.Chapter 18

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Miyuki sighed as she sat on the roof of the boy's dormitory. The party was still happening downstairs, even Mika was enjoying herself. Thoughts of the day's events filled her head as the cool October's air blew around her. Her hair wrestled with the wind, moving around her face like vultures swarming prey.

My top priority should be getting myself together, she reminded herself. She had already abandoned her mission, so she had to act good, right? Her eyes narrowed at the thought. Her directive was to capture Rin and bring him back to Gehenna. That was why she was here in the first place...Part of her wished she had stayed or just never unlocked her demon heart.

Once upon a time, she was jealous of Amaimon's Assiah visiting privilege. She couldn't help but smirk as Amaimon's pain and shock-ridden face flashed into her mind.

Look where that got him, she closed her eyes. She didn't know where the cone-headed freak was. Was he dead? What happens after death? Is it different for demons? It's gotta be.

All the questions gave the Yuki-Onna a headache. She took a deep breath, the cool air filling her lungs. The cold never bothered her but something about tonight made her uneasy.

"It's kind of cold...Are you sure you should be out here?"

Miyuki raised an eyebrow, opening her eyes. She knew who was approaching so she didn't bother looking. Rin walked over, standing next to her as he studied her thoughtful facial expression.

"Are you really going to ask me that?" a smile played at her lips. Rin chuckled sheepishly.

"I guess it is kind of stupid...considering...Ya'know," he scratched the base of his neck. Miyuki kept staring at the sky as he sat down next to her.

"Why are you out here?" she asked, getting straight to the point.

The boy next to her shrugged, "I could ask you the same thing." He looked up at the starry night sky with her as the silence grew. Her eyes flickered between him and the scenery. After a moment, she let out an exasperated sigh.

She pointed towards a group of stars, "I think that one is Aquarius." Rin raised an eyebrow as he followed her line of sight and connected the stars like a puzzle. He creased his eyebrows.

"I don't see it," he pouted, squinting. Miyuki rolled her eyes.

"Do you even know what Aquarius looks like?" she asked, giggling lightly. The boy next to her paused.

"It's...It's the crab, right?" he asked. Miyuki was silent, worrying Rin. His fears flew away when she burst into a laughing fit.

"Seriously?" she gasped as she whipped a tear from her eye.

"Astrology isn't really my thing," Rin shrugged. Miyuki bit her tongue as she shook her head.

"It's astronomy and I can tell," she snorted. Rin tried to frown but realized he couldn't so he simply smirked. He moved his gaze to Miyuki as she used her elbows to prop her up. He was caught off guard when she returned his stare.

"You never answered my question. Why did you come up here?" she asked. Rin couldn't remember why he wanted to come to the roof. He didn't think he even had an excuse.

"I just thought you looked like you needed someone to talk to," he made one up. Miyuki sighed through her nostrils.

"Thanks, but I'm fine," Rin's eyes narrowed at her lie. She was usually good at it but for some reason, Rin always saw through her. The Yuki-Onna scoffed at his scepticism.

"Seriously, Rin. I'm fine..." she sighed as she closed her eyes and laid back down. This time, the boy next to her followed her actions and also began to lay back.

"I've been wanting to ask you something," he sounded somewhat uncertain as he glanced towards Miyuki.

The scarlet-eyed girl kept looking at the stars, hoping to avoid his gaze for as long as possible. "Shoot."

"Back when we were finishing off Amaimon...You acted like you knew him," he hesitantly explained. Miyuki furrowed her eyebrows, remembering Amaimon's face as it contorted with rage then disappeared. It almost made her laugh but more pressing matters drew her back to the here and now.

He deserves to know that much, she thought.The noirette closed her eyes, knowing all too well that this conversation was going to end badly. Might as well be honest...

"It's because he does," she spoke quietly, almost in a sombre whisper.

Rin's azure eyes grew wide. His jaw dropped as he sat up with lightning-fast reflexes. "Seriously?!"

"When I first found out about my powers, Amaimon showed up. He trained me, basically." Miyuki understood that she shouldn't keep secrets anymore. Too much had happened and lying to everyone was getting harder and harder. She wished the setting was a bit more appropriate, though.

"Did you help him?" he asked through ground teeth. "At any point did you help Amaimon hurt people?" Miyuki's eyes opened slowly at his questioning. She kept them narrowed as she took a deep, steady breath.

"No," Miyuki's voice cracked, causing her to wince. She quickly sat up and turned to Rin, who had furrowed his eyebrows when she very clearly lied to him for the second time in a mere five minutes.

"I promise, I didn't know he was going to attack!" the raven-haired girl pleaded tearfully. Her head dropped as she put her hands on her knees. The black veil made of her hair shielded her tears from the world. Rin only realised she was crying when he saw her tears fall onto the floor.

I thought he was going to-" "Stop," his demanding tone told her that he wasn't simply asking her to quit speaking. She braced herself for karma to hit her like a train. Her expectation was for the countless lies she'd told to come back and bite her in the ass.

However, instead of Rin's wrath, she got a hand on her shoulder. Everything was silent for a moment. Not peaceful, not hostile, just quiet. An empty nothingness lingered in the air.

"Remember when I was arguing with you over going into the classroom?" Rin asked softly. Miyuki nodded slowly, not wanting to face him. Another breeze blew through and he could see her teary, ruby eyes through the dark tresses that the wind brushed aside. They locked on to his azure irises with a hesitant discomfort.

She was waiting for him to snap and lash out at her but it never came. He simply sighed. Wanting to say something and needing to say it are two different things but they felt the same to him at that moment.

"I was going to say that you're one of the most beautiful people I've ever met," his words hit the girl like a bus. She stopped breathing and became very still. Her heart dropped and butterflies began to run rampant in her stomach, the delicate creatures trying to eat their way out of her.

She stayed still for a long while.

"I meant everything I said and I still do," he gently lifted up Miyuki's head with one hand and moved her hair out of her face with the other. Her eyes were glistening and not just because of the moisture from her tears.

The Yuki-Onna's mind raced, filled primarily with thoughts of her mission. He couldn't know about that. What would he think? He would hate her, most likely. She decided it was best to push him away and disregard everything he made her feel. This was the first time in years that she had really felt human but it wasn't meant to be.

Rin could pass off as a normal teenaged boy. He was so positive and caring that it was hard to even think about his relation to Satan without picturing his childish, fanged grin. Being born in Assiah and raised as a normal human wasn't something Miyuki experienced entirely but he had.

He was gifted with a family, a chance to go to school and even the chance to make friends. She hounded with lessons on how to become what her mother failed to be and was stripped from the closest thing she had to family.

Until she met Rin, all of this was normal. Now, normal was watching her classmates get into trouble for their stupid antics or wondering when Satan was going to come and kill her for disobeying him. It was only a matter of time and when it doeshappen, she needs to be as far from Rin as possible. Emotionally and physically. He couldn't get any closer.

"Miyuki..."

"Stop..."

"Miyuki."

"I said stop, Rin. I'm not-" "Look around you."

Realisation dawned on Miyuki as her eyes scanned her surrounding. Her hair had risen into the air as a deadly aura surrounded her. Ice and snow blanketed the rooftop. Her powers never seemed to be tied to her emotions. Then again, she was never allowed to be emotional. She furrowed her eyebrows as hot, painful tears fell down her cheeks.

"I don't need you to tell me what kind of person I am," she snapped with a very sudden sense of hostility. Rin narrowed his eyes as she gave him a steely-eyed look and bared her sharp canine teeth. She did her best to hide her fear but he had already figured out her problem. How the hell was he able to read her like an open book?

"You don't have to be afraid of letting people into your life. You won't get hurt...at least not by me," he grabbed her icy hands, holding them up between them. She flinched, blood-red irises unmoving as they stared at their interlocked fingers. Her eye twitched when she snapped out of the trance he put her in.

With no hesitation, the Yuki-Onna ripped herself away from the dark-haired boy, "I'm not stupid. I can take care of myself just fine."

"I know Yukio told you to stay away from me but you don't have to listen to him. You're your own person. You can do and go wherever you want," his voice was more sincere and confidant than before.

Miyuki's vein popped out of her forehead at how sure he was of himself. She needed to push him away before he got hurt. Unfortunately, she let her feelings slip.

"Rin, please...Don't..." she pleaded in a hushed tone. She sighed. There was no going back now. "You don't even know who I am."

That set Rin off.

"You're Miyuki, the last Yuki-Onna. You get good grades even though you don't care about it, you won't let people into your life because you're afraid, you're socially awkward and sometimes a little rude, you're an orphan, you killed your childhood friend's sister...and you're my best friend." His expression softened.

Miyuki was speechless. He had payed attention to her more than she thought. How unfortunate. There was only one trick left up her sleeve and it pained her to think about what his reaction would be.

"You missed something..." Her nails dug her nails into her hands, creating crescent indentions in her skin. Scarlet orbs burned with a fire fueled by pure rage and a deadly amount of annoyance.

"Tell me, then," Rin huffed.

"I was sent here to bring you back to Ghenna."

Everything was quiet. There was no breeze, no insects chirping, nothing. Rin's wide-set eyes stared at her for what seemed like eternity.

"You...what...?" he mumbled.

"I was told by Satan himself to come here and capture you. I failed and he sent Amaimon. Since he also failed, I guess that daddy dearest will be taking matters into his own hands soon," Miyuki bit out in an ironically cold tone.

The whole roof was iced over completely by now and the sudden drop in temperaturewas very noticeable.

"I'm not a good person. I'm a demon...I've done things you couldn't possibly imagine. Hurting people is all I've ever known. That's why I refuse to get close to anyone. I don't want to hurt the ones that matter," she mumbled. Small flakes of snow fell from the sky, sparkling with the help of the moonlight as they fell down around the two teens.

"Were you actually going to do it?" Rin was shaking slightly but not from the cold. A sigh escaped Miyuki's lips as her eyelids gently lowered.

"At first, yes. I was ready to take you back until I started to get to know you better. You made me happy, Rin...I should've known that happiness isn't an option for someone like me." Her heart felt as if an anchor had been tied to it and it was being dragged into a deep dark ocean. Rin huffed, furrowing his eyebrows a bit.

"Or, you think that happiness isn't something you deserve. Miyuki, you're one of the strongest people I know. I promise we can get through this together," he pleaded with her. They were both too stubborn to back down and they knew it. The scarlet-eyed girl shook her head and did her best to look away from Rin.

"This is bigger than me and you. So many people could get hurt. That's why you should forget about me and and about me and prepare for Satan's return," she looked Rin square in the eyes. He frowned. She wanted him to disregard his feelings? No way.

"Miyuki, I'm not forgetting anything." His feelings mattered and so do hers, that was his message. He was going to get it through her thick skull. Sadly, she was just as stubborn. With a tired sigh she stood up. She had made a decision.

"I'm leaving, Rin. Satan's coming whether we want him to or no and I'd like to be far from here when he does," Miyuki stood up and began walking towards the door.

"W-Wait!" After swallowing the lump in his throat, Rin scrambled onto his feet and followed her. Before he had time to think ablut anything, he came in contact with the ice the noirette had layered the roof with.

In other words, he slipped.

Because of his graceful demonstration of how gravity works, his arms began to flail about in an attempt to grab something stationary. His fingers curled around the closest thing to him.

Instead of being able to pull himself upright, he simply pulled his anchor down with him. The good news is that she broke his fall. The bad news...is that she broke his fall.

It took him a moment to process that he grabbed on to Miyuki and pulled her down with him. She was now lying underneath him, pinned between him and the frosty roof. Their limbs were entangled together and his body was lying right on top of hers, unmoving. Her cheeks were bright pink but the frown she wore was contradictory to her flustered state.

"Sorry," Rin apologized, voice a bit muffled. Miyuki looked down with narrowed eyes to see that his face was buried in her abdomen. She sighed.

"Get up," the raven-haired teen demanded. Rin pushed himself up and untangled his legs from hers, doing as he was told. Just before he went to stand, he stopped and stared down at the Yuki-Onna's flustered face. His eyes were wide, as if he was stunned by something.

"Miyuki..." his voice was quiet and hushed. He was so close. Why? Wasn't he supposed to be getting farther away? Why? Why?! WHY?!

Miyuki screamed inside of her mind. She wanted to shout at the boy but found that nothing would come out of her dry throat. She couldn't say anything but her teary eyes told Rin all he needed to know.

Her mind was racing. All of her thoughts were swarming through her head like a hive of bees. Doubts, lies, desires, et cetera. He couldn't possibly know what he was doing to her. He had brought her to tears with a simple look and the uttering of her name!

"I don't know what's scaring you but I can protect you," Rin muttered before letting everything go quiet again.

Due to their closeness, Miyuki could feel his breath tickle her eyelashes. He seemed to have manned up in mere seconds, almost becoming a different person. That personwas making Miyuki's mind and body malfunction.

She felt paralyzed and trapped inside her own cage of a mind. Rin didn't have the key but he still tried to pry the bars open. Slowly but surely, his attempts paid off.

"Stop talking...please..." she begged, a single tear rolling down the side of her face. She was shattering just as easily as the ice towers she made mere moments ago.

"You don't have to be afraid." This was the quietest Rin had been all evening. He shuffled onto his feet, pulling Miyuki up with him once again. His hands were left on hers. Why did he look so sure of himself?

"You can't protect me so stop trying," she tried to appeal to him once more. Rin's vibrant, blue eyes glistened with an emotion neither of them knew the name of. In all honesty, he had no idea what he was doing but he knew one thing was for certain. She was scared and he could help.

"I will and I can," he insisted with a frown as he stared at the Yuki-Onna. She bit her lip, now more confused than ever. His left hand rose up until it cupped her face gently. The reassuring smile he gave her had no effect. She breathed out shakily.

"Quit acting like you know what happens in my brain. You'll get hurt if you keep this up," Miyuki hissed as her dark eyebrows furrowed. She sank her fang into her lip in a poor attempt at keeping the tears at bay. It didn't work. They flowed like the raging sea and her mental state didn't help.

"Please don't leave me, Miyuki," mumbled the raven-haired boy who was still standing fairly close to her. His irises burned with determination as he stared at the girl. When he received no answer, he sighed. His head dropped for a moment.

"I never intended on hurting anyone," Miyuki spoke softly. Rin's eyebrows creased as he studied her shaking form. Her white tail was now freely swishing behind her. It too seemed to convey her confused emotions, swaying to one side only to quickly move to the other before slowly retreating back with uncertainty.

The place which her mind was going wasn't a happy one. Back before she came to Assiah, there were many questions she didn't have answers to. Now she did. Did they satisfy her? Well...that's one answer she doesn't have.

"You've stuck with me since the beginning and you understand me more than any of our friends. I guess its because of our blood but I felt like we connected," Rin admitted. Miyuki's heart sank at his words and her eyes narrowed sadly. If only it was that easy.

"You don't know what you're doing," she warned. Her powers were so out of control that, due to her complex emotions, she unconsciously changed the weather.

Layer upon layer of snow and ice built up around them. Neither of them mentioned it. It sort of added to the atmosphere, although Rin's lips were starting to turn blue. Whether it was the cold or not, his heart was hurting.

The thing was, it took him this long to figure out why it got worse when he looked at the crying face of the girl before him. Why every time she was in pain, he got worried or why every time she walked into the room, he smiled at her. Why she meant so much to him...

"But I do," he looked down at something on her face for a split second before staring back into her scarlet eyes. To her, it felt like his blue flames had scorched her skin, burning her insides. There was no time for her to react. It was happening and there was nothing she could do to stop it. He was closing the distance between them. He was getting closer.

"Rin, wait, I-"

The moment Rin crashed his lips against hers, sparks flew. Quite literally, in fact. Miyuki's powers began to go wild. Much like when she chained Amaimon, she began to levitate. A vortex of icy wind formed around them. There was no thinking, only her giving in to pure desire and kissing Rin back passionately. His hands trailed to her hips and she almost seemed to lean into his touch for a moment. Her soft, cold lips pressed against his carefully, as if she was afraid of hurting him.

"Y-You're cold...Sorry," she apologized telepathically. Rin chuckled but never backed away.

"Don't worry about it."

Miyuki's hands tightly gripped Rin's shirt, making him aware of just how much she was trembling. She wasn't scared, she was terrified.

"For the love of everything unholy...What is happening...?" the noirette thought, forgetting her telepathic link to Rin was still open. Her face flushed when she felt him smile. Despite herself, she sunk into the kiss that she didn't want to end.

Then, everything came flooding back. The years of training in Gehenna, Strix, Azila, Amaimon, Satan, her arrival in Assiah, her adventures in True Cross, Rin, Rin, Rin, Rin and Rin. She couldn't take it. Tears streamed down her face as she broke the kiss. They fell from her cheeks in the form of crystals.

The Yuki-Onna took a deep breath. The boy stared at her as she repeated his move and cupped his face in her hands. With an uncertain look in her eyes, she bit her lip. Rin's heart nearly stopped.

"Stop running head-first into danger. That's how you get killed," she spoke sharply, knowing her voice was going to fail her soon. Her hair blew in the wind, strands briefly hitting Rin as he widened his eyes. Miyuki's self-control was thrown to the wind as she leaned forward again.

With one hand she pushed him back until he hit the concrete rooftop. She sat on top of him, straddling his waist as her hair draped over her shoulder and tickled his face. Rin's cheeks grew a dark shade of red. Then, with a held breath, she brought herself closer to him.

Rin's face heated as he felt her cold nose briefly touch his. The hands that pinned him, her nose, her stare, her mouth—Everything about her was icy. It made sense but those small things were something he had never thought of until now.

Her face was near his neck now as she began to plant heated kisses along his collarbone. She even managed to draw a little blood when her fang pierced his skin. Neither of them noticed. She backed away for a brief moment, breathing shakily, then leaned down until she was next to his ear.

"I can't do this. I can't do this to you," she whispered, unable to speak any louder. Hot tears fell down her face, steaming as they rolled off her cheek.

"Stop worrying and let yourself be," he advised but Miyuki didn't listen. She simply shook her head.

"Yuki-Onna lead men to their death, you know? I'm sorry, Rin. I'm really...really...sorry," the girl sniffled. She grabbed Rin's wrist's tightly, freezing them to the ground before she got up and ran off. Rin sat there for a moment, stunned by what happened. He wondered if he had done something wrong while he lay there frozen to the roof.

"What the hell?!"

"Hayami, wait!"

The shouting from downstairs drew him out of his melancholic thoughts. He summoned his demonic flames and ran downstairs into the room where the party was held. He found Suguro, Shima, and Yukio with their legs encased in ice and frozen to the ground. He caught a glimpse of Miyuki's swaying hair as she continued running.

"Miyuki! I didn't-" "Hold it," Mika grabbed his shirt and held him in place. "Miyuki doesn't really wanna see you right now, Flame-brain." Rin's expression went dull.

"What happened between you two?" Shima asked while trying to use his free foot to kick his way out of the girl's ice. Rin went quiet, turning to look out the window. Miyuki was still running, her steps leaving a trail of ice and sleet behind her. He sighed. Unbeknownst to him, the turning of his head gave his classmates, brother and Mika a clear view the hickey's on his neck and the blood on his collarbone.

"I...honestly don't know..."