It's funny…I can honestly say I've never really disliked Shura, but I can't say I particularly liked her either. She always seemed so cocky in everything she does, she even laughed when I told her about my ambitions of kicking Satan's ass, I mean seriously?! Laughing at that was cruelty at it's finest… I watched the old man die because that bastard wanted to drag me off to Gehenna for God knows what. Yet she just scoffed at me, I guess she just didn't believe I had what it takes. But lately I've noticed something about her, she seemed…. more tolerable I guess? She's definitely kinder to me, again I don't really dislike it…It just seems off to me. Again we were having class as usual, Shura was sitting on top of her desk talking about some type of seal that was supposed to work against most lower level water demons.

I was nearly lost in thought when Shima interrupted me to talk about Shura's more "appealing" features, "You have to admit I've got a point here, Okumura." He snickered as we turned towards our new magic circles and seals teacher; she was in the middle of stretching. "Damn with those curves!" The pink haired ladies man practically drooled on my shoulder as her sweet rack came down with a nice jiggle. I had to keep myself from staring, 'Damn' was right.

"I guess I can see your point there…" I grinned along with him, everything about her looks seemed so…what's the word? Luscious, maybe? Well, whatever the word is I know that those lips are so full and tempting. I'd give anything to get a taste of them. It sounds odd when I put it like that, and there's no way in hell I'd ever admit it to anyone…well, beside Kuro that is. After all he's the one person I go to tell my problems, Yukio cares and everything but he always tries to force a solution on me.

"Hey! Rin are you even listening to me?" I looked up to see an annoyed Shura, she gave a quick eye roll, "I said, you need to come back here after class. You still need to work on your control over those damn flames. Maybe if you didn't have your head in the clouds you would have heard me." Ok, so when I said that she was kinder to me, I kinda forgot to mention it's only occasionally, but it's better than never, right?

"Yeah, Sure thing." I shrugged in an attempt to play it cool; it felt odd to answer her like a teacher after I just checked her out. I'd probably die of embarrassment if she knew what I had been thinking about. I tried my best to keep my mind on other things as class continued, luckily it passed by faster once I slipped off into a daydream about saving the day and being rewarded with sukiyaki, this one pertained to me kicking the crap out of Satan and being know as something other than the 'Son of Satan', which I think is total bullshit by the way, I didn't chose my parents! Although my classmates have been a little nicer to me after we stopped that Gale thingy.

My fantasy ended not too long before class did so I only had to listen for a minute or two, eventually everyone started for the door. I figured class was over…that meant I still had to stay behind for that stupid training, "I should be out in the field getting useful knowledge and experience." I grumbled to myself, Shura just sat on her desk glaring at me, not with hate or fear but…. something. "Aren't you gonna tell me what I'm doing? Or do I have to guess?"

She looked as if she were thinking it over for a moment before reaching behind her desk, happily pulling out a beer. "I just figured a little practice could help, we're gonna try to light just the wicks on the outside candles again." She reached behind her desk again to pull out a bag of candles and tossed them to me, of course I didn't catch them and nearly fell out of my chair just trying to. "You're such an idiot...'' She sneered, I knew it was supposed to sound like an insult but it came out more like someone teasing a friend or someone even closer.

"Oh, come on! Are you serious? I think I should learn how to use my sword a little better." I tried to argue against her, the whole idea of having someone train me how to use the koma sword without actually doing anything close to using a sword seemed kinda stupid to me. She just gave me a look that said, 'Do you even have to ask an idiotic question like that?'.

"Look here, we both know you need to get a better handle on your flames. Don't forget that I still have orders to kill you if you lose control." The way she said that last part made me feel a bit nervous, but I'm sure that she wouldn't really kill me…right? I moved some of the tables aside so I'd have enough room, then I sat out three candles like before. I was almost certain that I wouldn't get it right this time either, but I just let out a sigh and set towards getting a grip already. It wasn't like I needed her to remind me that I still have a long way to go.

I watched shamefully as the candles in the bag dwindled down, my failures glaring at me in the form of puddles of wax and misshapen lumps with bits of wicks sticking out, "Why the hell can't I get this right?!" I hissed as the most recent pile's flames went out; this whole exercise was getting on my nerves… and to make matters worse it was getting late, I had probably missed dinner.

"Alrighty then, burn up the last few so we can give up for tonight. If you couldn't do this before then you definitely won't get anywhere on an empty stomach. Maybe if you're nice enough I can see about buying you some food for at least trying, although it was piss poor if you ask me…" I hated to admit she was right but…she was so there wasn't really much I could've said that would change anything. I had missed lunch, I was so hungry I could've eat a horse and been happy, sounds fitting for a demon, huh? I quickly gave it one more try, feeling utterly disappointed when all three candles melted. "You about ready kid?" She asked, flipping through keys until she found the right one, "I know this decent place in Osaka, it's pretty good." We stepped through the door and found ourselves on a busy little street; the cold air nipped at our noses as snow gently fell. "We'll be eating there," She pointed at a cozy looking place, it looked friendly enough, of course it wasn't anything special… the inside had a kinder atmosphere, we headed for a table near the back and took our seats.

Our waitress approached us with a cheerful smile, "Hi, how are we doing today?" She hummed happily, we just gave a basic reply, I ended up getting a glass of water and takoyaki while Shura ordered just a glass of sake…which wasn't as big of a surprise as the fact that it was actually on the menu. Our waitress wrote everything down and gave it to the cook before heading off to take someone else's order, now it was just Shura and I sitting alone.

"I still can't believe you didn't get it right even once..." She broke the silence first, grumbling as her eyes shot daggers at me, she wasn't the only who was annoyed by it but I know it was probably beyond irritating to have to teach such a failure… It's definitely not easy to get a handle on them, it's like they're a living thing of their own accord. Focusing isn't enough on it's own, I have to demand they do as I ask…but like a mischievous kid they never quite listen to me.

"I wish it was as simple as me thinking, burn this or burn that. It does what it wants, it's still fire in the end and fire never fails to consume what it gets ahold of. It's chaos on it's own…but there's almost a beauty behind it, nothing can last for ever so it just makes every moment even more meaningful.'' I spoke to myself more than her but she just looked at me, I could see a smile creep across those tempting lips.

The feeling of the blood flushing my cheeks as the weight of her gaze settled in.

"Well well, quite the poet there…" She giggled as she nudged my leg playfully under the table, something I wasn't quiet used to…at least not from her. The waitress brought us our drinks as I tried to keep the conversation going.

"Poet? Can't the son of Satan enjoy a little beauty in words too?" I joked, lifting the glass to my lips to take a rather large sip, surprised met with the burn of liquor and the smell of alcohol, it was too late to go back and I'm a definite lightweight when it comes to booze, I had a gut feeling that things could get bad, "I think this is yours." She just giggled again as I groaned and slid her now half-full glass over to her.

"Heh, don't you know this stuff's for adults?" Back to normal with her teasing, although I didn't mind it too much…I just let my mind wander back to the bombshell sitting in from of me, drinking in her looks for what I had thought was a few moments, it felt as though my body was a little lighter and the room twirled about as I drew in a breath and spoke the next sentence with a bit more ease.

"You really are beautiful…" She smiled at first, but it quickly change to confusion, then it seemed as though she was flustered. I had to admit that she was even cuter when her cheeks burned that color. "Heh, so cute." I giggled in admiration as the waitress brought our food, I didn't spend long staring. I just dug in as if nothing changed; Shura on the other hand, seemed kinda…off. She downed what was left in her glass, she was a heavier drinker than me so it didn't do much to her, quietly picking at her food for a minute or two as I ate another bite. Now, I'm not sure how things ended up the way they did but if there was a moment that changed everything it might have been what happened next.

"You really think I'm beautiful?" She asked, nervously tucking her hair behind her ear. She didn't make eye contact either; I wasn't sure what I was supposed to say so I decided to just be honest.

"You're loud, cocky, a bit annoying at times, and you aren't the most modest person I know but I don't believe in perfection, no matter how I slice it you always come out as imperfect…still, there's something there I can't help but notice, you're fiery and fierce, you'll pretend like you don't care but in the end you always have the best intention at heart. So I can say that not only do you have a pretty face with a rockin' body to match, but you're beautiful on the inside too." The words rolled off my tongue with no problem, "I know it isn't most glamorous way to say it but…it's me, and I wouldn't say it any other way." To this she didn't say a word; she simply nodded as she dug for the money to cover our meal. Tossing the cash on the table before silently getting up and leaving. I finished my water and got up to follow her out the door, pausing to pull out a few yen notes to tip the waitress, who's name I never quite caught, and headed for the door. Surely I would have to catch up with Shura, I was just hoping I hadn't pissed her off.

No sooner than I stepped out the door I felt a hand grab mine and pull me off to the side, it was Shura. She looked happy, "Shit, I didn't say anything wrong did I? I bet I sounded creepy…" I said uncomfortably, I was pretty sure I done something she hadn't liked. The truth was a bit more shocking.

"No," She said in a shaky voice, it was one I hadn't heard yet, "The problem was you said the right thing…" Before I knew it pulled me into a kiss, it was like my whole world stopped in its tracks, bolts of ecstasy flooded my body as my lips tingled. Her lips…. they were so soft and warm, I was almost disappointed when she pulled away. "Forgive me, Fujimoto…" She kept hold of my shirt, leaning her head against my shoulder. I could feel her warm breath through the fabric, and even with the smell of Sake on her breath I could still make out a welcoming scent, like a mixture of rose water and cherry blossoms.

I cautiously wrapped my arms around her, resting my cheek on her silky hair. "Why do you need forgiveness from the old man? Wouldn't he want you to have some sort of happiness? You're too uptight, you need to enjoy life a little more. I'm sure he'd say the same thing."

"Enjoy a slice of life with the son of Satan… Hell of a punch line there, all we need is a joke for it." She tried to make it sound like a sarcastic comment but we both knew it wasn't such a bad idea. She paused like she was thinking it over, grinning at me, "Alright, it sounds like fun." I was agreeing silently in my head when the light snow picked up a little, it was so beautiful.

"You know, dad said he met me and yukio on a day like this." I blurted out, he had never gone in any detail about it but that was our only clue about our mom. I don't think the cold bothered us that day, it kinda seemed like a sweeter day because of it, "snow, it's a beauty too fragile to be handled by any person. Heat will break the fragile bond between the cold and the water it's made of, leaving it as plain as any droplet on a spring day…but never forget, for a reckless demon like me, beauty is in everything… you never know whether it's just a fleeting moment or an eternity so you have to cherish everything like it's the last time you'll see it." I rambled on, taking my turn to lead.

"And I thought you were just some dumbass…." She snidely remarked, acting as though she disliked what I thought. I playfully bumped her with my hip as we strolled down the snowy sidewalk, burning the afternoon away as I tried to sober up. I bravely took hold of her hand; it almost felt like we were any regular couple. We didn't stay long enough to see the sunset, she had gotten a little cold from her lack of any real clothing. Once we had found a suitable door she pulled out one of her infinity keys, "Oh yeah, I don't think that brother of yours will approve of you drinking so you'll be staying at my place for the night." She grinned as we stepped into her apartment, "Be careful, you may be a demon but I'm definitely an animal…" She teased, gently swaying her hips…all I could think to myself was, "This should be fun"… I was right.