A/n: Huff... this took me quite a while to write! I'm so sorry, dear readers and followers for the long wait but finally I managed to finish chapter 3... hope, chapter 4 won't take me as long as this one. (OMG... lmost one year has passed... öÖ"""") I thank everyone who left a review and everyone who added this to their favourites! It makes me so happy, you should see my grin whenever I get a notification from ff . net! :3 And I'm really sorry that I'm such a lazy-ass who doesn't reply to your awesome comments. *shame on me now* ;_; Forgive me!

Warnings: Abuse oh and more important: SPOILERS! (For everyone who doesn't read the manga)

Puppeteer
Chapter 3: Your Clown

When Rin finally awoke after that nauseating journey, he found himself on a comfortable soft surface. He just wanted to lie there forever, never bother to open his eyes ever again and instead inhale the precious earthy odor surrounding him. So he just kept lying there for quite a moment, eyes closed, believing that he might still be on True Cross Academy's school grounds.

Unfortunately reality chose to hit him hard in the face as he registered that all too familiar, subliminal sulfur-like stink defile the pleasant scent creeping up his nostrils until he felt like choking. The teenager's eyes fluttered open hesitantly. He pushed himself up into a sitting position to intake the scenery.

There were stone walls densely covered with green leafy vines. Oversized exotic, looking flowers in various shades of red and orange bloomed in between the tendrils. He noticed a sweet, heavy and mesmerizing scent coming from them. Still, it was not strong enough to overpower the sulfuric stench lingering everywhere.

Back in Gehenna, yay!

Rin wrinkled his nose in disgust, before he decided to rise to his feet in order to evaluate his surrounding from another point of view. He noticed that the room lacked of furniture and decoration items. The only... thing that resembled a bed was a rather complex netting of twigs and twines, canopied by a fluffy carpet of tiny, chocolate colored flowers. The whole construct sprouted from the grass covered ground in the center of the small room. The mere beauty of it stunned Rin. Who would have guessed something as neat as this existed in a place like Gehenna?

The half-demon was about to take a closer look at it, when suddenly he felt a hand touching down on his shoulder and pulling him forcefully backwards. An unmanly squeak escaped his lips. Panicking he struggled against the touch and whirled around to face the stranger, his hand already reaching for the haft of Kurikara.

He sighed in relief as he found himself confronted with stern looking, turquoise eyes behind a set of glasses. Thanks gods, Yukio.

Even though he knew that Mephisto's diary only displayed the past of the demon principal, everything here felt so very real and vivid. There were even smells and tastes included! No wonder one could get fooled in here easily.

Though Yukio's eyes mercilessly shot daggers at him, Rin knew he was save. "Didn't you promise me to return the diary just yesterday, Nii-san? Seeing that we ended up here again, it seems like you chose to ignore my request." the younger twin growled.

Wait... what? Did Yukio just accuse him to be dishonest and unreliable? He stood to his words. It wasn't his goddamned fault that they were stuck in here once again.

Glaring and grinding his teeth Rin was about to give him a sulky reply, when all of a sudden the door opened and two figures entered the room. One of them being Amaimon, which caused Rin to instantly grab for Kurikara a second time. But the Earth King didn't seem aware of any intruders. It took Rin a moment to memorize that Yukio and him were merely spectator's and not to be seen. Get used to this.

Get a grip already, you're not physically here, Rin!

Alongside Amaimon Mephisto limped through the door panting heavily and relying more on his brother's strong support than his own legs. Rin gasped. Mephisto's whole body seemed to be covered with scratches, bruises and open wounds. His blood soaked clothes peeled from his maltreated body in shreds. He trembled with every step he took and even after the Earth King supported him to lay down on top of the "bed" he kept on shaking like an epileptic.

Quickly Amaimon scanned the room and impatiently waved at a Greenman nearby to make it grow several different plants and herbs. One after another the Earth King shoved them into his mouth and began to chew on them to receive something like a green mushy herbal paste. Without hesitating he gently began to treat his brother's wounds with this self-made ointment, gaining a hiss and a deathly glare. Mephisto backed away, trying to escape the aid. His eyes displayed a mixture of fury and panic at the same time. This mix of emotions seemed so very out of place on the principal's usual happy-go-lucky face.

"Don't dare touching me...!" he growled and almost slipped off the bed. However, Amaimon quickly jumped forward, grabbed him by his wrists and pinned him down underneath him. There was more struggling and hissing from the older demon, but the younger one did not give in and started muttering words of an unknown language. The twigs of the camp came to life, growing and sliding themselves around Mephisto's ankles and wrists to hold him in place.

Visibly nervous Amaimon loosened his grip on the other demons wrists and got back to treating his battered body. It didn't take long until Mephisto finally cooled down and relaxed under the tender touches of his younger brother.

"Please rest, Aniue... if I am able to actually hold you back then you must be weakened." The Earth King stated gently. In an attempt of affection he placed his hand on Mephisto's cheek to caress it. At first Mephisto went stiff yet again, but soon he snapped out of his current state of shock. "Amaimon..." he croaked and closed his eyes in annoyance. "... just go."

The Earth King stopped his treatment and sighed. "It wouldn't harm you to let me take care of you... or to be nice for once." Accusing cerulean eyes met narrowed green ones. It was a battle on its own. Whoever gave in and broke eye contact first would end up losing. It wasn't that big of a surprise that Amaimon broke the eye contact first. He rose to his feet and obediently made his way towards the door. Before he left, though, he turned around once again with a puzzled expression. "I don't get your idea of pride. No one in all of Gehenna is a match to father. He is the God of us all. You are the second strongest demon in our hierarchy yet you won't ever submit to Satan. Why? It's against our nature to endanger ourselves for impossible ambitions."

"Right you are. You don't get my idea of pride and I will certainly not spell it out. Just get out now, leave me alone! I have no desire to have you lingering around when I'm in such a state." The harsh words made Amaimon flinch. No matter how weakened the elder demon was, the Earth King still seemed to have a lot of respect towards him.

Yet he remained in the room, musing for a while longer. "I'll make a contract. After all, I have no problem being anyone's toy..." He cast a determined last glance at his brother and turned on his heel to leave the room, the door slamming shut behind him.

"Don't you dare!" Mephisto meant to call, yet he merely whispered. He sighed in frustration over his immobility. "Talking about acting against our nature... a demon does not care for anything else but its own sake. Stupid idiot of a younger brother."

Mephisto wriggled on the bed. As much as he hated to admit it, but he was to weakened to use his time and space magic for now. Satan's seal affected it for at least another day or two. So he was stuck underneath the firm grasp of the branches that bound him to Amaimon's bed. Sulking, he shot daggers at the ivy covered stalactites at the ceiling as if it was their fault that he had to remain.

All the time Rin and Yukio stood nearby, overhearing the whole conversation in deadly silence. Even now, none of them dared to speak a word. Yukio cast down his eyes, inwardly cursing his brothers curiosity. He didn't want to witness all these intimate moments of Sir Pheles' past.

Rin on the other side thought about the same. He felt a mixture of shame, regret and sympathy fighting an inner battle inside him.

The silence stretched oddly and Rin began to wonder when the memory sequence ended. It seemed like nothing was about to happ~

Darkness filled the room. Not any kind of darkness, but such darkness that creeps inside from the corners of a room, sinking down to fill the whole space and swallowing everything in its way. The kind of darkness that guaranties you shivers down your spine and your skin to goosebump.

Blue flames licked at the walls, burned the exotic flowers and tendrils to ashes. Rin and Yukio tensed immediately and so did Mephisto. The sulfuric stench of increased when a shadowy silhouette of a figure appeared. Rin almost gagged. "That smell, gross!" He gasped.

"It's ether... the very essence of demons, their body if one might say so. If you actually paid attention during classes you'd know that by now." Yukio said irritated, then he cast his eyes down once again, mumbling to himself. "I don't want to see, what comes next."

Rin had no time to question Yukio's statement, because just then Satan's vicious, derisive laughter filled the room. "Kekekeke... such a nice gift for me. I have to thank Amaimon for saving me the trouble to tie you up, even though he didn't mean to. Won't you agree?" Mephisto didn't ans

wer. He struggled once again to free himself, unfortunately luck was not on his side and the branches were mercilessly relentless. So Satan chose to keep the one-sided conversation going on, amused by the poor attempts of his eldest son. "So, what made you run away to a place like this, I wonder? I thought better of you than to hide in a place where I'd find you instantly. Do you not always claim to be so witty and smart?"

Mephisto growled and bared his fangs menacingly, not holding back on his demonic instincts. A sight, Rin would never get used to and even more so would never forget. He looked very much like a wounded animal being cornered.

"I do not hide. Not from you! Back off!"

"Hahahaha... very cute. You want to threaten me? In your current condition and position you wouldn't even impress a Coal Tar. By the way, your words are rather rude and insulting. Insolence needs to be punished~!" Satan bent down and drove the sharp claw on his index finger inside the semi-exposed skin of Mephisto's chest, driving it downwards in a sinuous line and dipping it inside one of the open wounds. "Not healing fast, are we? So you are kind of in a critical state, it seems..."

Mephisto clenched his fists, slipping a pain-filled gasp he could not hold back any longer. No matter how much he tried to free himself and run, the branches remained adamant. Panting he realized there was no escape. He cast an icy glare at his father, biting his bottom lip until he tasted blood. But it was the only way to suppress his cries and moans. After all Satan enjoyed pain and Mephisto was so not going to let him have such pleasure.

Satan smirked deviously. He ran his thumb over Mephisto's bleeding split lip, licking his own in a disgusting lascivious way. "You don't know how beautiful you are when you look at me in defiance and anger... Hahaha..." Satan bent down even deeper and pressed his lips on the unwilling younger demon. Mephisto snapped at him out of reflex and earned himself a hard punch in the face that made him see stars and his lip to crack even further.

"Such an outrageously cheeky young demon. Where are your manners? Never forget, you are my toy, my possession, Samael." Mercilessly he drove his fangs into the sensitive flesh of Mephisto's neck. He cried in pain.

A sound so dreadful and deafening. Rin never wanted to hear him cry like this ever again. Beside him Yukio flinched.

Mephisto stopped struggling. There was no need anymore. He lost. He stood no chance, not being trapped like this, not in such a bad condition. His survival instincts kicked in and topped his pride.

No biting, no snapping! Just do what you're told and you'll get out of this without serious harm. For now he resigned and let his father have his way with him.

Rin stared at the scenery in a certain kind of shock. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. Nor could he suppress the urge to reach for Kurikara. Memory or not. This was sick. Sicker than sick! And Satan deserved to get his ass kicked!

Just then a familiar feeling washed over Rin. The memory faded and the next moment he felt the nauseous sensation of being pulled back into reality.

His eyes snapped open and he found himself back at True Cross Academy at the exact same place he had been before the memory sequence unfold. The nauseous feeling remained. A bitter taste filled his mouth and Rin vomited right onto the fancy cut green turf. He choked hard.

How could he have been so blind? In retrospect it seemed so obvious that Mephisto had raged about Satan's abuses in the very first sequence Yukio and him witnessed. Oh, he was so incredibly pissed. Pissed abot his own stupidity, pissed about Satan and even pissed about the whole messed up shit he had gone through ever since he unsheathed Kurikara for the first time. Such an act of foolishness. Frustrated he pulled out blades of grasses. It seemed to help at least a bit.

„Oi, what exactly are you doing this for?" Rin froze. That voice! It couldn't... could it be?

Quickly the teenager jumped to his feet and spun around. Cerulean eyes met his indigo blue ones. His half-brother lazily sucked on a lollipop and raised an eyebrow at him.

„You...! I... shouldn't you...?!" he stammered and reached for his katana. „I killed you at court!"

*** TBC ***