The two stood in silence for a few seconds until Yukio's lips slowly left Ryuuji's.
He stared lustfully at the human, only an inch away from his face.
"Wh-what're you doing?" Ryuuji whispered, his voice trailing.
Yukio caressed his face.
"What? If one loves someone, they kiss them. Isn't that common sense?"
Rin stared at the door, sweat dripping down his trembling body.
Calm down. There's nothing to be nervous about-
"Rin!" a panting voice called from behind, making the demon jump. "I wasn't expecting to see you here."
"Shiemi? What're you doing here?"
"I'm here for Exorcist training," Shiemi replied, out of breath.
"You're an Exorcist!?"
The blonde didn't seem to hear his question, as she hastily opened the door, ignoring him.
"Sorry I'm late!"
"You're late again?" a familiar voice asked. "You're hopeless."
Rin's eyes widened. Sitting separately in the room were Izumo, who had greeted them, Shima, Ryuuji, and Konekomaru.
"Okumura-kun? You're training to be an Exorcist, too?" Konekomaru asked, looking up from a book.
The shock turned to joy, as a smile worked its way onto Rin's face. At least he wouldn't have to be undergoing any of the hardships alone.
"Yeah!" he chirped as he sat next to Shima and Konekomaru. "It's nice to see I'll be doing it with you guys."
Shima put his arm around him.
"You said it, buddy."
The only one who didn't seem to notice Rin was Ryuuji. He was anxiously staring at his desk, his eyes narrowed and his fists slightly shaking. Memories from that morning kept replaying before his eyes.
"You're a really cute boy," Yukio had said. "Why don't we get to know each other better?"
Ryuuji slowly moved his first two fingers to his lips.
For the lower class, all that was required was to kill a small goblin that was ensnared in chains, snarling at the person in front of it.
"By the power of God, I command you, leave this place-"
None of Rin's chants seemed to be fazing it. As he continued, all he did was put pressure on his own body.
Why does this hurt? All I'm doing is repeating Bible verses!
Blue flames started to spark from his side. Panic swept over him, he didn't know what to do. He stopped chanting, trying to subdue his flames before someone could see them. A sharp pain struck his sides, and he fell on the ground, moaning in pain.
Shiemi stared at him worriedly from her seat, resisting the urge to rush and hug him.
"Nice try," the teacher said as he helped him up. "Return to your seat."
The demon mutt slowly walked over to the desk, hanging his head in shame.
"Are you okay?" Shiemi asked as she scooted her chair closer to him. "Did you hurt yourself?"
Rin blushed as the beauty moved her hand towards his body.
"I-I'm fine," he replied, averting his eyes. "I'll get it right next time."
"Do you mind if I give you some advice?" He turned back to look her in the eye. "Hostility only helps demons grow stronger, as they're pure evil that feed off of others' hate. Next time, try being a little more gentle. Almost as if-" She looking at the ceiling, humming in thought, until turning back to him with a smile. "Like kindness is the strongest weapon!"
Rin frowned.
"Thanks."
The raven stared at the sidewalk he was moving along, his hands in his pockets.
Gentleness, he thought to himself. I don't know gentleness. I wasn't allowed to have any senses other than the sense to kill.
A loud cry of a cat blared from around the corner, immediately earning his attention. Kuro bolted towards him.
"Kuro!"
"Rin! Help me!"
As he came closer, the blood on his jet black fur became visible.
A middle aged man ran after him, holding a bat.
"Give me that thing!" he snapped as Kuro jumped into Rin's arms.
"I'm sorry!" Kuro cried. "I didn't know that fish was yours!"
The man came to a halt at the bizarre sight of blue flames igniting around the young boy's body. His eyes were narrow, and a long black tail appearing behind him.
"What the hell are you doing to Kuro?" he growled.
Rin charged to punch him in the face, knocking him into a lamppost. He stood still, snarling for a few seconds, until a gasp escaped him.
What did I just do!? His flames dispersed.
The man slowly stood up. After taking a moment to be dazed, he sprinted away from the demon, screaming.
The mutt stared off into space, trembling, until his knees caved in.
"R-Rin," Kuro said, "I'm sor-"
Rin's grip around his feline tightened.
"What's wrong with me?" he asked, his voice cracking.
"Nothing's wrong with you," a deep voice said above him. "It's just your nature."
"Yukio-"
"God wants to help you, does He?" the younger demon asked. "It looks to me like wanting to follow Him hurts you. You're a demon. You can't follow the ways of Christ, it's only your nature." He held out his hand. "Why don't you come back home with me and Father, where things are nice and simple."
Memories washed over the teen, bashing against his conscience creating a numbing pain in his chest.
"Go away!" His flames ignited, making Yukio withdraw his hand. "I can't go back to that!"
Yukio sighed.
"You're quite stubborn, aren't you?" he muttered, pushing his glasses up his nose. "Well, nii-san, once you're ready to give up, I'll be waiting for you. Don't worry, I won't tell Father."
His body evaporated into blue flames.
After a moment of silence, Kuro looked up at his master. "Rin, are you all right?"
Rin slowly stood up, still holding the small creature.
"I'm just-" His voice was still cracked. "No. No, I'm not all right."
"There you are!" Shiemi called as she ran up to him. "Sorry I'm late, clean up du-" She noticed the distraught expression on his face, and the blood on Kuro's fur. "What happ-"
"Don't touch me!" Rin yelled as he slapped her hand away from him. He looked up, noticing who it was. "Sorry," he said, lowering his voice. "Don't- don't talk to me. I need to be alone right now."
Shiemi stared at him, her hands shaking.
Another set of eyes were watching him from the darkness.
What's Rin doing in this world?
