CLOELIA'S BE CORNER

Note: I started writing this theory the day after chapter 99 raws came out but was waiting on the release of the eng translation to add the translated panels before posting it. Meanwhile someone else (@vongrell and @skeletonsketches) noticed about this panel too ( you can find the post here). So this part is nothing new but I needed to keep it to better explain the rest of the theory.

From the first moment I read it, this line always bugged me. What was Shiro exactly referring to? A lot theorized he was merely talking about the moment Rin would awaken to his powers or Shiro’s death. And that’s 100% possible. But I think that if Shiro was specifically talking about those things (and they both happened at roughly the same time), why say “things”? It’d seem he was talking about -a lot- of terrible events and not just about a single episode. So, after reading chapter 99, I started wondering: what if Shiro was talking about Rin’s journey to the past instead? Rin will indeed witness -a lot- of terrible things during this journey. Also, considering Yukio was around 6-7 years old at that time, current happenings are more or less taking place 10 years from the moment Shiro made that statement. I know this is poor reasoning and could be applied to that other theory too, but I think 10 years is closer to the latest happenings rather than the day Rin awoke to his powers.

Anyway, if that’s the case, how would Shiro know about Rin’s journey? Was Mephisto the one who told him? It would seem logic, but I think there could be a more complex explanation behind this. But let’s take one step at a time.

One note before I start. Mephisto gave Rin some specific gear for his journey, which includes something like the poncho he gave the exwires during the IK arc. I guess the reason Mephisto gave it to him is that Rin will need it to hide himself so people won’t see him (so that he won’t be able to affect any happenings, which imo it’d prove that Rin will be traveling to the current timeline’s past and not to a separate dimenion’s one) but, since by taking the hoodie down the effect disappears, Rin will potentially be able to choose who to show himself to and who not. And this also means he can potentially choose which events to affect and which not.

First, I wondered where Rin could decide to start his journey from and which places he could choose to visit. Rin wants to know about how he and Yukio were born. So I’m guessing he’s gonna visit a time close to the day they were born. December 27th. Winter time. Let’s take a look at his “travel gear” again:

The first thing that got my attention are his gloves. Why would he need gloves? My guess is that Rin will visit some outdoor places too. And since it’s winter time, it’s gonna be pretty cold outside. Now, what does Rin know so far about the past he could use as a starting point for his journey? This, for example.

Oc, I’m not saying Rin will start his journey from THIS exact moment. But I’m talking about the place itself. Kyoto. Why do I think this could be the first place Rin will visit or will at least visit at some point of his journey? This:

It always had me wonder why Tatsuma reacted that way at Rin stating his name. So I thought: wouldn’t that make sense if Tatsuma happened to ACTUALLY meet Rin in the past? And the reason he specifically stated: “Oh! So you’re...” could be that he didn’t recognize the current -Rin- at first 'cause, well, he’s a lil different from how he remembered him (his hair color at least) or maybe Tatsuma forgot about his appearances since almost 16 years have passed since he’d probably met him for the first time. And if that’s the case, this could be proof they actually met in the past. So I think Tatsuma could be one of the people Rin will interact with during his journey.

This aside, who else could Rin encounter/want to encounter? In chapter 98, Rin did specifically state who he’d want to learn the truth about.

He’s quite certainly gonna meet Yuri. He could not meet Satan himself, but he could meet Goro. And this could lead to some exploration of S13/Asylum. Which, at the time, was part of the True Cross Academy’s building. And this would explain why Mephisto gave Rin an exorcist uniform. To “ camouflage” himself amongst other exorcists.

Now, let’s go back to Shiro. Rin asked to be told the truth about his and Yukio’s birth, about their mother and about Satan. Seems legit. But he asked to be told the truth about Shiro too. I guess Rin’s gonna meet Shiro too. But, considering the chapter 2 panel above, I believe Rin will also interact with him. In fact, I believe this is where Rin could end up affecting some events.

We don’t know why Shiro spared the twins lives yet, even if he stole the Koma Sword from Kyoto specifically to kill them. It could be ‘cause, as Tatsuma said, Shiro wasn’t the type to kill children. But what if there’s more behind this?  We do know Shiro does know more than we think. He often talked about things like he could “see” in the future. Again, maybe Mephisto’s the one behind this since he and Shiro worked together to keep the twins hidden.

But what if Shiro and Rin actually met in the past? This is what Shiro’s statement in the first panel would suggest: Shiro met Rin in the past and Rin could have told him that he traveled 16 years back in the past with Mephisto’s help. Shiro will be there with Rin as Rin will witness the Blue Night happenings with his own eyes. Shiro will witness Rin’s pain. And that’s why Shiro will be able to tell Yukio that Rin will see much worse things in the future. He was there.

And if Shiro and Rin will indeed meet and talk (in the past), what if the reason behind Shiro (but also Mephisto) deciding to spare the twins lives had something to do with Rin telling him something about the future? I followed this train of thoughts: a few months before the twins were born, Shiro was sent by Mephisto to steal the Koma Sword from the Kyoto Branch. The plan was to kill the twins before they were born/as soon as they were born. Mephisto is the one who ordered Shiro to steal the sword.

But, at some point, it looks like something happened to have them change this plan.

And now things get more complex. So let’s take another step back. Why did Mephisto say he couldn’t tell Rin about the Master Key earlier? It’s clear (and Mephisto stated so himself)  that he was waiting for a specific moment/situation to tell him. He was waiting for Rin to be the one asking him to tell him the truth. He was waiting for Rin to be ready. And NOW Rin is. But to get to this point, Rin had to undergo a specific development and reach a specific “stage”.

Why was that important? Imo, Mephisto was NOT only waiting for Rin to “mature” enough to be able to face/stand/accept the truth or the reality of the past, but also for him to “reach” a specific stage of his “demonic evolution”. But what for? My theory is that Mephisto could be using Rin to affect the past. Not to affect it in a way that will change the future. But in a way which is NEEDED in order to have the past happen the way it already did.

In other words, Rin could be the one who’ll have past timeline!Mephisto change his plans about killing the twins and will be the reason behind past timeline!Mephisto deciding to make a weapon out of Rin instead. Past timeline!Mephisto will see the results of Rin’s growth and will decide to go for this plan instead. After all, it was a success.

Another reason why I think Rin will meet and talk with Mephisto in the past.

Why did Mephisto send Rin alone? Does he really trust Rin will make wise choices/won't affect the past/will be okay on his own? After all the work Mephisto’s done to make events go the way he wanted, would he really let Rin “screw” them all just like that? But then I noticed: when Rin asked him if he was not gonna follow him, Mephisto NEVER said he WASN'T going to.

So, my theory is that 16 years ago, right after Mephisto decided to turn Rin into a weapon, he planned to send Rin in the past someday, so as soon as Rin will meet past timeline!Mephisto, he will be there to welcome him (knowing he would’ve come), and will stay close to him to guide him/monitor him so he won’t screw anything up. That’s why Mephisto is not worried about sending Rin alone.

But I got a third reason why I think Mephisto considered NOW to be the perfect time to have Rin learn the truth about the past/sending him back there. And it’s related to Yukio.

Maybe Mephisto is planning to use Yukio joining the Illuminati as a way to somehow "blackmail" Rin into doing something. That would explain why Mephisto never gave Yukio any answers before, eventually forcing him to look for them elsewhere (the Illuminati). Now that Yukio's joined them, Rin is in a position he'd do anything to get him back and Mephisto could be planning to take advantage of this.

Based on what Lucifer said, Yukio got a power of some kind which Lucifer could awaken for him and that this power is related to the mystery behind Yukio’s eyes and the secret of the twins’ birth.

Rin “wants” to know how he and Yukio were born. Which means that, during his journey, Rin should eventually find out or even see with his own eyes how that happened. Which could lead to him finding out about the entity of Yukio’s hidden power and “how” this power was kept “separated” from him till now.

(My wild guess is that Yukio’s power could’ve played some role in the Blue Night happenings and Goro/Satan releasing their ego or could have a connection to this event. But this part of my theory is all messy, so I will skip it.)

In any case, Rin will find out about it and he could understand why Yukio “had” to be separated from his power. (Shiro never said to Yukio that he’ll “find” out the truth someday, but that he’ll “understand” (something) someday)