I do apologize for the wait. Enjoy~!

The Abyss Also Gazes

"Brother, can't I play with him just a little more?"

Mephisto turned to glare at Amaimon, who was hunched beside him chewing on one of his long, sharp fingernails. Amaimon's deep green eyes were focused on their youngest brother, Rin, who was in the yard with his friends. Rin seemed to be having a great time and was completely oblivious to their spying.

"No. If you play with him too much, you'll break him," Mephisto said harshly. "Father has plans for the boy, yet."

Like usual, Amaimon wasn't listening. Mephisto rolled his eyes and glanced down at Rin as well. He'd never expected the half-demon to regain the trust of his fellow students after being exposed as Satan's son, nor had he expected Rin to have the courage to face his flames and master them. Mephisto was beginning to doubt that father would be able to manipulate Rin the way he wanted.

Mephisto's lips curled into a smile. Maybe it was time for the plans to change. "On second thought," he said. "I think I'll let you play with him after all."

The only sign Amaimon heard was a sharp crack as his teeth bit through the nail.

xxx

It had been five and half months since Rin had shown his flames, and he never thought he'd see his friends look at him with anything other than hatred and distrust again. They had been so angry that it hurt to remember, but Rin refused to lose them. They were the only friends he'd ever had; he couldn't bear to be alone again. So, though a great deal of effort and personal risk, he'd finally proved to them that he was still the same harmless goofball they'd known and loved (or, at least, liked).

Rin felt his heart swell in his chest as he laughed with them. He knew he should be practicing with his flames, or working with his sword, but he couldn't bring himself to leave. Shura would be around any moment to drag him off to training, anyway, since she seemed to have made it her job to make sure he passed his exorcist exam. Thanks to that damn court of exorcists, he would take his exam only six months after he'd shown his flames. It was so unfair.

Still, even though he'd only had six months to prepare, Rin was feeling pretty confident. Shura had taught him so much about his flames and his demon sword, Kurikara, that he thought his head might explode, and Yukio, unsympathetic brother that he was, always made sure Rin was studying, never letting him have a moment of peace.

"Brother!"

Speaking of Yukio...

Rin sighed and looked up at Yukio, who was standing over him with his arms crossed. He knew that stern look well; Yukio was annoyed at him for lounging around when he only had a few more weeks until his exorcism exam.

"How can you possibly be lounging around when you only have a few more weeks until your exorcism exam?"

Called it.

"I can't study all the time, four-eyes," Rin protested. Yukio's glasses flashed.

"Now is not the time to be getting lazy; did you forget that if you fail to pass you'll be executed?"

Yukio's words effectively killed the mood. Suddenly, Bon, Shiemi, Konekomaru, Shima, and even Izumo were looking somber and uneasy. Rin sighed and got to his feet.

"Fine, I'll study some more. Sheesh."

The tension lifted, but before Rin could take more than a few steps towards the training building, he sensed something about to attack him. He quickly dodged to the side, instantly reaching to protect his sword. It wasn't a second too soon, for a familiar blur of green went rushing past, its grabby hand centimeters away from snatching the Kurikara.

Amaimon!

Flashbacks of their last battle raced through Rin's mind, filling him with fear. Amaimon was too much for his friends to handle; Yukio had to get them out of here, and fast!

Yukio must have read his mind. "Esquires, hurry and get inside the dorms!" The others hesitated, but when they saw Rin unsheathe his sword, letting the blue flames flood through him, they obeyed. Yukio made sure they were safely out of the way before he ran back and stood at his brother's side.

Amaimon paused, staring pensively from the barrels of Yukio's guns to the sharp edge of Rin's fiery sword. He hadn't bargained for two-against-one. This was going to be even more fun than he'd imagined!

"Greetings, little brother," Amaimon said, ignoring Yukio for the time being. "I see you're learned to play 'keep away' much better than last time."

"That's not all I've learned!" Rin snarled. He rushed forward, fangs bared. Yukio cursed his brother's impetuousness as he hurried to back Rin up. Patience was one of the few lessons that he and Shura had been unable to pound into his brother's thick head.

Rin roared as he slashed at Amaimon. When they had last fought, he had been clumsy wielding his sword, lacking skill and training; now, Amaimon's eyes widened as he barely managed to avoid the lightning-fast strikes. Amaimon grinned wildly when the sword clipped his ribcage, and laughed out loud when Rin stabbed him through the shoulder.

"This is so great!" Amaimon exclaimed. He seized Rin's sword and yanked it out of his body just in time to dodge the rain of bullets Yukio shot at him. Amaimon kept on laughing as he retreated across the campus. This was too fun! He hadn't been in a fight like this in centuries!

It took Amaimon almost ten minutes to remember the little key in his pocket. He knew big brother would be disappointed if he didn't carry out his orders, so he pouted and put on a burst of speed. Taking the key out of his pocket, Amaimon skipped over to a door, put the key into the lock, then he turned it and waited for Rin to charge at him. It didn't take long. At the last second, Amaimon nimbly slipped out of the way and opened the door. Rin's eyes widened at the terrifying sight before him, but it was too late to stop.

He fell through the open doorway.