Shiemi Moriyama

Shiemi Moriyama (杜山 しえみ) is an Exwire at the True Cross Academy who is training to become a Tamer. Later is discovered that she is the succesor of Shemihaza, one of the Sol and the three founders of the Order.

Appearance
Shiemi is a fair-skinned girl with straight, shoulder length platinum-blond hair (blond hair in the anime and lighter white hair color in the manga) that is occasionally curls at the ends, and she is usually seen with a clip or headband in it and green eyes. In her initial appearance, Shiemi wore brightly colored kimonos with equally colorful haori and occasionally went barefoot. After joining the Exorcist Cram School, she changes into the school uniform, which consists of black Mary Jane shoes, a short, pink skirt with a black belt, tight white thigh high socks, and a white colored shirt. She also wears the female version of the school tie, which is tied with a large bow. Shiemi also has noticeably large breasts despite her figure, which shocked all of the guys when they first saw her in the school uniform as the kimonos she usually wore concealed her figure.

Personality
When Shiemi first appeared, she was a very shy and quiet girl at school. This is because when she was younger, she was awfully shy and sick, so she wasn't able to attend school, which made it hard for her to have friends of her own age. Her love for her late grandmother made her want to never leave her garden, though she eventually did with help from Rin Okumura and Yukio Okumura.

Shiemi is also very naive - most of her life was spent within the premises of her home, therefore she is rather clueless when it comes to typical adolescent experiences and grew up without any real friends. Her desire to make friends gets to the point that she considers herself to be too young for romance, saying that she just doesn't have the time or comfort level for a boyfriend, especially since she really wants to focus on becoming an Exorcist.

However, she is incredibly loyal, patient and hardworking; she would do anything for her friends, even if it would make others feel uneasy. In one episode, when she aimed of having friends at school, she humbly asked Izumo then, but instead of hanging out with her and having fun, Izumo took advantage of her kindness by always asking her to run errands, turning her into a servant. This came to an end when Rin Okumura enlightened her that friendship isn't supposed to be that way, respecting one another is more than loving a friend. Her exceptional kindness, immense willpower, and good nature has made her popular with the Exwires.

It is observed that Shiemi first made friends with Yukio Okumura, then Rin. In one of the episodes, she determines to herself: "I've got to stop relying on Yuki-chan and Rin all the time. Today, I'll make some friends for sure!" She is also an optimist and never gives up on her friends. She does not take criticism very seriously and always tries to help.

Shiemi also has a number of odd habits, such as giving nicknames to various herbs and other plants. She once failed a test because she didn't use their real names.

History
When Shiemi was young, her mother was very busy with the Exorcist Supplies Store, so her grandmother took care of her. This nurtured a close relationship between Shiemi and her grandmother. Shiemi helped her grandmother in their garden, and learned how and when to grow each plant. Her grandmother told her about the Amahara Garden, a garden created by god that has all the plants in the world.

When Shiemi was about 13 years old, Shiro Fujimoto brought Yukio Okumura, a recently qualified Exorcist, to the shop. Yukio was very nervous despite encouragement from Shiro. Shiemi's mother called her to come meet Yukio and, after saying hello, Shiemi fled because she was shy. Later, as Shiro and Yukio were leaving, Shiemi reappeared and gave Yukio a four leaf clover charm. However, she kept referring to Yukio as "sensei," which he found to be too formal since they were the same age. At that, Shiemi gave him the nickname "Yuki-chan," which made Yukio blush, but he accepted it.

A year or so later, her grandmother needed help covering the grapes, but upon hearing that Shiemi had planned to search for the Garden that day, she told Shiemi to go, but to be back before sunset. When Shiemi came back, she found that her grandmother had attempted to cover the grapes by herself and had been killed. Her guilt drove her to try to take care of the garden by herself, but there were some things she couldn't do on her own. She was approached by a Demon that had possessed a flower, and the Demon offered its help in exchange for Shiemi to stay in the garden forever.

Exorcist Cram School Enrollment arc
Shiemi is introduced while gardening in her grandmother's garden. As Rin touched the gate leading into the garden, it broke and fell off its hinges. Seeing this, Shiemi fearfully begins to crawl away from Rin, calling him a Demon and telling him to stay back. Rin, realizing it was a gate meant to ward off Demons, puts it back in place, also telling her that he is not a Demon. He then starts helping her garden after he noticed she wasn't able to walk, where after they introduce themselves to each other. She tells him of her dream to find the Amahara Garden, a legendary garden filled with plants from around the world, that her deceased grandmother had told her about.

After some time, Yukio came, accompanied by Shiemi's mother. Telling Shiemi that Yukio had come to examine her legs, Shiemi then showed him her legs, which were covered in roots. Yukio immediately realized that it was the work of a Demon and asked Shiemi if she had ever talked to a Demon in the garden. While Shiemi was telling him that she would never do such a thing, she suddenly collapses.

When she woke up, she found herself in her grandmother's room, thinking about her grandmother and her death. Shiemi reminds herself that she swore to protect her grandmother's garden. She then went outside to continue gardening. Rin, who was waiting for Yukio and Shiemi's mother to finish talking, told her that trapping herself in the garden was wrong, and that her grandmother would never have wanted that. He then starts to destroy the plants in the garden to find the Demon, while Shiemi, finally beginning to understand that her grandmother wanted her to follow her dreams, watched him. Yukio then appeared, claiming that Shiemi will walk soon after they exorcise the Demon. Angered by this, the plant Demon of the garden, still hidden, told Shiemi that she had betrayed it. It then took over the roots in her legs and molded itself around Shiemi, so that Shiemi acted as a shield. Rin attempted to free Shiemi from the Demon's grasp unsuccessfully, while Yukio struggled to find out a way to separate the two. He then pulled out a gun and shot Shiemi with a harmless bullet (which contained a red weed killer liquid inside, appearing to have injured Shiemi), to which the plant Demon separated from her. Once freed, Rin killed the Demon while Yukio tended to an unconscious Shiemi. After waking, Shiemi stood for the first time in years, and with encouragement, tearfully apologized to her mother for rejecting her.

The next day, Shiemi had decided to enroll in Rin's class. She was introduced as a new student by Yukio. She sat next to Rin and then thanked him for what he did. She also said that one of the reasons she came was to see Yukio as a teacher, while her eyes sparkled.

During lunch, Shiemi tells Rin that she feels like she doesn't belong in the school because she doesn't really want to become an Exorcist. She then asks Rin if he has any friends. Shiemi and Rin's classmates appear and tease Rin about his close relationship with Shiemi, when they ask Rin if she's his friend. He blushes furiously and says no, Shiemi is highly offended by this. She is next seen watching Rin and Ryuji Suguro battle it out in practical athletics.

Some days later, Shiemi arrives at the academy with a resolution. Today she decides that she will make a friend. She sees Izumo and Noriko Paku in the halls and gathers the courage to talk to them, but ends up embarrassing herself by tripping. She sees Rin in the halls, but decides not to depend on him anymore and continues her pursuit to make friends and become stronger.

In Magic Circle, Art of Sealing class, she learns that she has the potential to become a Tamer and even summons a Greenman spirit familiar. She decides that it's the perfect time to talk to Izumo since she also summoned a familiar. Izumo just insults her, but since Shiemi is naive, she takes it as a compliment. Shiemi then names her familiar "Nee".

When Izumo leaves the classroom, Shiemi follows after her and asks if she can be her friend. Izumo says yes, deciding to take advantage of her kindness and make her do things for her like a servant. But, being the person she is, Shiemi doesn't mind. Rin takes notice of this and later tells her to stop it. Shiemi gets offended and runs off with Rin running after her.

Yukio announces a training camp that will be hosted in his and Rin's dormitory since they are the only ones using it. After a written exam, Izumo and Noriko go to take a bath and Shiemi tags along. However, Izumo tells Shiemi to wait because she doesn't want Shiemi to see her naked, but she requests some fruit milk for when she gets out of the bath. A little saddened, Shiemi goes to get the milk, but Rin sees her and tells her that Izumo is just using her. Then they hear a scream, and they realize that it is Izumo and Noriko. Rin tells Shiemi to go get Yukio while he heads to the bathroom to help them, but Shiemi follows after him. Arriving on the scene, they a ghoul that has burned Noriko and rendered her unconscious. Izumo summons her familiars, but because Noriko had just told her that she didn't like people who made a fool out of others, Izumo's familiars turn on her because of her weakened heart. Rin tells her to tear the papers and she does so, hence making her familiars disappear. Rin distracts the ghoul, and Shiemi treats Noriko's burns with aloe, which she got from Nee. Rin is loosing against the ghoul and about to pull out his sword when Yukio arrives, alerted by the ruckus. The ghoul disappears, and Yukio thanks Shiemi for saving Noriko, making her blush.

Exorcist Candidate Live Combat arc
During the camp the class attends in the Summer Vacation, Shiemi is attacked by Demon insects, and, after losing her familiar Nee, she loses consciousness after shouting for help. Rin dashes to rescue her, and finds the insects swarming all over Shiemi's body. Seeing her head bleeding and her in an unconscious state, Rin yells out in anger for the bugs to get away from her, accidentally unleashing his blue flames. This was then spotted by Ryuji, who came to check on Shiemi as well, however Rin was able to get out of explaining the flames that Ryuji had seen. When Shiemi awakens, she screams out for Nee, remembering what the moth Demons did, crying while holding Nee's ripped magic circle. But Ryuji assures her that she could use another paper to summon Nee again.

When Konekomaru Miwa texted both Ryuji and Renzo Shima to help with the Peg Lantern he found, Shiemi accompanies them along with Rin. For the strategy Konekomaru came up with to bring the Peg lantern back to camp, Shiemi's part was being in the wagon feeding the Peg Lantern the moth Demons as fuel. She is later carried by Rin in order to move the Peg Lantern to the other side of the bank. She and her friends are successful in moving the Peg Lantern back to camp and shortly after are attacked by Amaimon.

Later, Shiemi starts to walk out of the protective circle, surprising the others, and Shura sees a parasite in the back of Shiemi's neck. Amaimon appears and takes Shiemi. Rin follows after him, but Amaimon's Behemoth blocks his path. Shura gives Rin the koumaken and holds off the behemoth while Rin goes after Amaimon. Rin catches up with Amaimon and asks what he is planning to do with Shiemi, and Amaimon responds that he will make her his bride. After saying the vows, he prepares to seal them with a kiss but Rin stops him. As it becomes clear that Rin won't use his sword, Amaimon say that he doesn't need Shiemi anymore and prepares to take her eyes for an unnamed cousin. However, Ryuji, Konekomaru, and Renzo arrive and attempt to distract Amaimon to let Rin escape. However, Konekomaru accidentally sets off his firework and it hits Amaimon's hair spike, which makes it poof up like a broccoli, which Renzo laughs at. Amaimon takes offense at being laughed at and shove Renzo into a tree, knocking him unconscious. He then breaks Konekomaru's arm and takes Ryuji in a choke hold. Rin, angry about seeing his friends harmed, unsheathes his sword, revealing his identity, and engages in battle with Amaimon who releases Shiemi.

Kyoto Impure King arc
When on the Kyoto mission, Shiemi is still rather confused about not knowing that Rin was Satan's son. In the inn, she constantly helps out the others to preoccupy herself. She is less confident about her abilities, as she is unable to summon Nee after having Nee's summoning paper ripped by a demon at the training camp.

In a short confrontation with Izumo, she breaks down and confesses that she is upset about being unable to support her friends when they need it the most, especially about not knowing the troubles that Rin and Yukio kept for being Satan's spawns, despite having been close with them. She wishes to be a stronger person so that she can be relied on to help others when they are in need. Izumo bluntly calls her a "weed", claiming that Shiemi is as ever-intruding as a dandelion that carries its seeds and disturbs other plants' growth upon landing in the ground. Shiemi takes this as a compliment, thinking that Izumo was saying that she was persistent and persevering.

Later, she, along with the other Exwires, is asked by Shura Kirigakure to break Rin out of prison, giving them all camouflage ponchos, which makes them invisible to others when worn. When the Exwires successfully get past the prison guards and find the Demon prison cell Rin is locked in, she is the only one that is not petrified by the Demon, as she had no weapons and no intent to cause destruction. Then, remembering being told by the Demon that it can be opened from the outside without a key, she opens the door and goes inside in search of Rin.

When she finds him, she tells him why she was there and that everyone else had also came to save him. When she tries to get closer, he yells at her to stay away, saying she could die if his flames go awry, and that he, himself, would be better off dead. Surprised and angered at this, she yells at him to not speak like that and that she wants to help him, to which he lashes back and yells at her to go home and calls himself a monster, letting out an outburst of blue flames. At that moment, as the flames engulf her, she realizes she is not burnt but rather only feels the warmth from them. She sees that he is trying to be considerate of his identity as Satan's spawn and that the flames were an attempt to scare her off.

That demonstration of selflessness from Rin makes Shiemi realize she never really thought of Rin's feelings and that she only always thought of herself. She tears up and runs over to hug him, consoling him that his flames did not burn her. He backs away, blushing furiously, asking if she's really not scared of him, to which she replies happily that she is not, ending up in their reconciliation. Together, they break out of the Demon's prison and rescue the rest of the Exwire team.

Terror of the Kraken arc
Shiemi is seen with the group when they are on the beach trying to enjoy themselves.

Exorcist Exam arc
Rin and Shiemi are seen taking their exorcist test in a dilapidated cursed house. The fragile state of the house causes it to collapse from one of Rin's attacks, leading to the two being trapped together in a room underneath the rubble. As they wait to be rescued, Rin lets it slip that he has feelings for Shiemi. Shiemi, being oblivious to what Rin meant, replies saying she isn't interested in anyone. After being rescued, she is still confused about what Rin meant by his confession.

Blue Night Investigation arc
Shiemi comes with the rest of the Cram School class to visit Yukio at the hospital after their confrontation with Hachirotaro Okami. She finds it slightly awkward being next to Rin since their test together. She tells him she likes him but is confused about the difference between romance and friendship. Izumo and Noriko eavesdrop on their conversation and decide to help Shiemi understand relationships a bit better.

Shiemi and Izumo have a study sleepover at Shiemi's house. Shiemi introduces Izumo to her mom. They have tea and read Kimi Monogatari, a manga about love that Izumo recommends to Shiemi to understand what it means to be in a relationship.

Upon being "educated" of what Rin's love meant, Shiemi confronts Rin about his confession to tell him a straight answer. The rest of the Exwire class coincidentally run into the two in the halls and hear the entire conversation, including Shiemi's polite rejection to Rin. Rin is visually dumbfounded, especially after he realizes that everyone heard their conversation.

Just then, Amaimon appears in the hallway and walks over to them, looking as if to pick a fight with Rin. Everyone is struck in awe by Amaimon's sudden appearance, and are paralyzed on the spot. Shiemi attempts to protect Rin to return the favor from their last encounter with Amaimon back at the training camp. Rin snaps out of his depression over the rejection and defends Shiemi from Amaimon.

A while later, as the Exwires prepare to study over the holidays for the exams, Shiemi announces to the rest of the Exwires that she is quitting Cram School. She also apologizes to Rin for not being able to keep her promise to him, though he shrugs it off. The group is shocked by her decision, but are glad that they will still be able to see her as she is still attending day school at the Academy.

Tamer

 * Nee (ニー, Nī): Nee is a Greenman and Shiemi's familiar. Nee has the ability to grow various plants, such as aloe or sticky rice, from it's body, as well as the ability to create barriers from it's body. Nee has also been shown to be able to greatly increase in size.
 * Amaimon: Thanks to the servant contract with Shemihaza, Amaimon has to serve Shiemi and do all she orders.

Shemihaza Successor
Shiemi is capable of using the same powers as Shemihaza as her successor. This implies all power of creation and nature.


 * Plant Creation: By reciting "A ki himi asua ki sumia sua eza rai za uru shi da roza raroi ki a nia sua kyo fai ma suka enika..." Shiemi can create a plant in the ground as the Greenmen do.
 * Divine Protection: By reciting '' Kihik i hikihiami niia sureiasu riavu kaorokihihihihi Shiemi could transfer a special anti-demon armor.
 * Enpeira: It's Sheminhaza's boundary zone, like a barrier. It destroys any living thing that touches it and the divine protection is the permission you needs to cross it.

Trivia

 * Her favorite food is her grandmother's herb cookies.
 * Her favorite pastimes are gardening, making herbal teas, naming plants and flowers, baking cookies, and lying under the sun.
 * She is slightly allergic to pollen.
 * Shiemi's name is written in hiragana the meanings could be depending on the kanji being used. “Shi” could mean (志) "intention, plan, resolve, aspire, motive, hopes, shilling", (支) "branch, support, sustain" (資) "assets, resources, capital, funds, data, be conducive to, contribute to", (蒔) "sow (seeds)" or (七 )  "seven”. "E" in her name could mean (咲) "blossom", (恵) "favor, blessing, grace, kindness", (衣)  "garment, clothes, dressing”. “Mi” 美 "beautiful"
 * According to the kanji used for her surname, Moriyama means "grove mountain".
 * In the afterword of Volume 1, Kazue Kato states that the original concept of Shiemi had been a Gothic girl living in a tower without the focus on Japanese style.
 * Shiemi's eye color was initially portrayed as being blue.
 * She bears quite a resemblance to Monaka Miyama-Uguisu, the girl in The Miyama-Uguisu Mansion Incident, the one-shot that led to Blue Exorcist.

Quotes

 * (To Rin Okumura) "I love this place, and I love my grandmother even more."
 * (To herself) "I can't be like this, always crying like that. I've got to become even stronger and more resilient. I've still a long way to go before I attain a weed's spirit. I'll definitely catch up, so just wait for me."
 * (To herself) "I'm... such a fool. I've been so preoccupied with myself that Rin never even entered my field of vision. How could I call myself his friend? I'm sorry... Rin."
 * (To Nee) "No matter how rotten those spores are, we can make everything bloom fresh and green a thousand times greater!"
 * (To Izumo Kamiki) "Izumo-san! I'll definitely save you! So just wait a little, okay?"

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Shiemi Moriyama Сиэми Морияма