes, receiving a smirk in return. Then, instead of the demon, there was a black puma with red eyes. Larger than a normal cougar, with an aura indicating power, which reached the girl's chest with her muzzle. The puma sat down and looked Mai straight in her eyes.
"You have to give me a name," said a voice in her head. Knowing it was the puma in front of her, she nodded slightly thoughtfully, going through many names, when one flashed in her mind. Smiling, Mai said "Come on! Kuro!" exclaiming. The puma nodded in approval, got up from his chair and disappeared into the girl's shadow.
"Call me when you want." He never felt her in his head, then blink and sink into the sofa, exhausted. The hall returned as before the rite, as if nothing had ever happened.
The noises from outside returned (Mai had not noticed the silence) and the presence of Gene returned too, with a huge smile on his face. "Well done Mai! I'm very proud of you!" the boy exclaimed. Never smiled only to then sink into unconsciousness. The ritual had consumed much of her energy from hers. Smiling, Gene ran a hand over his head, then disappeared and rested too. On the other hand, that appearance he had made in the room had cost him a lot of energy. The important thing, however, was that Mai had performed the ritual and joined the demon.