A/N Hello, hello! I hope you guys are well and enjoy the chapter. After a handful of years away from writing I'm finally, finally starting to feel my groove again regarding my content. For a moment I was worried it had rusted away. Thank you for your lovely comments, feedback is food : )

Rin discovers he is capable of listening, for better or for worse

By the time Shura had gotten around to explaining their mission the priests had filed back to the room. Snacks and tea had been offered while the case was laid out for them. Bon took notes while Rin asked questions, a system that was both surprising and impressive. He scribbled down notes as Rin's inquisitive nature yielded some really great information.

"So, it's only messing with one person in the house?" Rin asked, pinky finger digging in his ear trying to reach an itch.

Shura nodded, swallowing a bite of sandwich. "Yeah, the parents said their daughter is fine. No traumatic history, both the parents get along well. Mom stays at home, Dad works most of the day. Perfect little family, really. There is no reason their son should be having nightmares like this."

Bon pinned through his notes, confident that they had most of the information needed. "Okay, quick recap. Victim is eight years old, male, lives with his family of three. That's his Mom, Dad and younger sister. The report explains repetitive nightmares, visions of a creature in the middle of the night, most commonly around 3am. Doctor's prescribed sleep aids, which stopped helping after a couple of days, and a child psychologist has raised no cause for concern."

"Yup, that sounds about right." Shura said as she placed her empty plate on the coffee table.

Izumi sighed, hands clutched around his warm mug of coffee. "Poor kid. It must have been pretty serious if they already went to a psychologist."

Kyodo nodded and gave his friend a sympathetic glance, "Typically we don't see many parents that take the religious route, so it's nice they called."

"I don't care who called, I just want to know what thinks it's okay to pick on a little kid like that." Rin grumbled, eyebrows knitted together tightly. Memories of Yukio sobbing at night intruded his thoughts. What he assumed to be the nightmares of a child he now understood were something more sinister. Thankfully they had Father Fujimoto there to drive the monsters back into the closet. An ache kindled in his chest, his younger brother's sobs echoing in his ears.

Rin shook his head in an attempt to fling the invasive memories away. "When do we go? I don't want to sit around while this thing has its fun."

Bon closed his notebook and wrapped a rubber band around it. The rubber band struggled to keep the tattered book together and cling to the pen that Bon wedged against the leather cover. "I don't either, this isn't something that should wait."

'Figured you'd say something like that." Shura nodded as she stood up, toeing her way around the other seated exorcists to leave the room.

Only a brief moment later she returned, folder in hand. She passed it off to Bon before returning to her seat. "That's your case file. You'll need to make sure your physical papers are filed and turned into the Japan branch. Don't forget to fax a copy directly head quarters and file another copy electronically."

Bon held back a wince, "Geeze, you think they'll have enough copies of it?" He flipped the file open, just imaging all the paperwork that had to be done on Mt. Aso. No wonder Yukio was constantly complaining about the extra work Rin caused him.

"It's so they don't get lost. One is a physical copy the Japan branch can access at any time, the other for the Vatican and the third is digital. That's not all," she turned her attention to the senior in the room, "Father Nagatomo, if you're not too busy, they do need a chaperon. Typically it wouldn't be required, as they both are full exorcists now, but the Grigori are dramatic," She leaned back into the couch after grabbing her beer off the table. "They want someone to tag along."

All eyes turned towards the elder priest. Until now he'd been rather quite, listening as the boys asked questions. Shura's guess was he hadn't gotten much sleep last night, the circles under his eyes were a bit darker than normal, his face a bit more sunken. She momentarily wondered if she was asking too much, if he could shoulder the burdens of their late friend. Running the church, picking up the senior assignments and tasks, he already had a surmountable responsibility.

Nagatomo nodded, scratching the stubble on his chin. "I can accompany them. Is it really necessary I stay the whole time? Surely they are capable of such a menial task."

Shura mulled that over, her lip visibly being chewed on as she gave it consideration. "I think the idea is for you to be there but..." she raked Bon and Rin with a calculating gaze, "I'm sure you just being near by will be enough to satisfy the higher ups. Just in case anyone comes poking their nose around to check in, ya know?"

"Alright! Let's g-"

Bon held up his notebook, signaling for Rin to be quite. Rin deflated like a leaking balloon, sitting back in his chair with a small huff. "Is there a day that works best for you, Father? We know you're busy."

"No, no." Nagatomo stood up, the picture of an aging man. Young enough that he could still be agile and energetic when needed, but weathered enough to show. The life of an exorcist was a trying one, his knees popped as he rose to protest the abuse they'd been dealt over the years. "I agree with Rin, this is something that needs to be hastily dealt with. Whenever the family will have us over we will go."

"Alright, well there you have it." Shura chugged the rest of her beer and set the empty can on top of the table. "I'll wait for a phone call, but I gotta jet. I have other things to get around to. Fathers, it was good to see you all again." she said as she stood up, giving a hug to Maruta and a wink to Kyodo.

Izumi met her with another embrace as they all said their goodbyes, mentioning that Shura should come back more often, perhaps for dinner sometime or maybe after mass, anything not work related. Nagatomo assured her he would send updates as needed and offered to walk her out.

The room quieted as Shura and Nagatomo left, leaving Rin and Bon with Kyodo, Izumi and Maruta who had all taken to discussing how much Shura had grown. Long gone was the young, wild and care free girl. Izumi in particular expressed his surprise at how she'd matured and had become so level headed. Not wanting to join their reminiscing Rin turned his attention back to their mission.

"What'd you think?" Rin asked, leaning over to get a glance at the file that Bon was reading over.

"I'm pretty sure it's just a low level demon. Obviously something related to Azazel, King of Spirit. I think getting it to come out will be the difficult part, if it is a demon or a ghost. We'll have to figure out what it is before we can be of any help." Bon said, scanning the file in hopes that there may be a bigger clue, other than the obvious nightmares.

"Do you want to be the one that calls the family?" Rin asked, glancing from the papers up to Bon. "I'm maybe not so good with that. I do better in person."

A grin split onto Bon's face, "Yeah, I can call, don't worry. We don't need you stammering through a phone call. Want to pack us some stuff and I'll go give them a ring? If we're lucky we can get there tonight."

Glad to be feeling useful and excited at the prospect of work Rin hopped up from his chair with enthusiastic agreement. "I gotcha, don't worry about a thing!"

Bon's grin morphed into a broad smile as he watched Rin practically skip out of the room, the expression gently painted onto his features with gentle brush strokes of affection. His attention went back to their mission, oblivious to the priests who had hushed and were watching their conversation, Maruta even going as far as nudging Kyodo in the side with an elbow.

The monastics had noticed that Bon, while by no means an unhappy young man, was stoic. His movements were meticulous, his words well spoken. Comparable to a cornerstone Bon was strong, level headed, and mature, despite his miniature explosions from time to time. Now, looking over their mission, a subconscious smile on his face, it was like the smoothing of a stone. The hard lines of concentration were replaced with his upward lips and soft eyes. Kyodo jabbed Maruta back as they both observed Bon's small moment of tranquility.

"What'd you guys think?" Bon asked, looking up from his papers in time to see Maruta exhale as the wind of knocked out of him by Kyodo's elbow.

"Huh?" Izumi pushed against Maruta, trying to earn some space between himself and the childish behavior ensuing on the couch.

"Think it could be anything serious?" Bon asked, holding up the title sheet from the file.

Giving up his futile efforts Izumi stood up, stepped over Kyodo's legs that were now flailing as he wrestled Maruta and plucked the paper from Bon's outstretched hand.

"I mean," he skimmed over the information, a hand tucked against the back of his neck. "Considering you two have taken on High Level demons, I really don't think this will be a problem." He offered the paper back after giving it another quick scan. "At all."

Bon nodded and took the paper back, carefully replacing it before shutting the file. He looked at the two priests on the couch and attempted to figure out what they were doing. Maruta had Kyodo in a headlock, the smaller priest slowly began turning a dark shade of red. Izumi shook his head at their antics and gave the side of his head a baffled scratch.

"Uh, what's happening?" Bon asked with a quirked eyebrow.

Izumi motioned his hands out in front of him, as if trying to grasp words from thin air helplessly. His mouth moved like words might form, his faced scrunched in effort. Finally he sighed, his arms dropping down to his side, "Who knows."

Mesmerized and slightly concerned Bon watched Kyodo, now a dangerous shade of dark crimson, tap on Maruta's legs. The larger man quickly released his grip with a laugh, pushing Kyodo away from him. Defeated Kyodo slid to the floor, his back against the couch as he gasped for air.

"I just wasn't ready for that," Kyodo panted, shoving Maruta's leg and ignoring his laughter.

Nagatomo had come back, his arms crossed as he watched the spectacle from the archway of the living room. "What is going on?"

Bon shook his head and held up his file as if it proclaimed his innocence with the matter. "Hell if I know. I'm going upstairs. I'll give our client a call and see if they are available tonight."

"Guys, you look ridiculous. I mean really, this is no way-"

Nagatomo's voice faded away as Bon went down the hall and up the stairs. He shook his head with a grin, easily seeing how Rin grew up with such a boisterous personality. It was becoming more evident everyday that there was seldom a quite moment in this house of God, a stark contrast to his own upbringing.

He strode down the hall, peeking into their room to find Rin busy with two open duffle bags on his bed. Trusting him with the packing Bon continued on his way until he reached the end of the hall, turning into a small office that was packed with boxes upon boxes of paperwork. The office desk by the window was orderly enough for Bon who sat and plucked the handset up from the telephone. Flipping the file open he dialed the listed number and leaned back, the chair rocking with his movements.

As the phone rang he idly scanned the contents on the desk, his eyes coming to rest on a old picture of Shiro Fujimoto. There was a striking difference between this photo and the others he had seen, almost as if they were two different people. Shiro's smile was gone, or perhaps not yet found. His eyes held a hard look, one that said he didn't owe the world a moment of time. A machine gun was perched on his shoulder with a cigarette dangling from his lips.

Bon leaned forward and picked the picture up, his thumb brushing over the dust on the glass. Indeed, this could have been a different man all together. This was the picture of a hardened warrior, certainly not a father.

"Hello?" a female voice tore Bon's attention from the photo.

"Hello!" he stumbled, dropping the picture onto the desk. He cleared his throat quickly, trying to recover. "Hello, this is Suguro Ryuji, I work for the Order of the True Cross. We received your request for assistance. Is this Ito Sakura?"

Across the phone Bon could hear the sigh of relief, "Thank goodness. You're the exorcists, right? I'm not sure how much longer we could handle this." Her voice began to quaver, shaking sympathy into Bon, "It just keeps getting worse. We've tried everything. Medicine, prayer, all the doctors say he is fine but every night he wakes up."

A helpless sob escaped from her forcing Bon's frown to deepened. As much as he wanted to console the woman he needed to push forward if he was to be of any substantial assistance. "Ma'am, we are here to help. I just need some information from you and then we can schedule a visit. Don't worry, we'll get this taken care of."

"I'm so sorry," the woman sniffed, clearly trying to hold herself together. "We have just become so desperate. I don't mean to fall apart like this."

"I understand, this situation can be very difficult. Your son's name is Michi, yes?" Sakura validated the basic information, also confirming his age before Bon continued. "Can you tell me what Michi has been dreaming about, or what he has been seeing? Please, don't leave anything out, nothing will sound odd or unbelievable."

It took a moment for the mother to speak up. Bon could practically hear her deliberating what information she could give. After a pregnant pause and another sniff she answered, "His nightmares are always the same. He says they are creatures that tease him, or hurt him or our family. T-that they murder people...I just don't understand, we never let him watch violent movies and...just," she choked back another sob, "The things he says. It's no wonder he doesn't sleep much anymore."

Bon could sense another bout of hysterics coming on. Trying to avoid that situation he hoped to steer her in a safer direction."You said in your initial correspondence that he sees things in his room sometimes. Could you tell me about that?"

Sakura took another moment to collect herself. Bon could hear the receiver of the phone move around before she responded, probably wiping away tears. "We never see anything. I even slept in his room with him a couple of nights. He would wake up screaming, terrified, pointing at a corner. He said it looked like a cat person, with a long tongue and back legs, but I never saw it."

"That," Bon quickly scribbled down notes in his notebook, his writing sloppy as he tried to keep up with her description, " is very helpful."

"Is it?" The mother's voice sounded hopeful, her sorrow easing. "Will you be able to help us?"

"I'm confident we will. By chance are you and your family available tonight?" Bon asked, tapping his pen against his notebook.

Hours later and one argument over the front seat a small black car pulled up to an average looking house. Located on the far outskirts of True Cross the small suburban house maintained an air of innocence, one that promised quiet inhabitants and polite conversations with your neighbor. Rin and Bon stepped out of the car, Bon with a file in hand and Rin with their stowed equipment.

They waited for Nagatomo before approaching the door, ignoring the window shade that snapped into place, betraying whoever had been attempting to remain concealed. Only seconds passed after Rin rang the door bell the front door creaked open. A small woman peered at them shyly through the door, security chain still latched.

Trying not to be off-put by the unusual behavior Bon forced a warm smile. "Hi, we are from True Cross. I'm Suguro Ryuji, I believe we spoke earlier on the phone?"

The door closed for a moment. The three men exchanged glances as the door chain clanked free and the door reopened. Standing, or rather bowing, was a young lady for porcelain skin and ink dark hair. "Yes," she bowed slightly deeper than necessary as she moved to make space for them to enter, "I am Ito Sakura, thank you so much for coming. Please, come in."

Predictably the interior of the house mirrored the exterior, well kept and family oriented with everything in place. Photos lined the hall leading into the living room which was simple in its eloquence. A small glass coffee table, a couch big enough for three with a lounge chair off to the side. A small curio cabinet tucked itself away in the corner, quietly hiding its precious trinkets of glass animals and rather expensive looking china.

Overall it all seemed normal, just about as normal as any home could be. Had they not been aware of the circumstances neither of the young exorcists would have suspected any duplicitous going-ons. Nagatomo lingered in the doorway just a moment longer than necessary, just long enough to rouse Bon's suspicion as he watched the senior exorcist make a show of struggling to remove his left boot.

"Please, have a seat. I'll bring us tea." Sakura waved them towards the dining area, an elevated space with a comfortably large, low sitting table. "You'll have to excuse my husband's absence, he works late tonight."

"That's not a problem." Bon said, stepping up into the dinning area and sitting down, his legs crossed over each other. He placed his note book and file on the table in front of him, careful to leave enough room should he be offered any refreshments.

Rin took a seat next to him and dumped their duffle bags on the floor behind them with little consideration. He leaned in towards Bon with hushed tones, not wanting to appear rude, "Seems pretty normal, yeah?"

Nagatomo sat down, fingers laced together as he quietly observed the house. "Did either of you notice the shinto trinity by the door?"

Rin shook his head no, Bon's silence an answer of its own. The edges of Nagatomo's lips pulled down, a small noise of disapproval rumbling from his throat. "Mmm. You need to pay attention to homes when you come in. For charms, amulets, wards. They will tell you what has already been attempted, or give you better insight of the family's religious beliefs. All very helpful things."

Bon fought the blush of embarrassment that threatened to touch his cheeks. Missing something so amateur felt foolish. Thankfully he was saved from his shame by Sakura's arrival with tea. She gently placed a teapot on a cloth and gathered cups. Once she had given each of her guests their drinks she carefully tucked her dress under her legs as she knelt to sit.

Quiet began to ease its way into the room, threatening to become uncomfortable. Rin fidgeted slightly in his seat, unsure what to do. He'd made a promise to himself to be on his best behavior, to trust Bon and let him take the lead. Their talk had left him wanting to do better, to be better, so he looked over at Bon expectedly.

Catching Rin's gaze Bon cleared his throat and opened the file. "Ito-san, I know we spoke over the phone. This is Okumura Rin, Lower Second Class Exorcist and Nagatomo Seishiro, an Upper Second Class Exorcist."

The lack of recognition was evident by her expression despite the polite bow of her head as they were introduced. "Thank you for coming, please whatever help I can be. We just want this over with."

Bon nodded as Rin took a sip of his tea. "I'm confident we will be able to help you. Now, like I had said before, we will be setting up a few things in your son's room, just to watch what is going on. That will still be okay?"

Sakura nodded vigorously, her desperation beginning to show. "Please, whatever you need to do. I've already spoken with Michi, frankly he is too exhausted to care, I think. The past week has been a difficult one. Rika, my daughter, she is away at her grandparents while we try to get this sorted out."

Nagatomo's eyebrow quirked a bit at that, a tell that was undetected by Bon and Sakura. Knowing the priest well Rin glanced over at him. By the time his eyes settled on Nagatomo his expression was vacant, leaving Rin to wonder if he'd imagined things.

"We'll be happy to set up right away then. We will be using the living room for a period, will that be okay?" Bon asked as he took a sip of his tea, not wanting to ignore her hospitality.

Sakura nodded again, "Whatever you need. Please. You don't need to ask."

"Would you care to introduce us to Michi then?" Bon asked, standing up from the table.

Taking the cue from Bon, Rin also stood, grabbing the strap to their bags as he did. Nagatomo remained sitting at the table, apparently content with his tea, as the two were lead upstairs. It was deceptively spacious on the second level, with three bedrooms and a wide hallway. They passed the door on their immediate left and instead turned to the door across the hall.

Sakura rapped the door gently with her knuckles before opening the door. "Michi, you have visitors. They are the gentlemen I was telling you about."

She stood aside to allow Rin and Bon into the room. Like the rest of the house there was nothing abnormal about the room. A few toys littered the floor, a small bookcase held a handful of books that had been jammed into their place, threatening to fall onto their side. A poster clung to the wall and sitting on the neatly made bed was a young boy with tidy black hair and a thin frame, like his mother. Unlike her he had dark circles around his eyes, his face a sickly pale. Had the exorcists not known better they'd have suspected him ill.

Rin and Bon gave a polite bow that was immediately returned, Michi hopping off his bed. "Thank you for coming to help." he said quietly, his body still bent at the waist as his eyes remained plastered to the floor. As the two stepped further into the room Michi moved out of the way, backing up closer to his bed.

"You're welcome. You need to be thankful, your parents love you very much, they are worried about you." Bon said, leaving the boy to look down at the floor, his hands now tucked behind his back.

Rin fought back a cringe, watching as the boy withdrew into himself. He was reminded of Yukio again, who always recoiled when things went wrong. Who always blamed himself and apologized profusely, even if he hadn't been to blame. Who sometimes acted like he was sorry just for taking up too much space.

"Hey," Rin knelt down on one knee, making sure to keep space between himself and the boy. "It's okay. You're mom just wants you to feel better. We know it's not your fault. This week has been pretty tough, huh?"

Michi rubbed his nose, nodding as he glanced up at Rin before looking away again. "The monster has come around a lot. She keeps saying..." he trailed off, unable or unwilling to finish.

"I'm sure she is saying all types of things. We believe you, don't worry." Rin gave him a warm smile and stood back up, careful to keep his expression soft, lest his anger betray him. Truthfully he felt a fire burning in his heart, raging for justice.

"We're going to set a camera up right there, okay?" He pointed over to a corner. "That way we can keep an eye on you and see what you see. All you have to do is be brave and try to go to sleep. We'll be right downstairs though."

A small hush filled the room, Michi taking a few deep breaths. He looked like he wanted to say something, or perhaps cry, so Rin hesitated before getting their equipment out. Michi finally pointed to the corner near his window, "She likes to sit in that corner."

"That's good to know, thank you." Rin smiled, giving Michi a small pat on the head as he walked by him to start setting up a tripod that would hold their camera.

Bon walked over to the corner while Rin set to work. He scanned the small area meticulously, looking for anything that might attract the demon. Perhaps some innocent scribbles on the wall or an old toy. He even tried picking at the edge of the hardwood floor, checking to see if a panel was loose and held secrets. Eventually he conceded that the area was absent of any potential paranormal explanations.

In the time it had taken him to poke around Rin had set up the camera and was running a long cord through the room and out into the hall. Michi stood, sheepishly observing Bon. Unsure of what to say, much less do, Bon wished the young boy a goodnight and excused himself, closing the door behind him. He followed the cord downstairs where Rin connected the cable to a small tablet. The screen powered on and displayed a perfect image of the room.

"This will work perfectly." Rin pushed a small arrow on the screen, the camera moving in the corresponding direction. "Hopefully he won't even notice and be able to sleep."

"You handled that really well, upstairs I mean." Bon sat down next to him, taking the tablet when Rin offered it over.

"Yeah well, I dunno, just comes naturally I guess." Rin replied with a self conscious blush.

"Well, it's a good thing. I had no idea what to say," Bon confessed, having very little experience with children. They were odd creatures with weird habits, especially the kids that seemed to create mischief out of thin air. "Anyway, we should expect a long night. Missions like this can take a while. We may as well get comfortable."

Night engulfed the quite house as the hours crept by. Later into the evening Michi's father had finally arrived home, tie loosened and head hung with stress. Not wishing to be impolite he had offered to be social, although Sakura was quick to dismiss his politeness, apologetically urging him to bed. Sakura had finally retired to her room after persistence from Bon and Nagatomo had slumped back in the arm chair, his head lolled to the side as he gently snored. Even Rin was starting to lose steam.

"No exactly exciting, is it?" Bon mused, handing Rin a glass of water and sitting on the couch next to him.

"Exciting is not a word I'd use, for sure." Rin mumbled, trying to keep his loathing at bay. He was here to help and he really did want to. But this, this was becoming painstaking. He'd taken a couple of walks around the block for some fresh air but he was itching to do something. Even sleeping was a better option then continuing to stare at the screen.

The tablet sat propped up on the table in font of them, the screen pouring it's dim illumination over them. It had taken quite a while, but Michi had finally fallen asleep, rolled up safely in his blankets. His toys sat motionless in the dark, the occasional passing car shone a beam of light through the windows. Other than that it was quiet, all seemed well.

Bon pulled his cell phone from his pocket and checked the time. "At least we are coming up on three. I suspect that's when something will happen."

Rin yawned widely, teeth flashed to the world as he rubbed his eye, "Why three? I mean, what's so important about that?"

"Long story short, it was considered a time for demons and such due to western traditions. At three in the morning there was a laps in prayer, a time when demons would be stronger. I mean," Bon tapped his cell phone against his fingers as he tried to simplify things. "There is a lot of mythology behind it, but the belief became popular that way."

"Huh," Rin's bottom lip jutted out thoughtfully. "I wonder if that's true."

Bon's breath caught on an inhale, the words he was about to say captured in midair. He pointed to the screen, his mind momentarily blank. He finally managed a huff out a single word. "Look."

Rin's attention turned to the screen, his eyes squinting past sleep as he leaned closer to the tablet. "What the-"

Bon snatched the tablet from the table and turned up the audio, the buzz of white noise barely audible. Making sure to hold the screen out so Rin could see he turned the brightness up, causing them both to wince.

"Ugh," Rin blinked a handful of times, his sleep laden eyes objecting the visual assault. As his eyes adjusted he watched a small purple orb float in the corner of the room, the exact corner Michi had pointed to. "What is that?"

"I dunno..." Bon watched as the orb began to pulse and Michi rolled over in his sleep.

With hitched breath they watched as minutes passed, the orb pulsing and moving up and down, left to right, but otherwise faineant. There was no noise, no other disturbance. It didn't touch anything or move towards the young boy, it simply idled there, as if watching over the room.

"What's it doing?" Rin wondered aloud, his question rhetorical. Just as he was going to suggest going upstairs the white noise crackled, although Bon didn't seem to notice. "Hey, what was that?"

"The orb?" Bon asked, giving him a quick glance. "It's the ghost, obviously."

"No, that noise." he explained, only to get a raised eyebrow in return. "You didn't hear-"

"Hsssssk...Dddrrrrr..." A raspy voice echoed and hissed hauntingly over the screen. Michi rolled over in his sleep again, his face soured as he pulled his blanket close.

"That!" Rin's voice was shrill whisper, trying not to be too loud. "You didn't just hear that?"

"What're you talking about?!" Bon snapped with a hush, frustrated that he was missing something. Michi was beginning to grow increasingly agitated in his sleep and the orb started making more erratic movements. It had taken to making broad laps around the room, pulsing faster than his heart beat.

Rin fought back his feeling of confusion, trying to piece together why Bon wasn't hearing it too. As he was getting ready to explain what he was hearing the broken, cracked voice of a woman rattled from the screen. "Ddddreeaaammm."

"Ugh!" Rin felt the hairs on his body stand, his skin chilling like a burst of cool air was in the room. "Whatever that thing is, is seriously freaking me out. It keeps talking, it just said dream in this super creepy voice."

The orb grew brighter, the vibrant purple darkening as it began to circle the sleeping boy. Michi tossed in his bed, a stuffed dinosaur pushed to the floor, his face screwed, twisted somewhere between fear and anger.

"Bon, we need to get up there." Rin said, standing from the couch. "We gotta-"

"Hang on, just hold on." Bon put his hand up to stop Rin. "We need to see if it shows its self, that orb isn't it's form. We have to know what we are walking into."

"But-" Rin bit back his retort, his sense of urgency growing as Michi began to move his legs, kicking his covers to the foot of his bed. Rin tried to take steady breaths, wanting to trust Bon, wanting to listen. Rin needed to trust him more. He needed to listen to him more. He needed to not let his emotions overcome him. Still, he had to say something, even if it was laced with defeat. "This doesn't feel right, to watch this. He is just a child."

Bon, eyes stuck to the screen spared Rin a quick glance before darting back to the tablet. Sweat was beading on his forehead that was creased with lines, concern carved between each one. "I know Rin, I know. I don't like it either, but we have to figure this out first."

Unable to watch anymore Rin went over to their bags and began to rummage around. He pulled on his exorcist jacket, outfitted with small pockets on the inside and began to stuff them with an assortment of things. Vials of holy water, black salt, dried herbs and oils. Anything that might help when the time came for them to act.

The work began to ease his anxiety, despite the whimpers coming from the tablet at the table. He tried to focus on listing things he could use to help, or ways he could be useful. Without a weapon he was forced to use other resources, something he wasn't used to. Content with his preparation Rin went back to the table and looked at the screen that Bon was still staring at.

"Yeeeeeessss." The raspy voice cackled from the tablet, sending another shiver through Rin. "Drrreeeeaaamm. Feeeeed."

"Bon," Rin pointed at the screen, the urgency now back, adrenaline surging through him. More words came through the device, some broken, others like a foreign language. Rin watched as the orb began making tighter circles over Michi. "Bon, I really think-"

He was cut off by an ear piercing scream that burst through the tablet and echoed from downstairs. The orb, after circling closer to Michi, dove into the boy's chest who was now sitting up, eyes wide, face wracked with terror as he screamed at the top of his lungs.