It's In My Nature

Summary: Rin meets the Lord of the Flies, learns more about demon politics, and realizes the road to finding a cure for Mephisto is going to require a lot more sacrifice than he ever anticipated. From he and Amaimon.

A/N Here's to hoping Beelzebub is revealed to be even slightly like how I'm gonna be writing him or I'll feel real foolish lololol

Also, I don't understand the demon kings' teleporting abilities at all? Like Amaimon needs a key to get around Japan but Mephisto and Lucifer can literally just poof and they're there?

Maybe it's only the strongest kings (Lucifer, Samael, and Azazel, potentially?) that can go where they want, or maybe they have to have a familiarity with the place they're going to (like that movie Jumper) to be able to teleport there. Or maybe Amaimon can and he's just using the key to go to specific locations. I'm just giving all the demon kings the ability to teleport wherever they want :\

(But why can't Satan then? Since he tried to run away with Yuri but traveled on foot. Idkaaaay~)

Rin opened his eyes from where he'd flinched and closed them, sudden teleportation still not his favorite way to travel.

You never knew what you were going to get when you reached the other side.

"Uh, what?"

Like now, where apparently Amaimon had decided to take them to a rustic looking building in a clearly foreign country- if the language he couldn't recognize from the people around him was any indication, and the building was also a flower shop.

Or a plant shop? Rin definitely saw green growing things for sale inside someplace he could imagine Shiemi hanging out in, but not the fearsome demon leveling an impatient look his way.

Rin still didn't understand but followed Amaimon inside for lack of any alternative.

The light chime of the bell over the door and the scents of earth and growing things just added to the surreal nature of the whole experience.

And Rin was blinking over at the utterly bizarre scene of Amaimon interacting with someone in a non-violent way.

Amaimon spoke in that same language he'd been hearing outside, leaving Rin in the dark about what he was asking. Well, supposedly asking, since he couldn't seem to put effort into not making his questions sound like statements or orders.

But Mephisto was still thrown over Amaimon's shoulder like a ragdoll and the guy at the front desk had been stunned into silence.

A growl from Amaimon jolted the guy from his daze to stutter out his next words, once again incomprehensible to Rin. Somehow, though, he wasn't immediately fleeing the scene or calling the local authorities on them and was instead moving further into the shop, gesturing for them to follow.

That was when Rin noticed the pointed ears of the shop-clerk, his hair shifting aside when he went past them, and the situation became a little clearer.

He was forced to watch in silence as they were led around the store to various plants, none of which Rin recognized, but which Amaimon would shake his head at and give a short word that had them on to the next.

They stopped at some kind of cactus-looking thing and Rin crossed his arms, waiting for Amaimon to say 'no' to that one too only for the demon to tap a clawed finger against it and nod, saying something that must have been asking for the price.

A poof of smoke later and Amaimon had currency in hand for whatever country they were in and they were leaving, still stunned demon standing by the register as if he couldn't believe who had just bought a plant from his store.

New plant in tow that Amaimon vanished when they got outside, Rin finally couldn't contain the questions that had built up through that whole exchange.

"Okay, what? Why did you just buy a cactus?"

Amaimon stared down at him and Rin got the feeling he was wondering at his intelligence levels, familiar with the look after growing up with Yukio. "It's a carrion flower. It attracts flies but doesn't kill them."

"Okay?" Rin repeated, drawing the word out in the hopes that he could get some elaboration out of Amaimon.

Amaimon sighed, tapping a finger to Mephisto's back, exasperation once again in his voice. "We're going to Beelzebub, demon king of insects, eighth in Gehenna, and this is a gift for his collection."

Well, Rin blinked, that was oddly considerate of Amaimon and he said so, only for him let out a huff of amusement.

"It's politics," Amaimon said, shaking his head, though Rin had no idea why buying a plant was a part of demon politics.

Still, "uh, shouldn't we get out of the streets? I think people are starting to stare."

Amaimon shrugged, clearly not worried about what a bunch of inconsequential humans thought and raised his hand to snap them to their next location.

Once again, Rin found himself staring in wordless awe.

And in another country.

Rolling hills, neat rows of silvery-green trees covering them, and what parts weren't were covered in sprawling vineyards. Above it all rose a palatial Mediterranean villa with an equally as large glass conservatory next to it.

"Woah!" Rin yelped out, turning to take it all in and wondering how far the land around them belonged to the demon king who owned the place, seeing as there weren't any other signs of humanity.

Amaimon snorted at his enthusiasm and Rin glared over at him. "Hey, this is the first time I've been outside of Japan, I'm allowed to be excited, dammit."

That got a wry smile out of the demon, a fang flashing beneath quirked lips as he hefted Mephisto more securely over his shoulder and turned to walk up the long driveway to the villa.

"Then this should be eye opening for you."

Well, he wasn't wrong, Rin thought as they made it to the villa, though instead of stopping there, Amaimon continued on to the conservatory instead.

They entered a humid greenhouse filled to bursting and Rin's nose was assaulted by more scents than he could place, overwhelming him until he had to sneeze.

He walked into Amaimon's back, startling with another yelp and stumbling away a few feet.

"Hey! What gives?"

An unfamiliar presence registered itself to Rin's senses and he quieted, peering around Amaimon's shoulder to see the new person. Or rather, the new demon.

Dark features, an olive complexion, and piercing amber slit-pupiled eyes under black curls of hair stood out immediately to Rin. The muddy overalls and dirt-stained gardening gloves registered next. Finally, the demon king's low voice when he spoke, was, on the surface, calming and with an accent Rin couldn't place, until the undercurrent of danger- of threat, sent a shiver down Rin's spine.

"Amaimon," his gaze flicked to Rin's before focusing back, "this is a surprise, it's been awhile."

Amaimon snapped, bringing the cactus back out, "it has, Beelzebub. I brought a gift."

Beelzebub, right, Rin grimaced inwardly, wondering why every demon king had to choose such a mouthful of a name because it was really hard to keep them straight in his head.

Beelzebub's attention was drawn to the plant and Rin saw the flash of interest on his face until he reached to take it, delighted smile forming, "a starfish flower, and a variety I don't have yet! Thank you, Amaimon."

"I noticed it on my travels," Amaimon said, shrugging off the thanks, the motion shifting Mephisto.

"Come, I have to put this in its place," Beelzebub said, leading them further into the maze of walkways, speaking as he did, "and you can explain to me why you're here- and why you have Samael and Rin Okumura with you."

Rin flinched, eyes jerking up to stare at the mention of his name, how?

But Amaimon wasn't freaking out so Rin forced himself to keep his panic on the inside until he didn't feel so out of his element.

He became aware, then, of a low buzzing hum permeating the air of the greenhouse and Rin squinted until the source of the noise jumped out at him and he gave a silent gasp.

The whole place was alive with insects. A million crawling, flying, hopping creatures swarming in and out of the foliage and around Rin's head where he had it tilted back to track the black cloud in the air. Were those flies? Gnats? Mosquitoes? Rin grimaced, really hoping they weren't that last one.

Understanding reached him about why Amaimon had chosen that particular gift for Beelzebub as he watched a butterfly alight on a nearby flower.

A massive red plant-looking thing grabbed Rin's attention away from the butterfly, the smell from it hit Rin right after and he fought a gag at the sickly-sweet scent like rot. Flies buzzed through the air in a random pattern in and out of its insides and Rin hurried past it after the demons before he accidentally swallowed one of them or something.

They'd entered a smaller domed section of the greenhouse before they finally stopped. Rin shifted around when neither king said anything, Beelzebub setting the potted plant next to some similar ones and vanishing his gloves away while Amaimon stood back and waited.

"Samael is cursed."

Rin's heart jolted at the sudden words from Beelzebub, his back still turned to them as he contemplated the plant.

"Yes, the Briar Rose Syndrome," Amaimon responded and Rin saw him run a clawed thumb over Mephisto's back once before stopping when Beelzebub turned around.

"King Killer," Beelzebub murmured, amber eyes solemn in his face. "This will change everything."

Rin froze as those eyes were turned on him, not expecting the attention.

"And you? I have to admit, this isn't how I imagined out first meeting to happen. How do you play into things?"

Hesitation at being addressed had him glancing at Amaimon, only to see him arching a brow, giving him the freedom to talk.

"Ah, I found him like this in his office today and-"

He paused, licking at his dry lips and wondering why it was so hard to talk to this particular demon when for all intents and purposes he appeared the least antagonistic of the kings he'd met so far.

"-The exorcists were just gonna use him like research material without even trying to save him." He bit the words out, that sharp anger he'd felt earlier turned into bitterness. "They were already writing him off and talking about calling in a new director like he wasn't still alive."

Rin knew, after Amaimon's reaction, the chances were pretty slim that Beelzebub would understand his reasoning any better, but he didn't know how else to explain himself to them

"I couldn't let them do that to him, it's just- wrong." Rin glanced down at Mephisto when he finished speaking, chewing at the inside of his cheek because he knew he sounded childish to the two demon kings. "So, I grabbed him and ran. And then Amaimon found me."

Beelzebub gave a slow blink at his words before turning to address Amaimon. "He's so very… human. I didn't anticipate that."

Amaimon sighed, propping a hand on his hip and Rin twitched in irritation. "It took forever and a half just to get him to play with me."

"Play?" Rin sputtered at the demon's blasé expression. "You interrupted me in the middle of a mission and stole my sword! And then you almost got me executed by the order!"

"Fascinating." Beelzebub stared, eyes wide at Rin's outburst and hand coming up to his chin as he observed him like he was one of his plants.

Before Rin could do anything other than glare at Beelzebub, he was focusing back on Amaimon and Rin let out a silent huff as he shelved his irritation for the moment. He had a feeling that scenarios like this one were going to become fairly regular if he kept up his current trend.

"Then you came to me. Why?"

"I need more information," Amaimon began, getting down to business. "I wasn't there for Abduxuel's cursing or his death and I know you were."

Rin realized he'd never seen such a side to the demon. In the few interactions they'd had, Amaimon had been impulsive, mocking, and eager for a fight. It was strange, Rin decided, but he wasn't able to consider it more as Beelzebub spoke again.

"I never expected you to get so involved, Amaimon." Amaimon shrugged again, wordless, and Beelzebub dropped it, sensing a closed subject when he saw one.

"This is a dangerous path you're taking." He hedged along a different route, but, at Amaimon's stubbornly impassive face, yielded. "Okay, I'll tell you what I remember from that time, although I wasn't there the last week of his life."

"Why not?" Rin asked when it seemed like Amaimon was going to ignore that information.

His question got him a wry smile from the demon king and Rin fought a blush that wanted to rise to his cheeks. Was that considered nosy? Was the answer obvious?

"It… wasn't a good time to be around Samael, then, his cruelty became-" Beelzebub's gaze darted away at some memory, "-exaggerated."

"Whose territory was he brought to?" Amaimon interrupted and Rin wondered why that was important but was starting to suspect it had more to do with 'politics' as Amaimon had said earlier.

"This was before their conflict, so Abduxuel was brought to Lucifer's."

Lucifer. Rin hid a shiver as he remembered the one encounter he'd had with the demon king of light, his presence and power impossible to forget.

"Why not Samael's?" Amaimon asked pointedly, fishing for something, if his narrowed eyes and slight frown were anything to go on, though Rin couldn't guess what.

"That, I'm not sure," Beelzebub hummed, hand coming to his chin again as he mulled something over, "it seemed to me, at the time, that Samael thought Lucifer would know of a cure, though that was the first time any of us had seen the curse so I couldn't say why."

"And the only one he would have told is Lucifer," Amaimon sighed again, though this time he didn't hide the frustration or the glare he sent towards Mephisto.

"Yes, a catch-22, as the humans say," Beelzebub said, sharing in the commiserating, though Rin still wasn't quite sure what the problem was. Or what a catch-22 was, actually.

Knowing he was going to regret asking, Rin blurted out his question anyway. It was either that or he keep listening to the conversation full of names and terms and other random things he didn't understand.

"So, if Lucifer is the only one who might know anything, why don't we just go to him? Er-"

They'd turned stunned eyes on him, and Rin hurried to get the rest out before they inevitably shot him down, "-I mean, not that I want to, but it sounds like he's the only one who has all the information, right? Unless there's someone else?"

Beelzebub broke the silence with an inelegant snort, eyes widened in gleeful disbelief until he dissolved into laughter.

"Dammit, I'm serious!" Rin growled out, hands clenching as a flush rose to his cheeks when that just made the demon king laugh harder.

He shot another glare over at Amaimon, finding him watching with an amused smile on his face.

"Ah, to be so young," Beelzebub said, grinning as he wiped at his eye with a clawed finger. "Samael is defenseless now, with an almost certain death fast approaching, and you are a valuable piece in their war.

He waved a hand, brushing aside Rin's affronted glower at being referred to as a piece in a war.

"All bets are off now and it's anyone's guess as to whether Lucifer will honor the previous terms they set down-"

The grin on Beelzebub's face widened into something dangerous and Rin felt his breath catch in his lungs at the next words.

"-Or whether he'll hand you straight over to Father."

Amaimon drew him away from the sly expression he hadn't been able to escape on his own, breaking the spell Rin had been trapped in with a cocky remark, "it's a good thing you ran into me first, the others are caught up in this war and you're almost as defenseless as Samael."

Rin wanted to point out that it was Amaimon who ran into him, actually, but Beelzebub was talking again so Rin restrained himself.

"Yes, it's just become clear to me why you came here, Amaimon," Beelzebub said, hands on his hips and smiling over at Amaimon. "You needed another neutral party to ease him into our world, it's surprisingly considerate of you, have you been spending too much time with the humans lately?"

Amaimon sneered at the taunt, "hardly, I needed him to get a crash course or we'd both be dead within days of reaching Gehenna."

Through it all, Rin grew more and more incensed, tail lashing behind him and his fingers digging claws into his arms where he had them crossed until he snapped out, "fine, I get it, I'm really far behind when it comes to knowing anything about anything. Whatever. Can we get back to fixing Mephisto?"

"He's optimistic," Beelzebub muttered to Amaimon.

Then the rest of Amaimon's words registered with Rin and he froze. "Wait, Gehenna?"

That stopped them from their banter, mood sobering and Rin found himself pinned with two pairs of unnerving eyes. The silence didn't help with his pounding heart because he hadn't known what to expect when he'd agreed to Amaimon's help but going to Gehenna hadn't been on the list.

His mind flashed to the day everything started, finding out whose son he was, blue flames, Shiro's death.

And Satan.

He'd almost gone to Gehenna that night through the gate and had avoided thinking about it since.

Rin couldn't take his eyes off of Amaimon, hoping he'd heard him wrong and knowing he hadn't.

"As I said, you've chosen a dangerous route." Beelzebub finally responded, before shaking his head and focusing on Amaimon again while Rin recovered, or tried to.

"Then your path is clear. You need to find Astaroth. He would know more than I do, and it may allow you to avoid Gehenna entirely. I hear he's gotten another body and has been skulking around Assiah for Father and Lucifer."

Something about the name Astaroth sounded familiar to Rin, though he couldn't place it, not understanding why it filled him with a low flame of anger and had his fangs itching to drop in his mouth. He sucked at his teeth, trying to calm himself from the weird reaction and listen so he didn't miss anything else important like possibly going to Gehenna.

But Beelzebub's last comment seemed to be the signal that they were finished with the visit.

"Let me walk you out," Beelzebub said, smile back on his face to replace the somber atmosphere.

It was strange, Rin thought, walking behind the two demon kings through the greenhouse. The juxtaposition between the friendly way Beelzebub had been throughout the conversation and the flashes of the demon that he really was meant Rin hadn't been able to relax the entire time.

At least with Amaimon it was pretty clear he was all demon, no hiding what he was behind a façade of humanity. Mephisto too, in his own mocking way, never pretended to be anything but what he was. Rin was beginning to appreciate that honesty the more demons he met.

There was something incredibly off-putting about Beelzebub that he couldn't wrap his head around and he wondered if it was just him or there was another reason for it. He would ask Amaimon later, once they were out of the greenhouse. He'd probably get laughed at again, but Rin was finding he didn't have much in the way of pride holding him back anymore.

His instincts were the only things familiar to him at this point and the rules he'd lived under his whole life weren't applying to his current situation. So, he was going to ask Amaimon a million questions until the demon got tired of him and told him to shut up because he needed to learn this new world as quick as possible or end up dead.

He didn't have the luxury to mess around like he had been at the Academy.

And, Rin watched the way Mephisto shifted in Amaimon's hold, he had an eccentric demon king's life riding on his not screwing up. It wasn't just his own life at stake.

"Ah, here, please take some of this for your journey," Beelzebub snapped his fingers and summoned a large jar of what looked like honey, "the hives are producing and I have more than I ever know what to do with, yet again."

Amaimon's eyes lit up as he saw the offering, taking it and vanishing it away to wherever things went when the demon kings did that.

"Thank you, Beelzebub," the earth king said, grinning at his acquisition, much politer than Rin had ever witnessed from him, though, he was now realizing he knew next to nothing about Amaimon.

And they were outside, Beelzebub saying his farewell to them before returning to the greenhouse. Before Rin could say anything, Amaimon snapped his fingers and warped them away.

Rin gasped at the abrupt teleporting, hand at his chest and turning bewildered eyes up at Amaimon. "Why'd we leave so fast?"

"Can you control your fire enough to burn anything that isn't your clothes and hair off of yourself?"

"What?" Rin gaped at the weird question.

A rumble caught him even more off-guard and Rin yelped as Amaimon drew his hand up, earth following like a mudslide up his and Mephisto's bodies until they were completely covered, only to slide away a moment later, leaving them spotless.

"What they hell was that?" Rin asked again, because, what?

Amaimon dropped Mephisto to the ground at his feet and Rin winced, back-peddling when the earth king stalked into his personal space and yanked his shirt collar aside.

"Ah- Hey! What gives?" Rin tried to step away but found his shoulder gripped in Amaimon's clawed hand while the other scrapped over his skin, sending shivers at having the dangerous black nails so near the artery there.

He felt a sharp pinch and yelped again. "Seriously, what are you doing, dammit?"

And froze when Amaimon brought his hand away to show a large tick that he'd plucked from Rin's neck.

"Oh my god, why was that in my skin?" Rin asked, shuddering in disgust.

The insect was crushed between black claws and Rin immediately started patting himself down, yanking his jacket off and loosening his tie to search for any more insects that might have hitched a ride.

Was he itching because one of them was burrowing into his skin or was that just a stray hair?

Ew ew ew ewewew!

"Beelzebub wouldn't let an opportunity like that slip by without at least trying to keep some of his spies on us," Amaimon finally answered, watching Rin strip to his boxers with impassive gold eyes.

Rin stopped his frantic search, the answer to his question from earlier becoming apparent.

He jerked his gaze up to Amaimon's, wanting to clarify the suspicion anyway. "I was gonna ask you, he seemed so nice, but I kept feeling like there was something really dangerous about him and I couldn't relax the whole time we were there. What's up with him?"

Amaimon nodded, moving back over to wait by Mephisto. "He's like his insects, he can't resist stinging his venom into the unsuspecting, it's in his nature. Your instincts were right to be cautious around him."

Rin was checking through the fur on the end of his tail and wincing at the pain the tugs at the knots there sent through him when Amaimon crossed his arms, staring at him in confusion.

"Why aren't you using your flames to burn the insects away?"

"Er," Rin blushed, hands leaving his tail as it wagged in embarrassment behind him- and was Amaimon tracking it with his eyes? He looked like he wanted to pounce on it. Maybe he was like a cat and movement attracted him?

Rin tucked his tail closer to his leg, forcing it still to avoid it getting attacked or whatever was making Amaimon pay so much attention to it. "Sorry, I panicked."

He flared his fire and burned whatever insects were there away, moving to pull his clothes back on and pretend he hadn't just acted like Shima about some bugs in front of the ancient demon king his entire quest depended on.

One last burst of flames took care of whatever insects might have been hiding in his clothes and Rin tugged his shirt down, looking to Amaimon to tell him he was ready to go.

Only to see Amaimon still focused on his tail. "Uh, is there something wrong with my tail? Are there still bugs there? I thought I got them all."

That snapped Amaimon out of whatever daze he was in, the demon shaking his head and glaring at Rin, though he had no idea what for.

"Put your tail away, it's embarrassing to see it out like that," Amaimon ordered, brows scrunching as if he Rin had done something he couldn't understand again.

Embarrassing? Rin glanced down at where his tail flicked once against the grass by his feet. "I've always kept it out like this and Mephisto never said anything, just that it was a demon's weakness or whatever."

The glare Amaimon shot at Mephisto was withering and Rin was glad it wasn't turned on him, though he still didn't know why it was a big deal to let his tail out, especially when there weren't humans around to see it like when he was in class.

"Once again, he's left me to clean up his mess because he was too busy having a laugh," Amaimon grumbled at the unresponsive form, indignant

"Does this have something to do with demon etiquette?" Rin hesitated but asked anyway, figuring it might be one of those things he'd need to know if he was going to be going to Gehenna. "Mephisto told me some stuff about that but then he let you out to fight me and, I mean, I know about the heart thing and protecting mine now, but not much else."

Amaimon actually pinched the bridge of his nose between his claws, eyes closing at Rin's question. "Yes, and it's a wonder he taught you at least that much."

"So, why can't I keep my tail out?" Rin prodded, though it was nice to get some real answers and not the teasing half-answers he usually got out of Mephisto.

That got a flash of gold directed his way, Amaimon stilling where he'd been rubbing at his face in irritation. A quick calculation seemed to be going on behind those eyes and Rin wondered what that meant for him.

Especially when Amaimon began to smile, a slow widening of his lips to reveal fangs in a sly look as he left Mephisto's side to make his way towards Rin.

"There's one reason not to keep you tail out in the open," he said, voice hinting at something Rin couldn't guess at, though it reminded him of the tone Mephisto liked to use when talking to him and made Rin shift in nervousness.

"That's the one I think I made clear when I used it against you in the forest." Amaimon grinned down at him when he came to a stop a foot away.

"Yeah, Mephisto made that pretty clear too," Rin muttered, shooting his own glare at Mephisto for the remembered way he'd yanked on his tail in the pocket dimension of Gehenna he'd transferred Rin's mind to when he'd revealed his true name and nature.

"The other reason is one I'm surprised you haven't discovered for yourself yet."

And he squeaked as Amaimon reached down to capture his tail in his hand, dragging along it in a firm movement that sent a toe-curling wave of sensation straight through the length of it and into Rin's stomach.

"What the fu-uh~" Rin moaned and dropped his head onto Amaimon's chest, eyes glazing and hips jolting forward at the heat coiling in him until he realized what, exactly was happening and yelped, jerking away from the demon feeling him up.

He forgot Amaimon's hand was still attached to his tail and shrieked at the pain when he fell and the hold turned excruciating before Amaimon released it, letting him drop the rest of the way.

"Holy shi- what the fuck- oh my god! What was that?" Rin gasped out, tears pricking at his eyes as the pain faded away and he could try to figure out what the hell that had just been.

"That was the other reason to keep your tail to yourself, unless you'd like to leave it out?" Amaimon leered at him, clawed fingers pressing against each other as if he was still running them over the fur of Rin's tail.

A flush overtook Rin as his mind short-circuited and he gaped up at Amaimon, body limp in shock while he processed the last five-seconds.

He was never so thankful for the pain his tail getting yanked on caused him or he would be in an absolutely mortifying situation.

"I'm surprised he didn't tell you," Amaimon hummed, dropping the teasing expression he'd been wearing to cock his head at Mephisto, "though I'm even more surprised it took you this long to figure it out."

Rin came back online, growling up at the demon and twitching his fingers, finding claws had grown there in his anger. "Hey! You couldn't have just told me? What kinda person just grabs someone like that?"

"But I'm not a person." Amaimon blinked down at him, though another grin appeared on his face soon after. "And if pain didn't teach you to keep you tail to yourself, I thought pleasure might."

"Dammit, keep your claws to yourself!" Rin snarled, his tail thumping against the ground without his say. He reddened when he saw Amaimon watching it with smirking eyes. "I'm putting it away, stop staring!"

Amaimon raised his hands in mock-surrender and Rin sent a long glare at him while he hid his tail under his shirt. It would be aching by the end of the day from being wound up like that, but he'd be damned if he gave Amaimon or any other demon an excuse to grab it again.

"Can we go now?" Rin said, voice pointed as he stood and crossed his arms, fighting the blush on his face until he could look Amaimon in the eyes without it coming back.

"Hmm, I suppose we can, since you don't seem like you're in the mood to play with me," Amaimon teased, ignoring the affronted squawk Rin let out to pick Mephisto back up into his arms.

"So," Rin said, calmer now when it looked like Amaimon had dropped the topic, "how do we find the next guy?"

"Astaroth," Amaimon corrected, rolling his eyes and missing the way the name once again made something like anger pinch at Rin's expression, though he covered it in the next moment.

"And we're going to follow the coal tars."

"Coal tars…?"

Rin followed as Amaimon walked away instead of teleporting them, stuck watching the way Mephisto's hair swayed with every step while Amaimon explained who Astaroth was and why the coal tars would lead them to him.

The voices had left him and, while he'd hated that they'd interrupted his peace when they'd first arrived, he found he wanted them back now that they were gone.

Peace, he found, didn't suit him.

Whoever he was, he was sure of that.

But silence persisted and he cursed that he was so tired, or he would be trying to make his own chaos.

Instead, he was stuck, floating in the gray prison he'd found himself in.

Another ripple, and he held his breath to see what would reach him now.

"It's a wonder he taught you that much."

"So, why can't I keep my tail out?"

Oh? He felt his lips twitch up at the silly question, a gentleman always kept his tail tucked in tight. Didn't the voice know that?

"What the fu-uh~"

By the moan, he would say the foolish voice had just learned one of the reasons not to leave his tail out.

And by the following shriek of pain, he'd say he just learned the second reason.

"That was the other reason to keep your tail to yourself, unless you'd like to leave it out?"

He liked this first voice, he decided. That response was almost exactly what he would have liked to tell the second voice.

A giggle tried to bubble past his lips, and he realized something.

He felt…

…Amused.

But the voices were fading again, everything becoming muffled, and he wanted to scream his frustration, though even the sharp breath that came from his lungs was almost too much effort

He was once again, trapped in the gray world around him, in the lukewarm waters that he barely felt against his skin and the formless sky that made his vision seem hazy and undefined.

The frustration bit at his bones until the energy it took to feel left him numb and weary so that even that brief respite was gone.

Without those voices, he thought he might go mad in this place.

A/N Guys it's really hard to write these three at ground zero of their relationship again, like what do you mean they haven't even kissed yet? D: