Hello! So ummm this is not my first story but its the first one I've written in a really long time. I wanted to see what people thought and if I should keep going. I tried to keep everyone in character but I'm not very good at it heehee. Any feedback or suggestions is always appreciated. Thanks to you xoxo

If Rin could have one wish, it would be that Shura's boobs were no longer affected by gravity or the laws of physics. Each time they sparred, his attention was invariably (and embarrassingly) drawn to her jiggling flesh, throwing off his aim. He normally snapped out of it after she smacked him around a few times, but, still, why did they have to be so distracting? He wasn't even attracted to her—his eyes were just drawn to their movements.

It was incredibly frustrating.

"Are you paying attention?" She struck him on the top of his head with her practice sword, immediately bringing him out of his stupor.

Rin lunged and, with a shout, brought his wooden sword down at an angle. He wielded it with both hands, putting all his strength into what he hoped would be a final blow—a rookie mistake. She danced out of range, and he hit the grass hard, leaving him momentarily dazed.

Shura immediately executed a follow-through attack, striking him across the face as she twirled out of her dodge. She grinned at her success—that was going to leave a rather colorful bruise.

But Rin recovered quickly, blocking as she slashed at him again. He went on the offensive, trying to land a hit before she had the chance to escape. He used the sword with one hand this time, giving him better balance and agility.

She parried and countered with a swift riposte aimed at his chest. He was faster than she expected, and just barely managed to clumsily block her sword before it left him another bruise. But the blow made him stagger, and Shura used the opportunity to unleash a volley of attacks, forcing him back toward the treeline. He was so focused on blocking her that, by the time he realized what she was doing, he had already backed himself into a corner.

Rin glanced behind him and cursed under his breath. His back was against a tree and he knew Shura's extraordinary reach gave him little room to maneuver. He held his sword out in front of him, ready to block whatever she had in mind. But she didn't attack yet. Like always, she wanted to savor her victory over him.

"Giving up already?" She twirled her sword mockingly in her right hand, and that gave Rin an idea.

"I'm not giving up!" He feinted to his left and then dodged right. Shura fell for it, leaning to her right in preparation. He dashed by her, just out of reach of her sword. When she turned around, it was her who was now in the corner.

She clicked her tongue on the roof of her mouth, disappointed in herself. "Not bad."

Rin responded with another two-handed lunge, bringing his sword up this time. He was learning, but he was still too predictable.

Shura boldly leaped into his attack and rolled, coming within an inch of Rin's sword. She came up from her roll and spun on her toes, using her momentum to power her swing. She struck Rin hard on his upper back, sending him stumbling forward and into the tree. He lost his balance and fell, all the air knocked out of his lungs.

Checkmate.

Shura dug the tip of her practice sword into the wet grass and leaned on it. Despite how experienced she was, sparring with Rin always left her exhausted. "You're too reckless," she said, though not unkindly. "You're trying too hard to score a hit and it's making you predictable. A smart demon can look at the position of your feet and know exactly how you're going to move before you do."

"Ow..." he groaned, rolling onto his side. "Ahh... Did you have to hit so hard?"

She crouched down and leaned over him with a smile. "Consider that punishment for thinking you could beat me." She patted his shoulder, urging him to his feet. "Let's go, tough guy. I'll fetch you some ice for that bruise."

Shura had picked the outskirts of a little open field not far from the dormitory for their match tonight, where the breeze was steady and refreshing. Here, they had plenty of space to practice, and the surrounding trees proved to create the perfect, natural arena.

Rin reclined against the tree that had caused his defeat, a cool towel folded over his forehead and an ice pack pressed to his cheek. The warm wind blew in his face, carrying with it the faint scents of the nearby woods. Shura sat beside him, sipping a can of beer. Silence enveloped them, peaceful and comforting.

Rin closed his eyes and rested his head back against the rough bark of the tree. "Reckless, huh?" He sighed.

"You need to be more patient," Shura smiled at him. "We can start working on that tomorrow."

"T-tomorrow? Can't I have a break?"

"Nope." She casually sipped her drink.

He groaned, exasperated. Despite his reaction, Rin found that he enjoyed the lessons he had with Shura, even if some of them were a little frustrating. It helped him relieve stress and made him feel stronger, more comfortable with who he was.

Rin sat up straight and dug three small candles out of his pocket. Shura watched, surprised, as he lined them up in front of him. "You're still doing that?"

"Yep!" He flashed her a toothy grin. "Watch this." His eyes fell to the candles and, a second later, the two outermost wicks burst to life. The field around them was bathed in a gentle, blue light. "I can even do it while I pick my nose. Wanna see?"

She frowned in disgust. "No, thanks. I'll just take your word for it." He laughed and settled back down against the tree. The two lasped into a comforting silence, until Shura, her voice taut with worry, nudged him roughly with her elbow. "Hey, Rin... Do you see that?"

"Huh?" He looked up, curious. In the distance, startlingly obvious against the stark night sky, was a bright red dot. Rin narrowed his eyes, struggling to make sense of what appeared to be an indistinguishable mess of color. As he watched, it drew closer, becoming more distinct. Belatedly, Rin realized that it was headed directly toward them.

And fast.

It was a large, red bird with long, beautiful feathers flowing behind it. But something was clearly wrong—it couldn't fly in a straight line and was descending rapidly toward the earth. It beat its wings frantically and writhed in the air, desperately struggling to gain altitude. Its efforts were in vain; its thrashing only seemed to be making its descent faster.

"Whoa!" Rin ducked as it passed by overhead, flying dangerously low to them. It crashed loudly into something a moment later. "What the hell was that!?" Rin stood, confused and stunned.

Shura ignored him and scrambled to her feet, following the bird back to the dormitory.

"H-hey! Wait for me!" Rin stepped on the candles to snuff them and hurried to catch up.

A concerned Yukio was there to meet them. He looked silly equipped with a handgun while wearing his pajamas, but now wasn't the appropriate time for Rin to be making fun of his brother. "Where did it land?" Shura asked, assuming the bird's hectic landing was what caused him to draw his weapon.

"On the storage shed." Yukio led them around to the side of the dormitory, where an old, unused shed sat in the shadow of the building.

Much of the rubble had fallen harmlessly off to the side, but one of the larger, metal sheets that had once made up the roof had collapsed on top of it. Rin could see vibrant, red feathers speckled with yellow and white poking out from underneath.

It wasn't moving.

Shura stayed back, inspecting the debris from a distance. A bird of that size was clearly a demon, and, considering that it was most likely in a state of feral panic, she didn't want to antagonize it by approaching. "What should we do?" She directed the question toward Yukio, eyes never leaving the trapped bird, a steady hand on the tattoo above her breasts. If it decided to attack them, she would be ready.

Yukio shook his head, lowering his gun. This was such a strange situation. Demons didn't normally fall out of the sky and land on decrepit buildings like this. Perhaps someone had sent it here. But who? And why?

"Should we call Mephisto?"

Rin couldn't believe what he was seeing—they were just standing there, calmly discussing what to do while the bird remained trapped under a pile of rubble. "What's wrong with you two?" he asked, disgusted. "Someone's hurt!" He dropped his wooden sword and rushed over to pull the debris off the injured bird.

"Rin, don't!" But neither of them made an effort to stop him.

Using his demonic strength, Rin lifted the sheet of metal, tossed it aside, and recoiled at the sight. It was immediately obvious what had made the bird fall out of the sky. A crash, even at that speed, wouldn't have caused wounds like this. The demon cracked open its eyes and wheezed, grateful. He knelt down to help it, but its injuries were too severe; attempting to move it would only hasten its death.

Shura crouched down beside him. "Poor thing. Looks like it got a nasty beating..."

A 'nasty beating' was an understatement. It had practically been mutilated.

Large patches of feathers were missing from its body and Rin could see deep cuts on its skin. One of its legs had been completely torn off, the other was mangled beyond recognition, and it even had a chunk missing from its side, exposing fat and muscle. The blood blended almost seamlessly with its vibrant red plumage.

Suddenly, it raised its head, eyes locked onto the first person it had seen: Rin. "P-please," it gasped, barely able to speak. It had a strangely feminine voice. Rin scooted closer to it, trying to make out its words. "Please," it repeated, louder. "Haren... Find...in True Cross... Tell him," the bird stopped and shuddered violently.

Rin gently placed a hand on its wing to ease its trembling. "Tell him what?" he asked, urging it to continue.

Its eyes drooped shut, but its message was so important it fought with all its remaining strength to stay conscious. "The door," it paused to draw in another shaky breath. "It's open..."

"Door? What door?" It didn't respond. Rin leaned down to check if it was still breathing. "Hey!" He shook it, hoping that would bring it back. "What door!?"

But the bird could hold on no longer, and died quietly under Rin's comforting touch.

Three days later, Rin sat at his desk in the room he shared with his brother, mindlessly staring out the window and ignoring the manga book in front of him. Yukio tucked his phone away and frowned at Rin's unusually quiet demeanor. He was still searching for the bird's master, but his efforts so far had proved to be fruitless—he didn't know the demon's name, and all he had to identify it was a long, red feather taken from its corpse. Naturally, none of the exorcists he questioned recognized it.

Yukio sighed softly to himself and stood, catching Rin's attention. "We're getting a new student today," he said, pulling his exorcist jacket off its hanger. "I have to pick up some paperwork from Mephisto. Don't be late for class."

Rin jumped to his feet with newfound energy. "Can I come with you?"

Great... Yukio was afraid he would ask that.

"Listen, Nii-san," he began, forcing himself to sound unsympathetic. "This needs to stop. You don't have time to waste on frivolous things like chasing down a familiar's master."

All the enthusiasm dropped from Rin's face. "It's not a waste of time."

"Yes, it is." Yukio paused, trying to figure out how to convince his brother to be done with this nonsense. "We don't know the first thing about this demon. What if its master is on the other side of the world?"

The answer seemed obvious to him. "The bird said he was in True Cross. If not, I'll just send a letter with the feather."

"And if its another demon?"

Rin merely shrugged, unconcerned. "Then I'll figure something out."

"You have more important things to worry about right now, Nii-san!" Yukio gritted his teeth, frustrated. Why didn't his brother ever listen to him? "What about the Exorcist Exam? And your training with Shura?"

"I can still study while I look for it!" he snapped, as stubborn as ever. "I'm not going to give up!"

"Why? It doesn't have anything to do with us!"

"Because it asked me!" Rin clenched his fists at his sides, clearly upset. "It was its dying wish! I won't ignore it!"

Yukio shook his head. This argument would go no where—both boys were too stubborn to give in to the other. "Fine." Yukio, being more mature than Rin, eventually conceded, if only to end their yelling. "But, after you ask Mephisto, you head straight to class."

Rin's bright smile immediately returned. "Yes sir!"

The demon king looked up with a grin as the twins entered his office unannounced. "Ah, Rin! What a pleasant surprise!" Yukio sat in one of the leather chairs while Rin approached his desk. "How goes your training?"

Rin flushed. "I, uh...still can't beat Shura," he muttered.

"Oh dear. Is there anything I can do to help?"

"Actually, I came to ask you about this." He pulled out the feather and handed it over.

Mephisto accepted it and twirled it between his fingers. The feather was long and wide with a coarse, stiff texture. It was mostly red, but dotted with yellow and white near the shaft. The ends of the feather quickly faded from a dark, vibrant red to a lighter, more neon shade. He hummed thoughtfully and rested his chin in a hand as he examined it.

Rin watched him closely for any signs of recognition. "I'm trying to find the name of the demon. It...died a few days ago."

He shook his head solemnly and passed it back to Rin. "I'm not as familiar with beasts as I'd like to admit. Perhaps you could ask Amaimon? He's surprisingly knowledgeable about Gehenna's wildlife."

Rin made a sour face at the suggestion. Despite how determined he was to find the familiar's master, he was even more determined to avoid Amaimon. "Uh, no. I can find it on my own." He carefully tucked it back into his pocket. "So, who's the new student?"

"Ah! Her name is—"

"Nii-san." Yukio's firm voice silenced Mephisto mid-sentence. "We had a deal, remember?"

"But..." he stopped himself and sighed. "Right—I should study a little before class."

Yukio smiled approvingly. "I'll be right there." Once his brother was gone, he turned back to Mephisto, his expression no longer friendly. "I hope you have a good explanation as to why I have to pick this file up in person."

The demon king dug out the student's paperwork from underneath the mess decorating his desk. "I wanted to warn you." He slid the folder over to him. "Miss Evelyn isn't exactly...normal."

"Is she a half-breed?" Coming from a man of Mephisto's...caliber, that could mean anything.

"Something like that." He leaned back in his chair and gestured to the file, inviting Yukio to skim through it.

He complied.

Her file only contained a single page: a standard questionnaire every student had to fill out when they arrived at True Cross Academy.

Sachiko Evelyn. Fifteen years old. Birth date June third. Blood type XA negative, (that was concrete proof she had demonic ancestry.) Doctor meister. Homeschooled previously...

He flipped it over, disappointed to find more short, vague responses. Judging from her overly succinct paperwork, Sachiko seemed to be the epitome of normal. He lowered the paper and raised a brow at Mephisto, uncertain of what to think.

"Well?" Yukio shrugged, and the demon simply grinned, evidently amused by his reaction. "Miss Evelyn is a cross-breed."

"Cross-breed?" Yukio repeated it absently to himself, his face clouded as he struggled to find the words that would properly convey his thoughts.

Cross-breeds were similar to half-breeds in that they were both a mixture of human and demon. However, while half-breeds generally resulted from high-level demons who had the ability to take on a human form, cross-breeds resulted from...well, beasts. There was no kinder way to word it. One of Sachiko's parents was a low-level demon that knew how to feed itself and nothing more. The subspecies was also notorious for their lack of empathy and intelligence—and for being utterly uncontrollable and undeniably violent. But this was simply what he had heard from other exorcists; he had never actually met one before.

The Order made it clear they would not tolerate cross-breeds among their ranks. They considered them abominations—an unnatural mix of human and animal. Perhaps having one at his school was Mephisto's way of mocking them. Of course, Yukio could never be certain of anything when it came to Mephisto.

"I know what you're thinking," he continued in response to Yukio's silence, "but I assure you that most of the rumors you've herd about cross-breeds are not true."

"Most?" That meant either the Order was spreading lies, or Mephisto was. Neither thought was comforting.

"Miss Evelyn is indeed a little...empty-headed," he explained gently, "but she is very well-mannered."

Yukio turned his attention back to the paper in his hands. "Why, exactly, are you letting her attend cram school so late in the year?" The exam was only five months away and, according to Sachiko's file, she had no prior exorcist training. Even if Mephisto was lying and she was some kind of undiscovered genius, there was no way she could catch up in time to pass.

"She approached me and begged me to accept her application. How could I deny a beautiful, young girl the right to a proper education?"

He glanced up from her file, suspicious. Something mischievous was seething just behind that condescending smile. "This doesn't have anything to do with Rin, does it?"

"Of course not!" he chuckled, voice saturated with innocent surprise. "I have absolutely no intentions of hindering Rin's chances of becoming an exorcist."

Yukio closed the file with an audible snap. He had no choice but to trust the demon king. For now. "I'll keep an eye on her," he said, "but I am not responsible for her if she fails."

"Fair enough." Mephisto waved a hand, dismissing him. "Let me know if Rin happens to find the name of that demon he's searching for."

Yukio stood, bowed slightly in respect, and left, closing the door quietly behind him. Not a moment passed before crumbs unceremoniously landed on Mephisto's desk and an incessant crunching sound filled the room. He glared up at his brother, who was, somehow, hanging precariously from the ceiling, (and upside down no less.) His arms were filled with food and various Japanese souvenirs.

"Fenghuang," he said suddenly, his mouth full of salty snacks.

"Dear brother," Mephisto started, his voice tense and dangerous. "I appreciate you trying to share your lunch with me, but could you do it somewhere else?" He brushed half-chewed crumbs off the shoulder of his fine suit.

"That was a tail feather from Fenghuang."

"Amaimon," he growled, annoyed at being ignored.

Amaimon eventually obeyed his brother and moved to his favorite spot in front of the television. "Do you think Moloch's door is open now?" He glanced over his shoulder at the older demon.

"Without a doubt." Mephisto spoke with unveiled delight, a devilish smirk stretching slowly across his face. "Only time will tell what our younger brother will do. Will he allow a vicious, ancient demon to freely roam the mountainside, or will he let innocent, young Sachiko Evelyn fall to her fate?"

Amaimon, as aloof as always, shoved a handful of chips into his mouth and turned back to the TV. "Mhm."