Chapter 40: A Matter of Time

There is a void, an empty place where someone used to be. They were not particularly loved, but maybe that's what makes their absence is even more striking.

Shiro hadn't dealt with such chaos since the Blue Night.

When not one, but two Demon Kings decided to collaborate and attack anywhere, much less a (mostly) mundane school, people tended to sit up and take notice. When it would soon become obvious that the entire attack had been nothing but a ruse to kidnap a couple of (not at all) normal Exwires, people would start asking questions. Shiro still wasn't sure if the entire class had been taken, or if only Rin and Izumo had been. A dark part of him hoped that the whole class had been taken simply because it would raise fewer questions about the individuals, but Yukio's report, as jumbled as it was, had made it clear that there were targets, and, as injured as the perpetrators were, it was unlikely that they would weigh themselves down any more than necessary. Izumo was easy enough to understand: she came from a long line of shrine maidens with blood still potent enough that it marked her hair and eyes- there were plenty of reasons to capture her, even if the assault seemed like overkill.

That overkill became much more understandable if the prize was a flame-bearing son of Satan himself. How the attackers discovered such a thing, Shiro had no idea, so he could only assume the worst.

Shiro had no idea exactly how much anyone else knew about Rin. He knew that Mephisto had been laying the groundwork to (hopefully) integrate Rin into the True Cross Order as a powerful asset to combat Iblis directly, and, if needed, Lucifer himself. It was possible that the Grigori already suspected or knew outright and were already judging Rin's life, and, if they didn't, Mephisto had heavily implied that they would soon.

"Just leave the talking up to me. Don't worry my dear Fujimoto, soon I'll have an entire army ready to move hell itself to get Rin back."

It had been almost two hours of nonstop work organizing people and cleaning up and covering for Mephisto until he could stand without swaying and smelling too strongly of rot. Eventually, Shiro had slipped away, no longer able to take both the stress of the low-level constant panic and the guilt at how he had basically been forced to abandon Yukio with the medical team only minutes after his world-shattering revelation.

"An entire army to get Rin back, huh?" Shiro muttered as he looked through the pictures on the digital camera from where he sat in the boy's dorm. If an army was willing to retrieve one boy, then that same army would be willing to do whatever it had to keep that boy. And Rin was-

It may have been Rin's personal camera, but it was mostly a photo album of Yukio. Yukio studying, Yukio petting Kuro, Yukio asleep at his desk and drooling on his textbook, Yukio awake with a sticky note stuck to his cheek and glasses askew, Yukio's eyes wide open as he looked dead at the camera, oh and there was a blurry action shot of Yukio reaching out to try and take the camera away. The next half dozen devolved from there, ranging from a blurry picture of the ceiling and the fuzzy shape of what could have been either an arm or a leg, to an overly bright picture of a wide-eyed Rin where the flash had clearly been used as a weapon, and an effective one at that if the next image of Rin clawing at his eyes was anything to go off of.

Shiro chuckled, scrolling through the madness until the pictures cycled back to the very beginning. A beginning where Rin took a surprising amount of nature shots, clearly playing around with filters and angles. Fuzzy pictures of birds on what must have been a far-off powerline, pictures of flower patches where one single flower stood in sharp focus as the others burred around it, pictures of the sky and of sunsets, and, oddly enough, a half dozen shots of an azure ballgown in a store window with the light shining in such a way that the layers of fabric looked almost ethereal.

Yukio was still there, of course, but it showed that there was a bit more there, that Rin could find joy in other, mundane, things. It showed that his eyes saw more than his brother, that he was more than a single-minded obsession pretending to be human. It showed undeniable humanity.

Shiro left the room not long after and took the camera with him.

"I'm such a failure"

It was the first thing Shiro heard when he entered the dark room. There was no one on the bed and no one in the chair. Instead, Shiro had to search for a moment until he spotted him: Yukio, curled up in a ball with his back pressed to the wall, as far away from the door as possible. By his ankles, Kuro stood and looked over to Shiro for a moment before he meowed, long and forlorn.

With a grunt, Shiro sat beside Yukio, wincing as his body ached from all the running around he had done. He ignored it like the stubborn bastard he was.

"You aren't a failure just because you got caught off guard, Yukio."

"I left them there." Yukio muttered without even looking up from where he had buried his head in his knees, "I don't even know if they're still alive or if those people killed them all. Why am I such a coward?"

"Yukio…" Shiro sighed as he felt his spirit ache at the raw guilt and pain evident in his son's voice. He had seen plenty of survivor's guilt before, had had to deal with his own, and it would never get any easier, "Those people that you faced were professionals who were ready for your entire class. They had planned this for weeks, if not months- there's no way you could have known or been more prepared. Do you think that you would have accomplished something by getting yourself captured as well? Without you, we wouldn't even know what had happened for hours."

No reply.

"You did the right thing, retreating, and no one is going to blame you for it. Didn't you tell me that Izumo told you to run? And I know for a fact that Rin would sacrifice himself for you in a heartbeat-"

Yukio's head suddenly snapped up, his face a mix of anger and sorrow and fear that washed down his cheeks as small rivers. He yelled, so loud that his body shook; "Don't you think I would do the same!? I want to protect Rin, and I've tried my hardest to get stronger! I've trained harder, I've studied harder, I've done everything right, but it just…! It just isn't ever enough…!"

Shiro put a hand on Yukio's shoulder and only then did the teen realize just how badly he was shaking. That revelation tore something small and fragile in him, and he looked away from Shiro's steady gaze, tears still flowing freely. He wasn't even sure if he was sad or angry anymore.

"It really never seems like it ever is, does it?" Shiro began after a long moment filled with more than one choked back sob, "No matter how hard you try, no matter how strong you get, there's always someone or something bigger and stronger than you ever could be. It's happened with you, it's happened with Rin today, and…and it's happened with me."

(A bonfire of blue and blood and-)

Yukio suddenly felt very tired and very small, like he was nothing but a child who couldn't help but cry. He really hadn't changed much, in the end. His voice was just as small as ever when he spoke up, "How is that supposed to make me feel better? Am I just supposed to accept that I'm never going to be as strong as Rin, that he's always going to be the one saving me?"

"Yukio, you and your brother are not the same person. You have different interests and different strengths, and, like it or not, you'll never be as physically strong as your brother simply because of your blood. But does that strength mean anything, when it's wielded by someone too headstrong to really think about what they're doing? Rin ran headfirst at people with guns, Yukio. He got shot because he was so sure of his strength that he didn't stop to think!" Shiro had very nearly lost it when he had heard that little tidbit, but now wasn't the time. When (he couldn't even entertain the idea of it being 'if') they got Rin back, he was going to have words with that boy, and he wasn't going to let himself be distracted by relief or snips or forced anger. "Tell me, when did everything go wrong when you were fighting those people?"

The real answer was the moment Yukio had let that woman draw her gun. If he hadn't hesitated to shoot even in her general direction, hell, if he had followed his first vicious impulse to shoot the hand he had clearly seen reaching for her gun, then maybe things would have gone better. He could have intimidated them (or killed them all, it was their fault they were hesitating to use their best weapons-) and shaken their moral.

The cynical answer was the moment that two fighting Demon Kings violently collided with the room the stand-off had been in. If things had gone on uninterrupted, Yukio wasn't sure what he would have done. Though, in the end, he probably wouldn't have had to do anything because…

"The moment their commander pointed her gun at me, Rin lost it."

It was that moment that he and Rin truly stopped working together. They hadn't had time to plan or to discuss tactics, but they knew each other well enough that it was easy to slip into the rhythm Rin had set and back him up. But the moment Yukio had been seriously threatened, as hollow as it had probably been, Rin had become a wild animal. He had gotten so vicious that Yukio hadn't known what he was going to do, hadn't known where to aim or how to help him.

Shiro very valiantly did not flinch at that news, "And I'm guessing Rin took that as well as I'm imagining?"

"I couldn't tell what he was going to do anymore. He charged right in the middle of them without caring that he was surrounding himself. And then…"

And then there had been blood.

Shiro didn't need to hear the rest to know what must have occurred. Instead…

"Rin is strong, Yukio. Stronger than you, stronger than even I am." Rin could have murdered him with his bare hands when he was just eight years old, at this point he could probably crush a skull with those same hands if he tried, "But he's reckless and loses himself to emotion too easily, and I think that today shows just how vulnerable that makes him. He thinks that just because he's a bit stronger than everyone else that he's invincible, and you have no idea how many times I've worried that something like this would happen. We might not be as strong as Rin, but we're the only ones who can protect him from himself."

"And when" Not if, things were far beyond 'ifs', "Rin unlocks his powers, it's going to be up to you to make sure he doesn't lose himself to that power because he can't control his emotions properly. Even when Rin was angry at that woman, were you afraid of him, Yukio?"

Yukio shook his head no. He had been scared, yes, but more because of how fast things had been spiraling, of the idea that Rin would kill people for his sake (of how he was more bothered that he needed that protection than the act itself) and how drastically he could change and the nagging feeling that it would be so very easy for Rin to completely lose himself if pushed any further. But Yukio had never feared that that anger would be turned on him, not for a single second. Maybe the rest of the world would be ripped to bloody and raw ribbons, but not Yukio, never Yukio.

"And because of that, you're the only one that can keep him from forgetting who he is." Shiro concluded, never knowing just how precisely he had summed up Yukio's thoughts and fears, "You're the only one who could possibly stand up to your brother, flames or no, and I don't think you understand just how amazing that is."

"…I don't think I can protect him from the world." Because the world itself would surely hunt him once the truth squirmed free.

"You don't have to do that, Yukio, you only need to protect him from his own fears and worries. You'll protect each other in ways that only you can. You're the only one that can make sure that Rin doesn't burn himself out trying to fight the world when he doesn't have to if he can just control himself. And, of course, you can always rely on me, no matter what happens." Shiro knew it wouldn't be that easy, but a small part of him was happy for the incoming war. It would be an ideal time for Rin to prove that he was worth the trouble and casual sacrilege to the upper echelons who would control his fate. Combined with the unconditional love the twins had for each that would prove Rin's human heart, and just maybe they would be granted a peaceful life when the fighting ended if only to keep them out of the way.

In a way, Shiro held proof of Rin's heart in his own hands, wrapped in hard plastic and glass. But he had received enough proof over the years, enough to counter the anger and insults and tiny fingers curled around his throat with memories of happiness over simple things, begrudging complements and flustered 'thank-you"s along with small hands intertwined. So, it was easy to hand the camera over to Yukio, "Here. No matter what, when you think of your brother, I want it to be what you see in these pictures and not what anyone else tells you."

"These are going to be mostly of me."

"I suppose so." Shiro said with something that wasn't quite a laugh but was a little more than a huff, "Maybe you'll see just a bit of what Rin and I see in you then."

Yukio wasn't comforted, far from it. Really, the entire conversation was a mess of an attempt to comfort that had been twisted by the reality of the situation. They had no way of knowing what was going to happen to Rin now, and for all they knew, he could be tortured until mad and then set back upon the very people who were meant to be his allies. The sick part of Yukio had yet to stop imaging all the horrible things people could do to someone the deemed a demon and thus less than human. If that happened, if the sky crashed down and painted the world blue, then it would be up to Yukio to stop it. He would have to make sure that Rin, for all his power, didn't destroy his future in a blind rage. That probably wasn't what Shiro had meant to imply, but Yukio hadn't once stopped thinking about the absolute worst-case scenario that this would bring.

Somehow, Yukio would have to navigate the fallout as people called for Rin's blood, regardless of if that worst-case scenario even happened. Because Yukio knew that this façade wasn't going to last past this crisis. Their enemies had all but declared war on them and Yukio wasn't nearly optimistic enough to think that they were going to keep avoiding breaking the seal for any longer when the Demon Kings were willing to directly attack now. Even if they got Rin back without anyone even getting singed, even if the seal broke under absolutely optimal and controlled conditions, everyone would still hate him. Rin was a demon, the son of the King of Demons, why would they trust him to not snap one day like his so-called father had and burn them all on a whim?

(Except, a tiny part of him thought, Satan hadn't started burning people just because he had gotten the urge. He had never been told outright, but he was a smart child. Yuri Egin had willingly carried Satan's children, and suddenly, right around when he and Rin were supposed born, the Blue Night occurred? It really wasn't a hard conclusion to come to: it was less of a leap of logic and more a light skip to realize that Satan had been-

Quietly, Yukio slipped that truth back to its dark corner where it sat right above his father's implied role that night.)

Rin would do literally anything for Yukio, his whole world centered around his younger brother. And that was frightening, but also…

"Dad. Thank you."

It wasn't what his father, Rin, or anyone else would ever want, but Yukio had the inkling of an idea of how he was going to secure Rin's future.

Shiro clearly had more he wanted to say, but at that moment the door to the room slammed open so suddenly that he jumped to his feet. Yukio could only flinch and reach for a gun that had been confiscated hours ago and he winced when he felt nothing. He understood that the doctors had been warry about his mental state, but without his one real means of protection, he felt vulnerable.

Mephisto stood in the doorway, as proud and ostentatious as ever, "What ever are you two doing sitting in the dark?" The lights flicked on even though his hand was nowhere near the switch, "You shouldn't be sitting in such a dreary setting like this! Up, up!"

The demon practically spun into the room, pristine and white as if the fight mere hours ago hadn't nearly crippled him. Yukio was vaguely away of Shiro's odd, disapproving glare, but the thought was lost when most of his class filed in behind the teacher. They stopped the moment they saw him and stared.

"Yukio…?" Shiemi breathed, voice wavering just a bit as she took a tiny step forward.

She sported a few small bandages on her hands and one on her cheek, but beyond that, she seemed fine. In fact, the entire class looked remarkable well-off considering what had just happened to them. Konekomaru was practically untouched, a small gash on his head his only visible wound, though he rubbed nervously at another likely hidden under his sleeves. Paku had a large welt on the side of her head and an assortment of bandages along one arm in particular, while Bon was the only one who looked like he had gotten into a proper fight, what with his black eye and a smattering of growing bruises on his arms and a slight limp.

Somehow, they were all fine.

Well, not all of them.

Bon frowned, "Hey, what happened…?"

It took Yukio a moment to realize that he was still curled in a ball on the floor. Combined with his still burning eyes, ruffled hair, and rumpled clothes, and he must have made a truly pathetic sight. Yukio sharply stood and wiped his eyes with his sleeve coat as quickly as he could manage, "Nothing's wrong, I've just been-"

So sick with worry that he had wanted to crawl out of his skin and hurl. But not for any of them, not like he should have been even when he had seen them rendered unconscious by unknown and possibly deadly means.

"-thinking."

Bon glared at him without heat, "We already know about what happened to Rin and Izumo. So, you can stop trying to play tough guy here. It isn't exactly convincing when you've clearly been crying."

"Bon, that's…"

"No, Bon's right. I've really been so worried that I wasn't able to control myself. I'm sorry for abandoning you all and running away like a coward." He stiffly bowed, happy to have an excuse to hide his face a bit longer, "Please accept my deepest apologies."

"You've got to be kidding me." Bon grumbled, obviously not satisfied, "Hey, Yukio."

Yukio glanced up hesitantly. He had only a moment before a punch caught him right on the jaw hard enough to send him staggering as the room erupted into shrieks and gasps. The teen would have fallen if not for the wall behind him that he stumbled into with a grunt before catching himself with one hand, the other coming up to gently cup his chin.

Bon was furious, eyes bright with anger and shaking a bit with rage, "Do you really think we're mad at you that you couldn't take half a dozen guys on your own!? You saw your brother get shot, who the hell wouldn't be freaked out by that? Just because your brother is a freak of nature doesn't mean you need to get yourself killed!"

Yukio blinked slowly and did his best to process what he had just heard. On one hand he was glad he wasn't going to have to catch everyone up to speed and recount what had happened but on the other hand… He turned to Mephisto, "Exactly how much did you tell them?"

Mephisto, as unphased as ever by petty human drama, smiled dangerously as he kept a firm grip on Shiro's shoulder, "Enough that they know what happened, but not why Rin would be taken. I'll leave that part up to you, Mr. Okumura. If, of course, you feel comfortable telling them."

That…That was more than he had asked, and very quickly Yukio realized just how much of a problem that extra tidbit was going to be if Bon's frustrated "Isn't he just a dumbass?" was anything to go off of. The rest of the class were looking at each other, obviously confused and curious.

Shiro could see what chaos the demon had so effortlessly sewn and very nearly growled, "Mephisto, that's not right."

"Is it? Or have you forgotten that the brothers are still twins who share everything?" Mephisto said with such emphasis at the end that there was no way Shiro nor Yukio could miss what he meant, "Yukio has just as much right to that secret even if you pretend otherwise. Now come, we're both still needed, and the children need to talk."

Mephisto dragged Shiro out the door before he could say anything. In fact, Yukio was willing to bet that magic had been involved if the way the beginnings of protest unnaturally cut off was any indication.

Nervously, Konekomaru fidgeted, "That was…ominous."

Shiemi, filled with only innocent curiosity and more ignorant to social queues, was the first to ask, "What is he talking about, Yukio?"

Bon seized the chance, "Yeah, what the hell was the Headmaster talking about?"

"I can't…"

"You can't what?"

"H-Hey!" Paku suddenly spoke up, physically stepping forward so she could put herself between Yukio and Bon, "If Yukio doesn't want to tell us then we should force him to. If it has something to do with why Rin was kidnapped, then it must be a pretty big thing."

"If it's that important, then we should know! He's our dumbass classmate."

"But if it's that important then that means it was kept hidden for a reason! And that reason might be really, really personal and sensitive!" Paku angrily asserted, remembering how, one day, Izumo had simply stopped talking about her family. Years later, Paku had looked up what she could and found out that there had been a murder and she knew that if she had learned that back then, she wouldn't have stayed, "I'm sure you have things you don't want to tell everyone you meet, either."

"Yeah, but those things aren't going to get me kidnapped!" Bon countered, remembering how all his hidden things were the curses lain on his temple years and years ago and all the curses he had wished on ignorant fools out of anger, "We were already told that Izumo was taken because she wasn't lying about being a powerful shrine maiden, so I want to know what could be a bigger deal than that! What if it's dangerous?"

Because she was in front of Yukio, she didn't see his flinch, but Bon clearly did, "Bon, I don't think you're thinking clearly right now. What could it possibly be that's so bad we need to know?"

"I don't know, but we also didn't think that Shima was a goddamn spy." The teen spat angrily, watching as Yukio refused to meet his gaze, "So excuse me if I'm sick and tired of secrets right after someone I've known my whole life decided to betray me! I thought that friendship was supposed to mean something!"

By the end, he was shouting, caught up in his own anger and frustrations. Everyone remained silent even after he finished, hardly daring to breathe lest they set him off. It was in this silence that Bon realized how he was acting and, slowly, he deflated at the sights of their startled and frustrated faces. Yukio, in particular, looked moments away from bursting into tears as he focused intensely on a nondescript point on the ground, shaking a bit.

Even if he was rightfully suspicious after what the Headmaster had said, he really had gone too far, hadn't he? He could be told a hundred times exactly what had happened in excruciating detail, but Yukio had been the one who had actually seen it. And he had been hurt even more, seen his brother possibly killed, and here Bon was, digging deeper and deeper into the wound out of frustration.

"Yukio, I'm…I'm just…I just can't believe that this is happening and that that bastard, Renzo-! You don't…you don't have to tell me." Wasn't he supposed to be better than this, someone actually reliable?

Yukio didn't want to lose what he had built, finally surrounded by people he could be a little bit more open with and share a few more of his fears with. He desperately wanted to be truly open with them and to finally have someone else besides his father he could talk to about Rin. Someone who wasn't seeing the world through decades of experience and conflicting roles of responsibility. But he couldn't tell them the truth because he was sure even that would be too much. And yet it was only a matter of time before everything was revealed and then…

"I'm sorry as well."

"Yukio has just as much right to that secret even if you pretend otherwise"

Yes, that was right. It was so easy to forget because Yukio hadn't inherited (was too weak for) the most obvious signs of that burden, but it was still his.

So, instead of telling them everything…

Maybe he could ease them into the idea.

(It was a futile hope when Bon and Konekomaru had shared their past with them and how it was dyed blue. But Yukio was a coward and selfish.)

"Rin and I are part demon."

"What…?"

Konekomaru started slowly, clearly trying to fit the information he had given into something that was easy to accept, "The…True Cross has plenty of Exorcists with demonic ancestry, Yukio. It's not something all that uncommon or something we'd be upset by even if I know some people are prejudiced. It's actually where a lot of the more powerful bloodlines come from and…"

"No, Rin and I are half-demon, Konekomaru. We're first-generation Nephilim, and we're children of a very powerful high-ranking demon at that." Yukio explained without hesitation or pause. He had to tell them as much as he could, or else they wouldn't even begin to understand.

"With a high-ranking demon…? But something like that hasn't happened successfully in decades, possibly centuries!"

Shiemi raised her hand halfway, "Is that why Rin is so strong?"

"Yes. His power was sealed away so he could learn to control it, but even then, he's the strongest person I know."

"Strong enough to scare low-class demons…" Bon breathed, clearly remembering the ridiculous incidents throughout the year as the pieces fell into place.

Paku turned to Yukio and looked up and down, doubt obvious on her face, "But then, what about you? Aren't you twins…?"

"We are, but I didn't inherit my demon parent's strength. I've taken numerous tests over the years and there's no sign that I'm anything but human." Even if it would be easy to sweep it under the rug and pretend it had nothing to do with him, Yukio wanted to stay by Rin's side to the end. "But I'm still half-demon, even if I don't have the powers or the burdens."

"So that's why they took him…" Konekomaru mumbled, lost in thought.

"They were going to take me too, you know. Probably on principle, even if I'm nothing special. But Izumo helped me escape."

Konekomaru paled, looking for all the world like someone had just died in front of his eyes, "Yukio, I'm so sorry, please forgive me!"

"Konekomaru…?"

"I was the one who called you for help- you were the only person nearby I could think of who I was sure was nearby!" The shorter boy explained frantically, "But since Shima betrayed us, they must have known what I would do and let me go just long enough to call you and lure you there. So, I'm sorry!"

Yukio wondered if this was how others felt, seeing him apologize for something he had virtually no control over. It really was a special kind of frustration. "No, it's fine. You did the best you could given the circumstances, and you had no reason to suspect that we were target at the time. If Rin and I had told you, maybe we could have worked out a solution…"

Or maybe they would have just been outsmarted in a different, more dangerous, way.

"Wait," Shiemi asked, "but how did those bad people know? You didn't tell Shima before us, right Yukio? So how do they know?"

Paku gasped, "That's right, we're missing something here! Someone must have told them, right?"

Yukio shook his head, remembering the look of sheer shock on Shima's face when blue fire had flickered around Rin. Even if the attackers had known, the pink-haired boy clearly hadn't been informed, "Rin hasn't exactly been the most subtle with his strength, even as a child. If you consider our lack of proper parents and some of Rin's more…outrageous outbursts, it wouldn't be hard to put together if you knew what you were looking for."

Of course, Rin had decided that hunting demons made for a good hobby, but that was too much to explain and gave Yukio a headache to even recall. And while their exact birthdays may have been altered, but there was only so much you could change a newborn's age without raising questions. Not to mention that Astaroth of all demons had managed to find them years ago using nothing but the absolute lowest class demons and rumors, so an actual highly skilled organization? They hadn't had a chance.

"So, who is it?" Bon asked.

And there was the one thing that his classmates absolutely could not know, "That…I can't say."

"You're going to not tell us the most important part?"

"I may be half-demon as well, but, ultimately, people knowing won't affect me nearly as bad because I inherited virtually nothing." None of the strength, none of the bravery, none of the power, "People will forget what I am just because I have none of the signs. Rin should be the one to tell you because I know that once you know which demon it is, you'll look at him differently. So, he should get to decide if he wants to tell you at all."

And like that, the tension returned.

Maybe Yukio should have outright stated that they might never know which demon was his parent, that Rin might not trust them enough. But it was clear enough that Bon understood and already knew the odds of being told the full truth was low. If Shima was still there, he might have broken the tension with an ill-fitting joke or-

No, he wasn't going to let himself be bothered by the class' missing pieces.

"Yukio?" Paku asked after the silence became unbearable, "I was wondering why you have a camera. Is there something important on there?"

He had forgotten he had been holding it throughout everything. It wasn't his, but he had taken care of it enough that it felt natural in his hands, "It's not evidence, if that's what you're thinking. No, it's Rin's personal camera and I was just looking through it."

Konekomaru brightened as he recalled, "Oh right, he took pictures, didn't he?"

"He never took pictures of us," Bon muttered, and, without thinking, remembered what else had occurred only a few days ago. Funnily enough, it wasn't the bizarre attack that bothered him the most.

"There's a lot you don't know about me. It's not like we actually know each other."

He had thought that Rin was just being his usual bratty self, made extra bratty by being confined to a bed. But now, looking back on it, they really didn't know anything about him, did they? He had kept them all at arm's length, never saying anything about himself and had always been quick to get defensive.

Rin really had been worried about what they would think about him if they ever learned the truth the whole time, hadn't he? Bon really didn't know nearly as much about his 'friends' as he liked to think.

"Actually," Yukio spoke up, snapping Bon out of his self-deprecating thoughts with the sudden fondness in his voice, "He did, though they're clearly candid shots and probably incidental. Rin mostly takes pictures of nature and objects, not people." Yukio always found that part strange. A cynical part of him wondered if he didn't want memories of people who he assumed would hate him unconditionally one day.

It made the pictures of Shiro just a bit more meaningful.

Konekomaru leaned in and, after a minute of scrolling, gasped.

"Wait, when did that happen? Is this on the roof? No…wait, is he hanging off the side of the building here!?"

Yukio shrugged, but he couldn't stop smiling at the disbelief on everyone's faces as they passed around the camera, "Rin's always been really good at climbing. And he's tough enough that even if he fell from there, he'd be fine."

It felt nice to be able to say something like and have those listening know he actually meant it and why.

"This is at least the three stories up!"

"Don't remind me. He almost got the campus security called on him for that stunt. I made sure to scold him since I was worried he was going to get expelled."

Shiemi giggled at a series of pictures that started with Yukio asleep at his desk and ended when a lot of blurred pictures as the twins fought over the camera, "There are a lot of you, Yukio."

"I know."

Bon couldn't help but huff a laugh at just how ridiculous it all was. He had always wondered what pictures Rin took, but hadn't thought to ask, "I think Izumo was onto something about Rin having a brother-complex."

"I know but I'd rather not be reminded."

Shiro nearly stumbled when the scenery around them shifted, but he turned it into the force he needed to shake the demon's hold, "Mephisto, what do you think you're doing! Yukio-"

"-Is perfectly capable of handling himself. Like it or not, he needs to settle this matter himself."

"But that secret is…"

"Is his to tell if he feels comfortable doing so." Mephisto could tell that the other man was unconvinced, so he could hardly be blamed for playing dirty, "Unlike you, I believe that if he truly does not wish to inform his classmates, he won't allow himself to be pressured into doing so. And that he will think carefully about what he does and does not divulge."

"You still purposely put him on the spot."

Shiro was certainly stubborn when it came to his stolen children, wasn't he? "I simply gave him an opportunity to share even a fraction of the worries on his mind if he so wished. He will need his friends for what's to come and showing just a bit of trust in them will go a long way. Maybe they'll even tolerate Rin's true nature if they have time to ease into the idea."

"You know the odds of that are low." Shiro countered, but Mephisto could tell that even the thought of acceptance was sinfully tempting.

"Perhaps. But do you really wish for Yukio to lose his friends, most likely the last ones he will make before the truth is revealed? The last ones who will not be burdened by knowing his past and the prejudices that come with it?"

Friendships born from shared secrets and small acts of trust were much stronger than many people thought. It was the small, personal things that humans really cared about, shows of vulnerability, and mutual respect. The time for the other students to accept uncomfortable truths, even if only in part, had never been better, what with how forgiving they would feel, knowing, and having even seen the suffering Yukio was going through. They would make allowances they normally wouldn't out of pity and misplaced guilt.

It was the last time to reinforce those bonds before that loyalty was put to the test. Would they be willing to follow a demon directly into hell?

Shiro always had been a bit of a coward when it came to uncomfortable things, so he was more than willing to take the easy way out and pretend that Mephisto's words were earnest and not carefully crafted plans, "You've made your point. I still don't agree with what you did, but I trust Yukio."

Finally, they were done with Yukio. It was always difficult to tiptoe around Shiro, lest the man realize just how many plans Mephisto had already made. If he started having suspicions, then he could ruin everything just by being stubborn.

Mephisto needed those flames, and he wasn't above using every resource at his command.

"Here." The demon said as he handed over a thin manila folder, "These are the relevant files on Izumo Kamiki. Incomplete, but they'll tell you enough as to why she would be targeted. I assume that you don't need something similar for Rin Okumura?"

"All I need to know is how much everyone else will be told."

"That I cannot tell you. Not until a proper counterattack has been planned and the pieces are in place."

"I assume you already have something in mind?"

"I have my own sources. Enough that this attack wasn't completely unexpected, though I had no knowledge of the date and the scale was…understated." Mephisto made sure to amend when Shiro shot him an absolutely poisonous look. Well, it was best to steer the conversation somewhere just a bit safer, "Furthermore, I have personally confirmed that they took the Kurikara with them."

Shiro winced, "And so there's a good chance that some absolute genius will decide to unsheathe it to get a better look, right? What a mess…"

Mephisto chuckled, and it was a dark sound, "Although I'm sure that would be highly amusing, I doubt that will occur. I've revised the seal in such a way that only someone with Yuri Egin's blood can open it. It was the strongest seal I could make that still applied to Rin and won't break without serious effort. We're also dealing with Lucifer's personal pet project here, and they're hardly amateurs, as I'm sure you saw. They would know exactly what would happen if they did force the seal open, and even they're not that suicidal."

"So that really was them?"

"Of course. There couldn't be any doubt the moment that Egyn decided to show up! We're directly dealing with the Illuminati at last!" The King of Time sneered, already calculating, "I'm sure the war hawks are rejoicing at a chance to finally strike since we can hardly take such an insult lying down."

It was only a matter of time now.

Shima had only just arrived at one of the Illuminati's bases, and he had already been thoroughly interrogated on the ride over. Not that he hadn't expected that, but it was the topic that his new commanding officer had decided to harp on that surprised him. Mostly because he hadn't even known that it was something he should have been aware of.

"And you're sure you have no idea what happened to Minoru Tanaka?" Homare Todo asked Shima for the third time as she helped a nearly comatose Robert off their transport.

The pink-haired boy waved his hands helplessly as he did his best to stumble out behind her, all while making sure he didn't bash the sealing sword on anything, "I didn't even know he was an agent until like ten minutes ago, how would I know anything?"

"You did say you remembered him following Rin Okumura around."

"Yeah, kind of hard to forget when he threw a knife at the guy…" And hadn't that been a heart-attack-inducing event all on its own. It had taken everything Shima had had to not lose it right then and there with the sheer venom Rin had declared his hatred of spies.

Rin really would have killed him, time as classmates be damned. The rest of the team limping out behind him was proof that the teenage boy had tried and nearly succeeded.

Abruptly, a short and rotund man barged in to their conversation, flanked on all sides by Illuminati members. The reinforcements immediately began to tend to their battered group, taking the three injured members off on gurneys, relieving Homare of her burden. They did not, however, take Rin away, instead of backing up from the gurney as the round man descended on the body like a starved vulture, poking and prodding at this and that. Shima was pretty sure they should be doing this in a hospital room or even wheeling Rin off the surgery, but he also wasn't about to argue with the obvious mad scientist who was so impatient he couldn't wait five more minutes.

Shima didn't survive by being stupid.

"Dr. Gendoin," Homare began loudly enough that there was no way she could be ignored, "We have returned. However, we were unable to locate Mamoru Tanaka and have reason to suspect he was compromised at some point."

"Who?" The scientist asked, baffled. His beady eyes landed on Shima's school uniform and it seemed to remind him of something, "Oh. If you two are referring to that other spy we sent, you don't need to worry. Even if he betrayed us, I, in all my genius foresight, decided to implant a little insurance. If he ever began to reveal information he shouldn't in any way, he'll have died instantly. It would have been a waste to let those failed Elixirs go to waste."

The way the man spoke, so proud and gleeful at the thought of someone dying because of his creations, made Shima sweat just a bit, "Hey, wait, are you saying I have one of those things?"

Homare shook her head no, "Of course not. You had to directly interact with your targets, so it was too likely that you'd have to try and avoid a topic or tell half-truths and inadvertently activate the capsule. Minoru wasn't supposed to even speak to Rin, much less befriend him."

With a predatory grace, Iblis stepped from the shadows of the transport, body alight with small embers of power, "A whole lot of good that friendship did you." She sneered, remembering the brief account she had heard of the fight. Behind her, Egyn leaned on her despite the unnatural heat she radiated, face concealed by a hooded cape.

She peered down at the small demon and ordered, not unkindly, "Go get some Elixir, Egyn."

Dr. Gendoin looked up from his examination and shouted, "We don't have an unlimited supply of Elixir Alpha, you fools!"

Despite her element, the temperature seemed to drop. Or maybe it was simply that everything was ice cold in comparison to Iblis' anger and blazing gaze.

"And we wouldn't have gotten anywhere without Egyn."

Wisely, the scientist snapped his head back to his work with only a grumble as the King of Water slipped deeper into the base.

Homare hadn't moved an inch or even flinched at the sheer killing intent Iblis had let out just a moment ago, "What should we do with the Izumo Kamiki?"

"Her?" Gendoin waved in the rough direction of the base's belly, "Lock her in one of the observation rooms and make sure she doesn't do anything idiotic. We need her body as pristine as possible or Tamamo won't accept her!"

Homare nodded to one of the at-attention guards. Shima tried his best, but he couldn't even make eye contact with Izumo as she was led away to what was likely her doom. She refused to look up from the ground, eyes distant and hazy with tears she refused to shed, accepting her fate but refusing to discard her pride here. Shima could see her shoulders tense as she walked past Dr. Gendoin, and then see them relax as she soon as she was past him.

There was a history there.

This whole thing felt…off. He had always known that Rin was a priority target, but it was like Izumo was just a side objective in comparison to him. Well, Shima did remember seeing a brief flicker of blue fire before the tranquilizer had taken effect, and so he understood the strange scientist's interest. It became even more understandable when the man yanked Rin's shirt opened to reveal a bullet wound that looked…old. There was a lot of blood, but it was dried and crusted, and the entry point itself was scabbed over as if it had occurred days ago, not mere hours.

"What a monster."

Shima jumped as the surprisingly silky voice of Iblis spoke not more than a foot away from him. His eyes were inevitably drawn to her…daring outfit and the way it left an honestly scandalous amount of skin around her chest and navel exposed, but, thankfully for his continued existence, the King (Queen? He wondered.) of Fire didn't even seem to notice him, eyes locked on Rin's body. As the teen's hand was freed from the cloth that had been surrounding it for some reason, her eyes narrowed, and she strode forward with purposeful steps.

"I still say we should just kill the kid now. He's not normal." Iblis grumbled, glaring at the sight of the mostly healed hand. She wasn't exactly the best with remembering human limits, but that was pushing it for most demons.

"And then where will I get the samples I need to keep making that Elixir Alpha you like to waste so much?" Dr. Gendoin scoffed, "Those are the last vials you two are getting until I've managed to synthesize more. The rest goes to Lord Lucifer!"

The King of Fire sneered down at the short man, "You wouldn't last a week without me since your precious lord is too busy for you anymore!"

Dr. Gendoin recoiled as if struck. They had been through these insults and barbs dozens of times, and yet that one still struck at his core in a way he couldn't handle. So, he covered it with a stuttering laugh and waved away Iblis like an unruly dog. "Since you're nothing but a brute, I'll forgive your insolence this one time- it's only natural you should be so defiant as a way to cope with being nothing but a weapon."

Yes, she was nothing but a weapon collared by Lord Lucifer himself. Even if she liked to rattle the bars and pull at her chain, she was still a precious resource (a gift even!) provided to him by Lord Lucifer himself. He would appreciate it, even if she was defiant.

"Is this my eight or ninth time being forgiven 'only once'?"

Even if she was disrespectful, even if she was a vacuous and wasteful cur-!

"As I was saying. You're lucky you've done such a good job, or I wouldn't even consider giving you any more Elixir Alpha! If you behave, maybe I'll share with you my first batch instead of sending it all to Lord Lucifer."

"Or, you'll share it with us because we're going to be at war within a week. Astaroth and Beelzebub might be joke power-wise, but they're still loyal enough to father's legacy that it'll be easy for Samael to point them in our direction." Iblis explained, already grumbling at the idea of dealing with those two. There was a not inconsiderable chance that Beelzebub would just ignore this and do whatever he wanted while they were distracted, but at the same time that wasn't very likely. They hated each other and it would be a good time for the little fly to take potshots at the dragon with Samael's help, "In fact, can you even make more Elixir in time?"

"I've made do with nothing but replicated strains for years now and have managed to produce high-quality Elixir Alpha even as those strains mutated and degraded with each replication cycle until there was nothing left! All of this was from a tainted sample, but I know a simpleton like you doesn't appreciate the sheer genius that was needed to pull off such a feat!" Dr. Gendoin turned to the real prize of the day, the thing that would make all this headache worth it. Limp and pliant on the table and clearly in no danger of dying, it was easy to perform a superficial examination on the demon's child and check for basic signs of encroachment. Sharp teeth, unnaturally blue eyes with just a hint of a slit, and healing that he could see before his own eyes. It was even better than he could have dreamed! "It's clear that the subject has mutated dramatically over only a few short years. The key components we're looking for in his blood will surely be at a much higher concentration if he can already recover from gunshot wounds within a couple of hours. Making more Elixir Alpha will be child's play now that I have unlimited access!"

Something still felt off to Iblis. That kid was far too well acquainted with pain and his own power, but it went deeper than that. Iblis might have said she wanted to fight him unsealed, but the more she heard about what it had taken to retrieve him, the less sure she was as something deep in her mind screamed that it wouldn't be like putting down an untrained babe.

That fire had been so very blue. Unlike her and just instead like Fath-

She shook her head. "Whatever. You just do your job and I'll do mine. Besides, it's fitting that he acts as my personal fountain of youth after all the trouble Egyn and I went through for him."

With that, the demoness strutted away, oozing such confidence that one would be forgiven for thinking that the base was her castle and hers alone.

Shima did his best to not stare. Iblis was, without a doubt, an absolute bombshell, but he could tell that she would also absolutely destroy him. But then again…

"And what are you still doing standing around like a simpleton, Homare?" Gendoin spat, "Don't you have a report to file, or do you need my help doing something even as simple as that?"

"Everyone, you're dismissed. Take Rin Okumura with you and make sure he stays sedated." Homare declared, leaving no room for arguments. The rest of the Illuminati members began to do just that the moment the short man gave a small nod of approval, though he didn't cease looking annoyed.

They waited several minutes for everyone to file out. Homare nodded at the guard by the door who pushed the heavy metal shut. No one could hear them and it would be a simple matter to secure the recordings at a later date. What they would speak of wasn't something strictly for only the highest rank personnel and someone overhearing wouldn't cause any major issues, but a sense of privacy was needed. She needed to know that they were finally ready.

"Dr. Gendoin," Homare began, "I simply wanted to confirm that you have all the things you need to proceed with the plan, correct?"

"Of course I do! With the girl's body and the boy's soul, the plan will be executed flawlessly. Why do you continue to doubt me when you know nothing?"

"I don't doubt your scientific intelligence, Doctor." Because the terrible man in front of her had only a single redeeming thing about him, and that was his ability to produce results, "However, I have every reason to doubt your ability to understand how others think. The moment someone feeds your ego, you're far too willing to listen to them."

It was a vague reference, but Dr. Gendoin knew exactly what she was speaking of, "How dare you! It's not my fault I'm such a genius that I was able to concoct such a perfect plan to do the impossible!" All of this relied on him, all of it was his-! "If it weren't for my nearly supernatural foresight or and persistence, none of this would be possible! And then where would Lord Lucifer be? He would be hurting and would continue to no longer shine like he should even though I finally crafted an Elixir that doesn't lose effectiveness!"

Even if Elixir Alpha wasn't perfect, it was at least a long-term solution and the first real step in crafting a permanent solution. And yet, as soon as he finally succeeded, Lucifer had stopped caring. No, he had simply changed his goals, become even more grand, but his light was simply not enough to fill such a vast dream when it had been weakened by a sudden loss.

"I know. However, you've been far too willing to listen to that demon when it has every reason to lie to us." Protection, higher status, simple pleasure at watching humans futilely struggle against a pointless endeavor, there were dozens of reasons that Homare didn't trust the demon. "Do you really believe that a ceremony held by a demon can retrieve a soul?"

"Demons have shown us that the soul is something tangible, at least, to them. I won't try and explain all the nuances to someone like you, but just know that I would never trust a demon that wasn't Lord Lucifer at their word. I've run the calculations over and over again, and it will work!" It simply had to, "There is absolutely no reason it shouldn't work! If humans can call demons with their own will, beings that are almost entirely purely 'soul', why shouldn't they be able to do the same?"

"But should we?"

Dr. Gendoin looked up at her, a sneer that told her was doing his absolute best to look down at her despite the height difference. It did little to cow the woman, but it make him look incredibly unpleasant all the same, "Are you really going to start questioning the morals of playing God now, Homare? I've already repaired the body with Elixir Alpha and there has been complete resuscitation and recovery of all bodily functions. The heart beats, the blood flows…all that is missing is the soul itself. Furthermore, you are one of the few people blessed with knowledge of Lord Lucifer's new plans. Compared to that, defying death hardly holds a candle!"

"We're going behind the Commander's back to do this, Dr. Gendoin." Homare explained slowly, and though her voice did not waver, there was hesitation in her body language that was so foreign it was made obvious, "I'm more worried what will happen if we don't succeed. After all, all of this hinges on Satan not actually being dead like all evidence suggests."

"We aren't going behind his back, he told us we can do what we please with that body. Izumo Kamiki's retrieval was going to have to happen eventually, and our preparations have been complete for months. All we've done is be efficient." Dr. Gendoin justified with a wave of his hand. He would never betray his lord, but if he had decided to push his boundaries, well, it was all for the sake of letting Lord Lucifer shine once again, "Furthermore, there's no way the demon who could sire a perfect being such as Lord Lucifer would ever die from something as small as the Blue Night! No, he must still be in one of his apathetic states and just somewhere we can't locate him. So we'll make him come to us instead!"

"I understand."

Homare Todo was, above all else, loyal to Commander Lucifer. Few people would realize that something had changed in his behavior, but it hadn't taken long for her to notice the way he had changed after the Blue Night.

"And so, before that happens, I want to do the one thing that father gave up on. Otherwise, in the end, none of this will matter."

It was a campaign to truly end suffering as a whole, and a way to ensure it would last. The ultimate act of defiance not simply by humans and demons, but by life itself. And yet it was clear that he fully expected to burn himself out doing this until he faded away.

(Just like he thought Satan had. But if Satan was still alive, if they could locate him, then just maybe it would be enough-!)

Homare took a moment to clear her head of troublesome thoughts. She couldn't afford to stay here, not when she was needed at another base in only a handful of hours. No one else could have been trusted with such a sensitive and bold mission, and so if she had to sacrifice her free time to coordinate with an honestly disgusting human being, then that was a sacrifice she was willing to make.

She turned sharply on her heel and briskly walked to the door. After the door opened, but before she stepped through, she called back to the scientist, "And one last thing."

"Hm?"

"You will refer to the Commander as such, Michael."

Satan was floating. Everything was distant, everything was a dream…

Ah, he was dreaming, wasn't he? But then why couldn't he wake up…?

Once again, blackness beyond nothing appeared under him. It was the end of all things, the edge of reality he had thrown himself into time and time again. It would devour him, reach for his grace, and peel away his existence bit by bit until it found that part that it was missing. And then it would take it and become complete.

No, this was only a dream.

He was protected by his grace, so one of those couldn't possibly be here. Even if he was absolutely sure, he would call on that power and awaken to fight whatever had taken him captive.

Captive…?

Had he been captured?

But he was…

Broken. Flawed. Tainted.

What a fitting end to be consumed by something equally flawed, even if it was only a dream.

With great effort, he forced his eyes open, if only to escape that memory. The world was blurred and too bright, nothing but nonsense colors and noises that he heard as if at the bottom of an ocean. Hands caressed him, or maybe they held him down with bruising force- he couldn't tell. He needed his child, he needed his anchor and reason to exist. He didn't want to slip away once again-!

Dreamless sleep felt like a pinprick to his arm.

For those of you wondering why everyone is taking the whole "I'm a demon" thing so well, remember that circumstances are far better here. It's a controlled situation and they haven't gotten a bad impression, and, most importantly, don't know that they're actually dealing with Satan's children. Plenty of Exorcists have at least distant demonic relatives, so the only strange thing here is the sheer power at stake, which they don't actually understand just yet.

A Spanish review has made me wonder just how many non-English speakers and/or ELS speakers are reading my fic. I can play a bit fast a loose with words and their meaning, so I hope anyone cursed with google translate isn't have too hard of a time. Or, if you're just actually bilingual, good job, you've done more than I have.

I'm glad everyone enjoyed my take on Mephisto's powers. He's really tricky to work with since, in canon, his powers seem to be about whatever the plot demands. I honestly find that a bit eh to work with since it means I can have him do about anything and it's fine because "it's Mephisto" so I wanted to put some hard limits without drastically underpowering him.

For anyone feeling bad for the Demon Kings, good. I'm not going to go on a whole "oh they're just misunderstood soft babies" because no, every last one of them is a dangerous apex predator that wears a human skin and has a very dubious definition of morality at best. But I want them to be full characters who each have their own unique relationship with Satan and the rest of their siblings. I make no promises as to if everyone will end up being one big happy family at the end, because I don't know at this point, but it'll certainly be interesting.