A/N:

Hails: Sorry about that cliffhanger from last chapter (actually, no I'm not. I have zero regrets.)

I disregard any claims to the characters, setting, or plot of Blue Exorcist/青の祓魔師, which are a property of the mangaka Kazue Kato. I'm just borrowing them for a little non-profit fun.


"I imagine one of the reasons people cling to their hates so stubbornly is because they sense, once hate is gone, they will be forced to deal with pain."
― James Baldwin, The Fire Next Time


Yukio needed less than a second to register the fast acting peril. His vision jumped from place to place, analyzing the situation: Shiemi tied up, his whole pack tied up back to back, each one of them snarling with the ferocity of wild beasts. Scorched grass, burnt soil, ash dancing in the midnight air. Fanged grins, fiery feathers, and black eyes. Yukio barely registered the sound of Rin crying out as a nearby officer gripped him by his thick head of hair and yanked, dragging him across the slushy mud and effortlessly separating the Kurikara's sleek red bag from between his shoulder blades.

"Well, that's one twin. Now, where's the other?" Tōdō's simper would forever be ingrained into Yukio's mind—had been since their first meeting. ("The face of a demon. That's the real you.")

Yukio felt a growl scratch the back of his throat. He hoisted himself from the water as quickly as a bullet, snatched up a nearby fallen branch—one he guessed had been wielded by one of his friends before their defeat—and rushed Tōdō with gritted teeth. The Phoenix of a man grabbed the limb midway despite the force Yukio applied behind it. He pulled it from Tōdō's grip for a second, swinging it back around to hit the man in the stomach. Really, Yukio shouldn't have expected it to do anything and somehow he still found himself shocked that Tōdō didn't even so much as recoil. Before Yukio could comprehend the overwhelming strength needed to flip him on his back, Tōdō already had him there.

"Still fighting back? Even after all this time?" Tōdō asked. He tossed the stick behind him, crouched down, and simply observed the winded, enraged boy heaving on the ground. Yukio's bitter scowl was easy on the eyes, almost like an oil-painted masterpiece. "Close combat's not really your style, is it? You're more of a... range fighter."

"Bite me," Yukio hissed. True, he wasn't exactly the greatest of martial artists. He knew basic and advanced hand to hand and bits and pieces of both Tai Chi and Ninjutsu, small things Shura had forced him to learn. She seemed to have a blast knocking him on his ass more than once.

"Oh-ho!" Tōdō threw his head back and laughed haughtily. His gaze continued to linger over Yukio, the way his chest rose and fell in a mix of wrath and struggle to breathe. "I like your fire, boy. Can I see more of it?"

A deafening roar tore its way through Yukio's throat, an instinct being nurtured by painfully submissive, long years spent broken emerged from a cracked lock. With a burst of energy, he whipped his body around, propelling himself into a low spinning sweep kick followed by a wave of blue flames. Tōdō leaped back to avoid the attack, light on his feet so he wouldn't be knocked off them. Yukio found his footing shortly after, breath being drawn from his lungs as he stared at the sparks of flames scintillating around his figure.

'The flames? Dad wasn't kidding, I really will have an Awakening! But so soon?'

"At what other time would it be, brat? Just like your brother, the blood of the God of Gehenna runs thick in your veins. Your weak body sure took awhile to accommodate it, however."

Yukio subconsciously found himself bearing his teeth, tensing the muscles in his back, and feeling the awfully familiar beginnings of fear-induced trembling start in his fingertips. His left eye ached and burned like something was trying to claw its way out the socket. He clutched the side of his face, internally begged for the pain to ebb away.

"You know, for someone who so vehemently denies their demon status, you have quite the habit of expressing some... nonhuman abilities." Tōdō's voice slammed Yukio's attention back into the physical world.

"Oh, shut up," He snapped back. Above them, thunder rolled across the sky ominously and rain drizzled from the unseen clouds. "Fine, I admit it. You're right. I'm exactly like you and I am a demon. But I guess that makes us different in some aspects because I will still defeat you!"

"I'm sure you will,"

The sarcasm wasn't much help. Hell, it only furthered their desire to fight. They found themselves locked in combat, pushing against each other and still Yukio could only think about his disadvantages, his weaknesses.

'Dammit, I don't have my exorcist gear. I'm not protected and I don't have any weapons.'

"Yukio!" Rin could only look on in terror. Whatever strength his captor had obviously rivaled his own, despite his conclusion that they weren't even a Demon Eater. Huffing adamantly, Rin pulled the officer off of him almost effortlessly, pushed them into a collision of other Illuminati officials. He bounced off his feet, using his weight to shove Tōdō away. He slid across the ground, suddenly ripped from Yukio's grasp. With a biting laugh, he gradually pushed himself to his feet, slow enough so the twins could watch his every move.

"Interrupting a fight that isn't yours?" His question was more of a statement. "That's a bit... primitive... don't you think?"

Rin remained silent, he didn't have the words, couldn't find the words portray his tangle of emotions. He spared a glance at his twin, whose face was contorted into unreadable blankness. Was he scared? Angry at him for getting into a fight that wasn't his? Besides that, Rin never considered his fierce nature and desire to fight for what he loved primitive.

"Rin, primitive means-"

"I know what primitive means, Yukio, I'm not as dumb as you think I am."

"I was just making sure, you seemed confused,"

"I AM NOT. PRIMITIVE. Do I look like some kind of ape to you?!"

Yukio's eyes absently flicked to the base of Rin's tail. On one hand, he was tempted to say 'yes' and take advantage of the fact that he'd never get to say it again once he grew his own tail (somehow that thought wasn't as comforting as he'd hoped.) On the other hand, he was in the middle of engaging in battle and starting a pointless argument with his twin seemed rather, well, pointless.

"As much as I enjoy the banter," Tōdō said abruptly. "I am on a tight schedule. So do me a favor, either surrender or burn to ashes."

"I'll burn you to ashes!" Rin barked, lighting his hands aflame.

"So quick to fight, I like it!" Tōdō grinned. His next opponent, in comparison to Yukio, however, was far more violent than he expected. And his fighting style had no static pattern to it, almost as if he'd mixed together a plethora of styles into one everchanging technique. It was strikingly similar to a certain fiery-haired exorcist, which had its perks. Maybe he wouldn't be too hard to defeat.

There were multiple flaming punches aimed directly at Tōdō's face, which found itself far more evasive than Rin would have liked. "You like leaving your weak spots open, don't you?" Rin believed he should have expected something like this, his nerve endings getting their fair share of hits in a fashion similar to those chi blockers from that one tv show Rin watched when he was younger. He was on the ground in moments.

"Rin!" Yukio screeched. Just how much improvement had Tōdō gained since their last encounter in Kyoto? Just as quick if not quicker, Yukio was grounded into the mud, rain pelting his face a bit harder now. Everything began to sting and prickle unpleasantly, everything inside began to ache. Tōdō's mocking only rubbed salt in the wound.

"A bit chivalrous now, are we?" Yukio wanted to claw his eyes out, spit in his face, he was close enough for it. "Really, why do you stay here?"

"If you're trying to tempt me into leaving, it won't work!" He bit out. "I know everything, I have the truth. You can't use anything against me!"

"Oh, the truth? Good, I'm glad you've been enlightened. Did you get that power you wanted so badly? I think not. Our offer still stands, however, and you're welcome to join us with true enlightenment, gain powers beyond your wildest imagination, become stronger than your brother."

"It's an offer I'd take if I were you. After all, your weakness only slows you down. In this world, you either suffer on the coals of invalidity or rise to the top. You're in the perfect position to take down some of your brothers, you could be welcomed into this family."

'I want nothing to do with your family, you wretched demon!'

"Okay, first of all, you sound like an exorcist. Second of all, are you just now figuring this out?"

"Shut up!" Yukio snarled, attempting (and nearly failing) to sit up straight. "Strength is relative. What may seem strong to one person is weak to another. You can't decide what real strength is by only using Lucifer's standards! It's cowardly to let him speak for you, even if you agree with him!"

"Just like you let the Order step on your standards with theirs?"

"The Order is a hypocritical organization who likes their secrets too much! I fell for it and I am ashamed of such but I would never let you shame me for it. There is nothing you could give me!"

"Except for sanctuary," Tōdō's words made Yukio pause, even as he stooped to the ground and dragged Rin to his feet, capturing his neck in a headlock as if to say 'you want your brother returned safely to you? Then listen to what I say here and now.' Yukio had no choice but to concede. "The True Cross Order will never accept you back. If anything, they'll only hold you in containment, examine you and treat you more like an animal than they ever have. The Illuminati can provide you everything the Order could ever promise you with extra permissions. Safety, protection, wisdom, the liberty of speaking freely, and this offer only extends to you-"

"Fuck off, bird furry!" Rin gnarled, clawing at Tōdō's rapidly healing arm. Unfortunately, he didn't even seem to flinch at the scratches or shreds of his uniform hanging off his limb. "Yukio and I are a package deal! You want one of us, you get both of us!"

Tōdō shrugged nonchalantly. "Alright then. I'm sure Lucifer wouldn't mind a bonus. Besides, he's had some curiosity about your little sword for awhile now."

"Wait... wha...?"

Yukio made an indescribable face and threw his hands in the air incredulously. "Really, Rin? Did you really just-"

"I'm sorry!" Rin whined. "I thought he was just gonna tell me to shut up like every adult does!"

"No, you didn't think! Tōdō isn't your average adult!" Yukio exclaimed. "He vored a goddamn flaming bird, we talked about this!"

Someone in the militia of still standing if not slightly bruised Illuminati soldiers snorted, another hit one of his friends over the head and told him to stop laughing, two others were already slapping hands over the mouth of someone else—for some reason, they found Yukio's sass amusing.

"V... vored?"

Both twins clamped their mouths shut and tried not to look at each other, Tōdō, or Shiemi, who was currently about to get a lesson from Shima—the only bastard not tied up—on the topic of modern teenager slang much to a very pissed off Izumo's chagrin.

'Don't laugh, don't laugh, don't laugh, don'tlaughdon'tlaughdon'tlaugh, goddamit Yukio this is supposed to be a serious moment!'

"Well, besides the point," Tōdō went on. "I can handle a package deal. I'm sure Lucifer will only have him returned to the Order later anyhow."

"You can only take me willingly!"

"Taking you willingly is my style, however-" Tōdō deliberately pushed Rin in the direction of an officer of his same standing, who didn't hesitate in the slightest to yank out a weapon—a gun with no doubt pure silver bullets loaded into it, unlike the jackets Yukio had so often used for his firearms. Now, where on Earth did they get a weapon of such power? "-It is not the style of one of my colleagues. They don't hesitate to get the job done. After all, I do have my orders and I am not allowed to come back without you in tow."

"Damn you," Yukio hissed.

"What you think a little bullet is gonna hurt me?" Rin bluffed. His brother shot him a look of worry. Surely, Yukio believed, even he had to know the dangers of pure silver.

"Now then," Tōdō said, snapping his fingers with a wide smile cracking his face apart. "Will you come with us willingly, leave this garden to its lovely owner and these exorcists in training or risk the death of your brother?"

"Burn in hell," Yukio made an animalistic noise, one that sounded in no way human. His gaze flickered to a wide-eyed, struggling Shiemi who seemed more than ready to throw down. He could feel the anticipating stares of those around him, desiring for an answer, waiting for him to make a decision. Yukio had always sworn to protect Rin but did he really want to after everything that had happened? With a defeated slouch, he held his hands out in resignation.

"Fine, I surrender."


Jones slowed the car in front of the police station, barely beating the scrambling kids in his backseat out onto the sidewalk. They practically shoved him towards the entrance, begging for his cooperation.

"Alright, alright," He muttered, opening the swinging door. He pointed them towards the chairs leaned up against the wall, which they scurried over to a bit reluctantly. Jones exchanged words with a nearby worker and he disappeared into the back, leaving Paku and Godaīn in a tense quietness.

Paku swung her legs back and forth nervously. Godaīn twiddled his fingers, bit his lip. Somehow the paranoia still hung thick in the air. It was suffocating.

"Do you think this'll do it?" Godaīn asked suddenly.

Paku couldn't make much noise, struggled to think of what to say. She opted to shrug instead, whispering bits and pieces of her jumbled thoughts quietly.

"Who knows? I just really want to protect Izumo. She's already done so much for me so I'm gonna pay her back."

Godaīn was silent for a moment, registering the information. 'All of a sudden, conversation time!' "Kamiki really means a lot to you, doesn't she?"

"More than you will ever know," Paku admitted. Parts of her history shared with the Shrine Maiden flashed behind her closed eyelids. Days of watching her practice in a red hakama, perform in white kimono, and her hair would fly with the intermingled beads and ribbons. Watching her come back in bandages with the exwires after the Illuminati's declaration of war had been both a relief and a smack in the face. "And what about you? Why would you of all people choose to help me?"

The boy of interest stiffened, continuing to fiddle and shuffle. "To be honest, I don't really know. Okumura is my classmate and all we really know about each other is the little things. Like, I know his favorite color and what video games he likes to play the most and that he's really good at cooking and that's about it. You know, aside from the fact that he's the... uh..."

"Son of Satan?" Paku finished.

"Yeah," Godaīn confirmed. "Not that that makes him a bad person but still. He worked really hard to help me out so I guess... I'm doing the same thing you are. Paying him back for being a good friend."

Paku let out a laugh. It was small, quiet, and held no passion to its name. The whole action made Godaīn's heart pang with pity. Somehow that was the only thing he could muster.

"You didn't strike me as the type," She murmured, not meeting his eyes for some odd reason.

"I didn't exactly think I was the type, either."


Rin lashed out, screaming as he charged the metal wall, desperately trying to break the demon-proof cuffs around his wrists. He panted, resting his forehead against the cool metal surface for a moment. He turned around and stormed the wall, slamming the cuffs against it, flaring up in blue, and failing once more. Off to the side, his brother was far quieter. He ignored the cuffs, closed his eyes whilst contemplating his situation.

'This is my fault-' BANG! 'If I had been stronger, then maybe I wouldn't have gotten captured-' BANG! 'Maybe I wouldn't have brought Rin down with me.'

"DAMMIT!" Rin hollered, hurling his wrists against the plane's interior, where they were both secured tightly for suspicion of a breakout. For what anyone could make out, it seemed to be a classic cargo plane with a simple design and dark colors so it wouldn't stick out in the night sky. Intelligent choices on the Illuminati's part. The plane model wasn't as interesting to Rin, however. "Damn you, damn you! Break!"

Yukio cracked his eyes open a bit, making out Rin's vexed form as he continued in his fruitless endeavor. Finally, he sighed, choosing to speak up in an attempt to silence the noise. Really, how could he depreciate himself if Rin was raising a ruckus like a construction site on full throttle?

"Give it up, Rin, those are anti-demon cuffs. They're not going to-" BANG! CLINK-CLATTER! "...Break."

Rin stood triumphantly, ripping the tough, inch-thick metal off his body as his tail wagged behind him, stimulated by solving the puzzle. Smugly, he said: "You were saying?"

Color Yukio Okumura both impressed and shocked his twin had managed such a feat. Demon-proof manacles usually couldn't hold most demons. Then again, he supposed Rin wasn't like most demons and his strength was climbing by the day. He stared for a moment then held out his own hands out a bit expectantly as if to say 'Can you break mine? I'm not strong enough.'

Quietly, pensively, Rin approached Yukio and knelt down in front of him, wrapping his fingers around the cuffs and beginning to pull gingerly at the plates of steel as though he were worried of breaking his brother's hands before he broke the confines.

"How are you capable of the impossible things?" Yukio whispered in awe, watching with fascination as the metal bent like putty to Rin's whim and will. Rin shrugged, finding that the task before him was much easier, less strenuous and with less risk than breaking his own restraints.

"I dunno, I'm stubborn," He muttered. With a deep breath, he tore the metal. It snapped, unclean and jagged. Bits of shrapnel fell to the floor, unsafe to so much as place a pressured limb against. Rin shook his hands out and Yukio massaged his wrists, rubbing away the dull ache the lack of atmosphere gave him. "And I don't like being trapped. Dad in heaven knows damn well I don't take well to staying in a small space for long."

Yukio knew this well. The only time the words 'Rin' and 'grounded' were ever in the same sentence is when there was a 'doesn't do getting' in between them. Anytime Fujimoto tried usually resulted in Rin sneaking out the window and accidentally getting locked outside because the poor reverend, bless his heart, had locked up the whole monastery, usually before his wild eldest got back. There was a tree with a worn branch out front that Rin had frequented because of this.

'How are you so capable of rebellion? Why does it come so easy to you? Aren't you afraid of punishment from being disobedient?' Yukio asked himself a bit dejectedly. Why couldn't he be more like his brother; more courageous?

Rin shrugged again. "Dad used to hit me over the head or throw a plastic plate at me every time I did something wrong. I'm not really afraid of a little yelling, either. I've been taking it ever since I was a toddler so I'm used to it."

"What?" Yukio vocalized in confusion. 'I didn't say that out loud.'

It was almost like Rin hadn't heard him a second time because all that was left was an exhale and Rin slumping against the wall. His flames extinguished and it was then Yukio realized how dark and cold it was without them. Temporarily, they were almost like a safety blanket, warm and comforting. There was a certain silence floating in the space around them but it wasn't the usual suffocating kind Yukio had familiarized himself with. It was different, content and rich with emotion. It was different but so utterly pleasant and Yukio wished he could have more.

"What do you think they'll do with us?" Rin wondered.

Yukio wanted to make some kind of action with his shoulders, be a bit more expressive but he wouldn't know what to do. "I couldn't say. Imprison us, attempt to recruit us and fail, maybe we'll be worth something in terms of experimentation."

Rin swallowed the lump in his throat at that. Somehow his brother sounded a bit too cold and emotionless to be saying things like that. Part of him inwardly pleaded with Yukio to show some emotion, an indication of feeling, even a teary-eyed blink might sate him. The lack of reaction kind of stung.

"O... oh." Really? Was that all Rin could say? Surely he had more words than that. He just had to squeeze them out like a toddler trying to pinch the last itty bitty remnants of toothpaste from the tube. "How are we gonna escape?"

"Escape? There's no escape," Yukio said defeatedly. He drew himself up into a ball, hugging his knees. It was just a bit reminiscent of how often he did it as a scared child. "God knows where they're even taking us. But the True Cross Order won't be able to find us and neither will your friends. Illuminati headquarters have never been found by anyone. They're too discreet."

"Wooooow, you really are hopeless," Rin snarked, ignoring the unimpressed eyeroll Yukio made. "And what's with all that 'my friends' nonsense? They're your friends too! And they always find a way. And even if they didn't, they know we're tough enough to get through it. The Illuminati can't bring us down that easily!"

"Rin-"

"You just got your powers too! You can't really be thinking of just straight up surrendering to them. There's so much you have to learn."

There was a slight pause as Rin waited for a response. "Rin... I'm so tired. I just want to rest."

"Ara, ara..." Rin muttered, waving his hand around apathetically. "You too?" Yukio shot him a brief glanced, wondering what on Earth his brother meant by that. "I get it, yanno? I don't always like doing things either. But if I gave up now, I'd never get to be Paladin, I'd never get to defeat Satan. What good would that do?"

"Pfft, like you could defeat me, you insolent brat. You're just a pissbaby."

"You know, Shura used to tell me that despite our anger and sadness, all we really need to do is scream, let out all our condensed emotion, and move on."

"Scream?"

"Yeah. Come on, try it with me."

"Rin, no-"

Yukio barely got in a word as Rin howled as loud as he could, like a wolf to the moon. It was deafening and broken and for a moment he thought Rin might hack his lungs up from the strain. Despite it all, he found a warm, addicting rush of euphoria flood through him. He was on his feet in seconds, arching his back and yelling at the metal sky. The empty cargo hold echoed back the outcry hauntingly and sharp in a manner that made Yukio's ears ring.

"Your turn!" Rin exclaimed, grinning at the quiet brother.

As expected, Yukio only had one answer. "No."

"Oh, come on!" Rin protested, slouching and shaping his mouth into an open frown. "You never express yourself. It'd do you some good, I promise. Just take a deep breath, open your mouth, and let it all out!"

"Rin-"

Once again, Yukio was cut off by another ecstatic shriek filling the thick air. Rin was practically bouncing around right now, screaming Sia and being as loud as was both humanly and inhumanly possible.

"Nooo, Rin, stop, are you trying to wrack up attention?! One of those Illuminati officers is gonna come down here and see what all the racket is." Yukio hissed.

"Good!" Rin screeched unabashedly. "Let them come! They can't do any more damage to me than they already have unless they never want to see the light of day ever again. I will not be silenced like a damn puppet!" He continued. "You try, Yukio."

"Do not. Jeez, brat, you're the most annoying thing this side of the Gehennan-Assiahn veil."

Somehow the words were beginning to take root in Yukio's mind. Seeing his brother whoop and wail like a fire truck in his boxers was somehow lowering his blood pressure, dare he even say cheering him up? Maybe some part of him was just pleased to have something to laugh about or maybe the thought of pissing off Satan was evoking a petty side that wanted to get back at everything in his life that merely seemed to cause him pain.

Adjusting his position, Yukio pushed himself up against the wall and unsteadily got to his feet. Rin's tail began wagging back and forth frantically, to and fro elatedly. He practically squeaked upon seeing the rare genuine smile Yukio wore sometimes.

"You're gonna do it?"

"Just once."

"Oh, FOR THE LOVE OF-"

Yukio didn't hear the end of Satan's statement. He was a bit wobbly and feeling far too good about himself to let this get him down. He was halfway through inhaling when something between a squeak and gasp somehow slipped past his lips. All the air suddenly whooshed out of his lungs and he couldn't breathe anymore. He doubled over, trying to find any relief of oxygen.

"Really?" Rin asked, a bit unimpressed as he folded his arms. "That's all you've got?"

"Something's wrong..." Yukio whispered.

Rin made a quiet noise of surprise, only staring as a wave of concern crashed into him. "Huh? Y-Yukio? Are you okay?" He immediately panicked as Yukio, suddenly expunged of any trace of mirth, fell to the frigid, metal floor and began heaving. He immediately dropped down next to his brother. "Yukio!? Yukio! What's wrong, talk to me!"

"Something's wrong..." Yukio repeated, finally finding his breath. He crumpled, curling into fetal position and clutching his head, unable to hold in the tears that trickled over the bridge of his nose or the slightly suppressed whimpered aching at the point in his esophagus behind his heart. "It hurts. Everything hurts."

"Yukio?" Rin called for his brother again, gingerly pulling Yukio's head into his lap. The gasp of pain Yukio released made Rin recoil a bit. "Yukio, what's wrong? What's happening?! You're scaring me!"

Rin's heart was in his throat and it beat like a percussionist at a timpani drum―hard and fast. A layer of goosebumps coasted his bare skin and a sinking feeling registered, like a rock that was somehow both hot and cold simultaneously had dropped into the pit of his stomach. His chest began to ache and he knew he was absolutely helpless to do a single thing in this moment. His ribcage began to expand and contracted rapidly. Somewhere in his haze of a growing uncontrollable rage, his eyes locked onto the beady eye of a security camera glaring at him, penetrating his soul.

And the room erupted into blue flames.


Shiemi struggled against the bindings wrapped around her form, grunting as she wiggled around a bit. To her left, Konekomaru was doing the same and Suguro behind her had been eerily still for a while. On her right, Izumo was hissing a slew of curse words, every single one of them directed at Shima.

"Damn him," She growled. "Damn him to the deepest pits of hell, fucking traitor."

Suguro looked like he wanted to say something about her mouth and it had nothing to do with kissing. Fortunately, Shiemi beat him to the punch.

"Don't give up, Izumo," Shiemi willed urgently. "We can get out of here. We have to! We have to go save Rin and Yuki!"

"Alright, not to risk sounding like an absolute bitch," Izumo started, craning her neck around to look at the grappling blonde unamusedly. "But there's no point in going after them. God knows where they are already and there's no way to get to them. We don't even know where to start."

"Well you risked it and you sounded like it," Suguro muttered. Izumo shot him a glare but miffed as she was, decided not to comment.

"Can you guys not for more than two minutes?" Koneko played the subsitute mediator. "Our first objective should be getting out of here, not bickering with each other like..."

Shiemi stopped listening somewhere, intramurally commanding herself not to cry. She couldn't cry, she didn't have time for that, even if crisis management taught her to take a few hours for herself first. Yukio and Rin didn't have time for her to be selfish.

'Don't worry, guys. I'm gonna save you!'


Lucifer could care less about his own health. His being thrummed excitedly even as he hobbled down the hallway with a rather averse Homare holding onto him. She had practically commanded him to stay in bed but the King of Light was having none of that―he was so close to victory he could more than taste it, teasing the pad of his tongue. What was the emotion humans so readily called it? Ecstasy? He couldn't be sure but he didn't bother. His mind was other places.

He nearly ran to the catwalk inside the landing bay of Dominus Liminis, still steadied by Homare and now the railing of the track. His green eyes traced the blinking of the runway, the glowing batons guiding the pilots and whoever else chose to accompany his military-bred officers. The plane engines roared in his particularly sensitive ears, the noise would make them ring for hours after and still, the memory would hold only positive connotations.

Lucifer had pictured this moment in both daydreams and other kinder things that teased him less than the ability to walk around with a healthy body. He had pictured the moment he'd get to speak to his father face to face once more, he had pictured the moment he'd stare into the flaming eyes of his youngest brother and speak nothing but truth-coated words to him. Severing those ties had been a long-lived fantasy for nearly a quarter of a year. How sweet his allegiance would taste seemed unreal.

"Finally," He breathed with hardly contained bliss. "I have you. Yukio Okumura."


A/N:

Hails: Wow, that was a wild chapter, don't you guys think? I hadn't expected for it to get this action-y but then again it just kinda happens sometimes. Whoops~~ I do appreciate the excitement to come in the next few chapters. Might be longer than I thought it was gonna be.

Remember guys, if you like the story, please leave a review and support your local authors. The encouragement will you get you chapters much faster.

Stay savvy, my friends.
~Hails