YOU GUYS. I'M SO, SO SORRY FOR LATENESS. Things have been tough. I'm moving out of the house I was born and raised in next week, and I'm also desperately trying to finish up the 500 page novel that I've been working on, not to mention that my friend and I have this whole Pokémon series going called Broken Compass, and I'm the artist.

Yeah, I'm a crappy artist. Just look at the cover for this story and you'll see just how bad.

Anyway, I remember the whole rating-thing for this story, and I'm thinking about changing it to M, but mostly to be safe about it. Besides, as things get deeper into the plot, things are going to get rough. And, as lovely Dowgma pointed out, these folks are DEMONS. They are not NICE.

So, recap. This story is rated M just to be on the safe side, but I'll put a warning on the, er, darker chapters. I'LL MAKE THE WARNING REALLY BOLD, LIKE THIS, SO THAT YOU CAN'T MISS IT.

Well, on that note, here yah go! Yukio POV coming right up, plus an extra page of awesomeness.

Yukio POV

Shura knelt down next to Yukio, her face flushed and her breath smelling of booze. "This is stupid," she hissed into his ear.

He snapped the ammo into the gun with practiced ease. "You mentioned that." They were in his dorm room now, preparing for the night.

"Noooooooo," Shura frowned, forcing Yukio to look at her. "This is really stupid." She flicked her violet eyes to Amaimon, who was crouched in the corner of the dorm room picking at his nail. "He's a demon," she whispered loudly.

Yukio flinched and turned back to Amaimon, but the demon didn't notice. "Well," he mumbled, "we don't have much of a choice."

And they didn't. They were going to break about a dozen Vatican rules while busting Mephisto, the ex-headmaster of the most acclaimed exorcist school and also the most lethal traitor the exorcist world had ever known, and do it with practically no help.

"This suuuuucks," Shura moaned, sitting down.

Yukio cast her a dry glance; how much did she drink? before turning back to his gun. It was polished to a dark shine. "I know," he stated. Their chances were awful; Amaimon was a demon, Yukio himself was a half-demon half-human hybrid, though he never acquired his demonic side thanks to Rin, and Shura was currently an alcoholic.

Their chances were, Yukio had to admit, pretty bad.

But what else can I do? He glanced to Shura and Amaimon again; Shura was absolutely drunk, and Amaimon didn't seem to care. In fact, he took over Rin's bed and was staring at Shura and Yukio with a bland expression.

Yukio shoved his gun in its holster and stifled a sigh.

This was a less-than ideal team for such a fragile mission. They would be lucky if they didn't implode.

Heck, we'll be lucky if we survive this.

He rubbed the bridge of his nose; he was beginning to feel a headache form between his eyes. Over the past couple of hours he asked himself what on earth he was doing . . . and then he reminded himself that he was doing this for his brother.

Oh, the lengths he would go for family. It had always been like this, always Yukio watching his brother's back.

But lately, he was thinking that maybe that it had been the other way around. Yukio had thought that Rin was annoying, but now he missed his twin's antics more than ever. He missed the sarcastic comments, the forgetfulness, the happy-go-lucky attitude that had reassured him without him noticing.

He missed his brother.

And he would do whatever it took to get him back.

"We'll begin at nightfall," Yukio said, standing to his full height. "Until then, rest and eat something. It's going to be a long night."

Shiemi POV

Shiemi watched the world outside her window and sighed. The clouds were beautiful today; light and fluffy, and made interesting shapes in the sapphire blue sky. A flock of birds passed by her bedroom window, calling to each other in hello. The sunlight was warm, the town beneath busy and full of life. It was a gorgeous day.

And she wasn't seeing it at all.

Her mind was a thousand miles way, in a different world in fact, wandering to where Rin was. She wondered if he was all right, and every time she asked herself that question she tried not to laugh.

He was in Gehenna. In hell.

How could he be?

She had sworn to herself to stand strong for Yukio and for Rin too. Whenever there was a fight, she was always staring at their backs, always the defenseless girl that needed protecting. She made a vow that she would never watch from the sidelines again, not after the Impure King, and definitely not after the Kraken. She vowed to always be their strength. Her breath fogging the window as she sighed.

And here she was again, watching from the sidelines, watching everyone else do their best. And what does she get to do? Watch plants grow all day. Once that hobby had been a time to clear her head, her garden of Eden a place where everything bad seemed miles away.

And now her garden was a cage. The order from the Vatican was absolute; anyone who was an Exwire or below was the evacuate the school and return to their homes. To normal life.

But for Shiemi, who's house was on the school itself, there was no normal life to return to. Just days staring out the window, wondering how Yukio was doing and fiercely hoping that Rin was all right.

Her hands balled up on the soft pink fabric of her kimono.

What would Rin do right now? she asked herself. What would Yukio do?

The answer came immediately; if Yukio disappeared, Rin would break every school rule at the risk of his own life to save his younger twin brother. Yukio, however, would calmly step forward and logically work out a solution.

So why not do both?

For the first time in a week, a small smile curled on her full lips. Her mom was out now, bringing supplies over to the wounded. Schedules had been thrown into chaos, and Yukio would probably use that chaos to sneak past everyone undetected. Rin would probably add to the chaos.

Shiemi decided to take Yukio's approach on this one; logical would be best for now. The desperate acts could wait until later. Stumbling to her feet, she began to sprint for the door.

She would stand on the sidelines no longer.

Whoooo Shiemi is gonna kick butt! I always loved Shiemi's character; she's so fierce in her own adorable way, always trying to prevail over her self-doubts and inner fears, and always trying to help. Well, it's her time to shine coming up!

And don't worry. The other Exwires will show up too eventually. :) Also, since there are so many characters beginning to play in, the chapters will probably not be pure Yukio or pure Rin POV. It will probably be a mixture, but the POVs will stay in the same world though.

So. You guys ready for poop to hit the fan?

Stay awesome,

Rand0mSmil3z

PS: By the way you guys, this story now has 100 reviews! You guys are totally awesome; I love you all! 3 3 3 thanks for reading this story and I hope that I make you proud in the later chapters!