Fictober Day 14: "I can't come back."

Yukio's palm rested on the doorknob, looking doubtfully at his brother. "Are you sure you'll be alright?"

"Of course," Rin said, bestowing him with a brazen grin.

For some reason, that made Yukio look even more nervous. "Nii-san, once I leave for this mission... I can't come back. Not until tomorrow."

Rin rolled his eyes. "I'm not five, Yukio. I can handle one night by myself. And honestly, I won't be alone! I have Kuro."

"That's right," Kuro confirmed, but all Yukio probably heard was a gleeful mewl.

Several moments of hesitation. Rin's grin expanded a fraction, all innocence, and his tail twitched behind him like it was itching to thrash around in excitement.

Finally, Yukio relented. "Alright. I guess I'll be going, then. Be careful."

"Right back at ya, bro."

Yukio smiled at him for just a moment before facing the door again and shifting his briefcase in his other hand. "Alright, Nii-san. I'll see you tomorrow."

"See you tomorrow," he echoed, and then Yukio was gone, and Rin and Kuro were left standing the middle of the common's room. They'd already eaten—Rin was sure to have dinner done before Yukio left, so now there was little to do other than homework.

It would probably surprise Yukio if he completed at least one of the assignments given to him by his cram school instructors. Maybe Yukio would be proud of him for doing something productive. Rin pondered over this with a frown.

"Nah," he decided, before facing his familiar. "What do you wanna do, buddy?"

Kuro regarded him with a contemplative expression, and then looked around. "I'm not sure."

Well. That was to be expected. No matter how much they bickered, at least with Yukio here, he forgot just how empty this dorm really was. Now that he was gone—even if it was just for the night—Rin was being brutally reminded. The thought made him frown.

"Hey," Kuro said, butting his head against Rin's pantleg. "Don't look so sad! We'll figure something out."

He shot Kuro a smile, and they made their way upstairs. Maybe he should get started on his homework—that would keep him busy. Or just frustrate the hell out of him. Or both.

Unmotivated and bored, he chose to just lie down on his bed. Kuro quickly joined him, curling up into a little ball by his hip, nestling into the blanket.

And promptly jumped out of his skin when Rin sat back up, a wide grin on his face. "That's it!"

Kuro blinked, long and slow. "What?"

"A fort," Rin cried. "Let's build a fort!"

Kuro, bless his heart, still looked very confused. "A... what?"

Rin was already pushing himself off the bed, reaching for his sheets. "We can use Yukio's blankets, too! And there are so many rooms, there's bound to be more!"

He was already out of the room searching for more before Kuro could respond.

The next morning, Rin didn't hear Yukio come in. He was sleeping in peacefully, bundled up with his demon familiar in a mass of pillows and blankets, only pulled into wakefulness when he felt something poke his shoulder. Hard.

Harder.

Harder.

"Nnn... what?" he mumbled groggily, rolling over.

"Nii-san, what did you do?"

He peeped one eye open, sleepily taking in his (very awesome, thank you for very much) fort. Blankets were scattered about in mountains, pinned up on the bed frames, on the walls, even draped over his desk. He hadn't been able to find as many pillows, sadly, but he was pretty proud of what he'd made the previous night.

"Oh? This?" He grinned at his brother. "It's my fort. Cool, isn't it?"

Yukio looked beyond unimpressed. "'I'm not five,' he tells me. 'I can handle one night by myself,' he says. Nii-san, our room is a mess!"

"Admit it. You're jealous," Rin said, his grin borderline cocky.

Yukio let out an exasperated breath. Rin just continued to smirk.