~Grace~

"Grace?" Jude questioned. I barely heard him. I was too focused on my breathing. My lungs felt tight and my body felt heavy. I squeezed my eyes shut when another wave of nausea hit me. I fell to my hands and knees, a stabbing pain erupting in my stomach.

"Jude," I panted, "Something's wrong."

I felt his hands on me and he tried to find the source of my pain. I cried out as my pain intensified. I felt dizzy and I keeled over. I fell onto Jude's lap and he looked terrified. He panicked.

"Get me…" I doubled over, "Home!"

He nodded and briefly left me there, lying on the cold stone. I heard a rumbling sound in the distance. I wondered if that was Satan realizing that we'd escaped. It was strange. A few minutes ago I'd felt fine, but now…

A warm light washed over me and I felt hope rising. My father. He would know what to do. I felt a faint vertigo as Jude lifted me from the ground. He walked towards the door. Through all the blurriness I barely made out the outline of the golden door. This was it. We were going home. Finally.

Trumping all the pain and the nausea was hope. Happiness. Joy.

~Rin~

"Are we just going to spend all of our time here?" I said. I sort of felt like I'd asked that question a thousand times. I was anxious to get to Grace. I couldn't stand thinking about what she was going through while I was just sitting here…relaxing.

"You seem eager to start this thing," Mikael remarked.

I rolled my eyes, "I've told you before. I don't care about myself! I care about her!"

Mikael grinned to himself, "You've told me so many times I feel like I'll never forget it."

"Yeah, I still don't understand what's happening," Shima said, raising his hand. I glanced over to where he and Izumo were sitting.

She looked annoyed, her arms crossed over her chest, "Yeah, I'd like to know what's happening too."

"And where's Grace? You guys have been missing for so long. We thought you'd died or something," Shima said.

Izumo elbowed him, "Don't say that!"

Shima looked amused. "It seems that being in a steady relationship with Shima has made you soft, Izumo," Konekomaru said, pushing his glasses farther up on his nose with one finger.

"Seriously, Okumura. You should really clear things up," Bon said. His arms were draped over the back of the couch he was sprawled out on.

I sighed, "Just wait a little longer. We'll explain everything to you."

"We've been waiting," Shima complained. My resistance was crumbling.

"I, for one, am not a very patient person," Izumo drawled.

"We already knew that, though," Shima said, looking down at her. She leaned into him, a slight blush on her cheeks, and gut-punched him. I chuckled as Shima held his freshly-punched abdomen.

"Rin," said a voice. I looked behind me and saw Grace's dad. I got to my feet and walked up to him.

"Whoa, is that God?" Shima asked.

"He is, in fact, the very same man that is deemed God by the one and only Grace. I trust her word, but I still have trouble believing in such an entity," Konekomaru said.

Bon stared at him, "Dude, do you ever talk normally?"

"You've known me for a long time. I figured you would already know the answer to that question by now."

Bon nodded, "Yeah, you're right. The answer is no."

"Is everything ready?" I asked. I suddenly felt more anxious than I had before…and a little nervous. The fact that he was here meant that we were getting close. We'd strike soon, and the person who had the most to lose was yours truly.

He nodded and put a hand on my shoulder, "Are you sure you want to do this?"

I stared at him, "I'm sure."

"I like the look in your eyes," he said and then smiled. He looked to me with what seemed like fatherly affection. I felt a pang as I remembered my father. He turned away from me and pressed his hand to the wall. My friends came to stand beside me.

"Whoa," Shima breathed.

"Fascinating," Konekomaru muttered.

"It's time," I said under my breath. I took a deep breath and waited. The door opened. I held that same breath. I only released it when I was able to make him out: the first angel.

A man with golden hair stepped through the portal. Brilliant, tan wings spread out behind him. He looked strong and was taller than me by a few inches. "Sir," said the angel.

"Leoric," God replied with a nod. The angel stepped out of the light and stood by the other side of the room. He was wearing golden armor that reflected the light from the window directly into my eyes. I had to look away. After Leoric, more soldiers poured into the huge room. There were so many that I lost count. Eventually they stopped coming. They all seemed to flock around Leoric, so I assumed that he was the general. I grinned at my use of the word flock. It was perfect for a bunch of angels.

"These are the best men that we have. If anyone can do this, they can," said God, putting a reassuring hand on my arm. I took a deep breath and turned to my friends. All of their eyes were practically bugging out of their heads. I noticed the Mikael was joining his fellow angels, speaking to friends that I suppose he hadn't seen in a long time.

"That's a lot of heavenly beings," Shima remarked. I laughed.

"I guess I should tell you what's going on now, huh?" I said. They waited expectantly, but I hesitated. How was I going to tell them this?

"Well!" Izumo demanded impatiently.

"Grace was taken by Satan and is being kept in Gehenna because she's a powerful being who is half-god half-immortal and we're going to rescue her by using me as bait and then striking with all we have directly at its source and I need your help to do it," I said, the words tumbling out of my mouth clumsily.

They stared at me, blinking. Bon was the first to speak. His response surprised me. He stood stock still, his arms crossed over his chest. His expression hadn't changed. He simply said, "Ok."

It was my turn to be surprised, "That's it?"

"What else did you want?" Shima asked, "That pretty much sums it up."

"I agree. If a friend is in trouble we'd do anything to help," Izumo said.

"This is almost statistically impossible, but I can ignore statistics if its for a good cause," Konekomaru added. Mikael joined us.

"I'm sorry to spring this on you, but there's something else you should know," he said. His gaze flitted between them, "The air in Gehenna is potentially fatal to anyone who breaths it and doesn't have demon immunization."

"Wait, then what's the point of all this?" Shima asked.

Mikael sighed, "Well…"

"I can provide that immunization, but you're not going to like how I'm going to do it," I said.

They stared at me. Bon spoke, "I'm feeling as impatient as Izumo right now."

Izumo smacked him but didn't say anything. I took a deep breath, "You have to drink my blood."

Their reactions were something comical. Shima laughed. I guess he thought I was joking. Izumo gagged. Konekomaru turned away. Bon just stared at me blankly, his eye twitching.

"I'm serious—" I began. I was interrupted by a loud banging sound. I whirled around and saw something that I never would have expected. A door was opening on the very same wall that God had opened his. I walked up to him, "Are you doing this?"

"No," he said, looking concerned, "There's only one other person who can open portals like this."

I felt my stomach tighten. Satan. I tensed and so did everyone else in the room. We waited, staring into the darkness. There was no question. This was a portal from Gehenna. My pulse raced and my vision seemed to narrow. I could only stare at one thing: the doorway. I waited and waited. It seemed like forever passed before something appeared, or rather someone. I lunged forward but froze a second later. There was absolute silence. I would have been able to hear a pin fall even without the advantage of demonic hearing.

"Grace?" I questioned. I cocked my head to the side and took a step back. Somehow I couldn't believe this was real. The person holding her fell to his knees, breathing hard.

"Please, help her," he panted. When no one did anything, his eyes grew wild. "Help her!" he shouted, "She's sick!"

I fell to my knees beside them, rushing to Grace's side. I took her into my arms. I didn't feel any of the usual warmth coming from her. She was covered in a thin sheen of sweat and was shaking violently. Somehow, though, I was glad that she was shaking. I clung to that fact. It meant that, even though she was freezing in my arms, she was alive.

"Grace," I said, "Grace!" I felt helpless. What was I supposed to do? I couldn't do anything about this! I finally had her back and yet I couldn't help her.

"This is worse than I imagined," said a grim voice. I turned. "Stop crying, Son. We won't lose her. I wouldn't let that happen," God said. I hadn't even realized that tears were steadily sliding down my cheeks. God knelt beside me and hovered his hand over her body. A soft, golden light was cast down upon her, making her previously greenish skin look alive again. When his hand paused over her right arm, she convulsed. She screamed out and fell onto her side. Her wings shot out from their previously concealed position. My brow furrowed when I realized they were a dismal grey. She was weak and it showed. I held her hand, willing her to feel my presence. I wanted her to know that I was there for her no matter what.

"Here," God said, "I'm sorry, Grace. This will be very painful." He lifted his arm and brought it down upon her. His fingers plunged into the flesh of her forearm and she screamed. She clutched my hand and her fingernails dug into my skin. I ignored it. I heard sickening sounds coming from her arm and I had to look away. I stared instead at the feathers on her wings. They seemed so delicate. She seemed so delicate right at that moment. I knew, though, that she was far from delicate. She was powerful. More powerful even than I was. My eyes widened as I registered what was happening. The feathers on her wings were steadily turning white. God stood up. I looked up at him and realized that his hand was covered in blood. Grace's blood. His face was pale and his eyes were glazed over. He went to lean against a wall and Leoric rushed to his side. I caught sight of something in God's hand, but I wasn't sure what it was.

"Rin?" said a weak voice. I turned back to her. Her eyes were closed and her hold on my hand was weak, but she was alive. I'd thank God, but he looked a little out of it at the moment. I guess I still hadn't gotten used to considering God as an all-powerful being who lived in the sky instead the dad of the girl I was in love with. It was all so strange.

"Yeah. I'm here," I said quietly.

She didn't open her eyes, but a blissful looked crossed her face. I held my breath. She was even more beautiful than I'd remembered. She seemed to glow even though she just been through all that. I pulled her closer to me and pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead, "Been a while."

She smiled, "You're such an idiot."

"I know."

"What a warm welcome for the girl you're in love with."

"I don't know. I feel like being apart so long has dampened my feelings for you."

"Sure it has."

I smiled, "You know that would never happen."

"Of course I do," she breathed. I gave her a soft kiss on her lips. They were the same as I remembered, but something about her being safe with me made it better than the kiss we'd shared in Gehenna. It was blissful.

I pulled away and gazed down at her. I tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear. She was covered in sweat and was still a bit pale, but she was more beautiful than she'd ever been before. The only thing that marred her face was the tear that slid down her cheek.

"I'm scared," she said quietly, her voice shaking.

"Why? You're safe," I said, worried.

"I'm scared that I'll wake up any second now and I'll be back in that cell. I don't want to lose this moment. I just hope that it can last for as long as possible," she whimpered.

I pressed my forehead to hers, "Don't be scared. I won't leave you. Even if this were just a dream, which its not, you would know one thing. You'd know that, no matter what, I would come and find you. I would save you," I said quietly. That seemed to sooth her. Her head slumped against my chest and she nodded slightly.

"I love you, Rin," she breathed. She fell asleep in my arms.

I ran my hand down her soft wings, practically blinding by their whiteness. I looked back to her sleeping face again. She slept peacefully, and I was glad.

"I love you, too. But you already know that," I whispered. A tiny smiled showed up on her sleeping face and I couldn't help but wonder if she'd heard me in her sleep.

What did you think of their reunion? Don't worry, we'll have more lovey-dovey moments between the two. What was Rin's plan? Hmmm. I guess you'll have to wait to find out. Oh, and though you might be confused now (as I've said before) you'll understand everything soon! For now, though, I will leave you guessing. Yeah, I'm cruel like that. Well, leave me a review and look forward to the next update! :)