Summary:

Mephisto's schemes are inconvenient for everyone involved, sometimes even himself, the world is topsy-turvy when Amaimon looks like the reasonable one, Rin is introduced to more of his "family", Yukio has early onset stress induced gray hairs, and Kuro is more perceptive than given credit for.

Notes:

I just realized why I wanted to end this fic after the last chapter (: I, a person who hates keeping timelines in order, have just spent hours trying to pick out the different scenes I want to use from amongst chapters 44 to 105 so I can integrate how Amaimon joining the classes earlier as Rin's new bae and mixing all the fun relationship stuff into things changes things up without just rehashing the plot of ane. I actually had to make an outline, you guys. An outline! Instead of just making stuff up as I go along like usual D:D:D: Also Lightning complicates things so much I know why Mephisto hates him now omg

(I just wanted to write them in cute smluffy scenes, why must I suffer the plot parts too? Lalalala somebody kill me :DDD)

But I really, really wanted to get to the Koma sword breaking and Rin awakening (his inner demon hah) bc I have the best scene(s) for that that I need to write like woah. So I'm sorry in advance for whatever mistakes I make with the incredibly complicated sequence of events in these following chapters lololol

It's all in the quest for getting the ot3 into risqué situations really ;D

Mephisto jolted up from the futon, startling the other two sleeping demons beside him.

"Oops."

Rin blinked bleary eyes, trying to understand why he was awake just yet while Amaimon let out a dangerous growl and tried to go back to sleep.

A snap and all three were dressed in their usual outfits, Mephisto already standing up and adjusting his gloves to Rin and Amaimon's confused shouts.

"Everybody up! We're about to miss the main event of the night."

Kurikara had appeared strapped over Rin's shoulder and he glanced at Amaimon to see him watching with a suspiciously blank stare, a sure sign he was hiding turbulent emotions.

"Um," Rin figured he might as well ask and see if Mephisto would start making sense, "what main event? Is the festival over?"

Hesitation paused Mephisto for a second as he turned to look over his shoulder, mouth quirked in a small regret-filled smile that sent tendrils of unease through Rin.

"I'm going to have to apologize to you in advance, Rin, for what's about to happen."

Seeing the tired resignation in Mephisto's eyes and knowing he was warning him he wasn't going to like whatever the main event was stilled Rin. Judging by how quiet Amaimon was being, he was also aware of the situation and what Rin's reaction was going to be.

Inhaling, Rin closed his eyes to settle his thoughts before opening them and leveling a long stare at Mephisto.

"I guess we'll just have to wait and see how bad it is to know how you're going to make it up to me after."

Nodded his head, Mephisto accepted Rin's admonition and the consequences of his scheming.

Mephisto was right to worry.

Rin was furious.

There before him stood Shima, brandishing the black flames of a powerful summon-something Rin hadn't even suspected the laid-back exwire to be capable of-channeled into his staff and having delivered an unconscious Izumo into the arms of the Illuminati.

The Illuminati, who were apparently a real organization and not a conspiracy theory.

Words escaped Rin in the face of Shima's contrite smile, unable to understand where the betrayal had come from, only staring with searching eyes and dismay eating at his heart.

He'd just been introducing Ambrosia to Shima at the festival, been good-naturedly teasing him with Konekomaru in their dorm where they'd made him feel like family in the face of Yukio's absence a week ago, been going to classes and overcoming their trials to become exorcists for a year now.

Shima was his friend, one of the first and only ones he'd ever had, and Rin never expected betrayal from his friends.

To say Rin was shocked was the understatement of the century. The world had been yanked out from under his feet for the second time in his life.

They'd been teleported by Mephisto into a standoff, Illuminati with their helicopter ready to take off with Shima and the captured Izumo on one side, and the remaining exwires, Nemu Takara, and Yukio on the other.

Their entrance had come just as the blindingly bright forms of the Seraphs appeared to herald the arrival of Lucifer, king of light and the most powerful of the Ba'al.

Mephisto stood as a bulwark against the oppressive heat and light the beings gave off, his cloak creating a shadow to guard the defenseless humans.

The sudden appearance prompted surprised shouting from the others, especially seeing Amaimon again, though he completely ignored them without acknowledgement. There wasn't any way to sit down and explain why Rin had shown up in their company, so Rin just inched closer to them and kept his eyes on the enemy, hoping he'd have the chance to talk to his friends about it later.

A pulse of energy and Lucifer appeared, materializing out of the ray of blinding light to stand opposite Mephisto.

An elaborate hawk-like mask obscured his face and his blonde-furred tail swept freely behind him. Deceptively placid leaf-green eyes could be seen from the mask, piercing and terrifying and Rin couldn't have moved if he tried.

Rin flinched and his lips curled up in a defensive growl as Lucifer glanced his way until Amaimon moved to stand more in front of him, crossed arms and straight-backed defiance that let Rin breathe easier.

That terrifying gaze left him to move onto Mephisto.

Decay came off Lucifer in a sickening scent that reached Rin across the distance, and he picked out the rotting skin around his neck and hands that spoke of a body dying by inches. Lucifer kept letting out intermittent wet-sounding coughs, though his voice when he finally spoke was patrician and somehow Rin could sense that he was still totally capable of destroying them without even trying.

"Samael."

"Lucifer, it's been so long."

Growing rage filled Rin, listening as Lucifer laid out his goals: bring peace through total equality, which sounded nice until you found out that when he said equality he meant the destruction of the physical world until everything returned to the immaterial state that the universe had existed in at the dawn of time.

All so Lucifer would no longer have to suffer a rapidly degrading body that his overwhelming energy forced him to leave every ten years until he would reform and start the agonizing process again. Forever.

Rin almost sympathized.

"Samael, I will give you one more chance to join me and, if you will not, then I will consider you my enemy."

Despite himself, a piece Rin tightened in fear of what Mephisto's answer would be until his face twisted into a wide sneer, baring his fangs at Lucifer in clear challenge.

"Impossible! I love the chaos of this world too much to go back to such a pitiful existence."

Lucifer's eyes narrowed before he nodded his head, accepting the statement. "It appears we still disagree on things, then. Very well."

He paused and acknowledged the other king in the group and Rin's breath hitched, scared for Amaimon despite himself, knowing that, as strong as he was, he could never stand up to Lucifer should he attack. He wasn't sure even Mephisto could survive an assault.

For his part, Amaimon stood firm, appearing almost bored at being the focus of the powerful demon.

"What's this, Amaimon? Have you chosen a side in this war, finally?"

Amaimon sneered at Lucifer.

"Yes."

"Then you have sided with Samael after all."

Derision filled Amaimon as he snorted. "Fuck off, Luci."

He indicated Rin with his chin, eyes not leaving Lucifer's

"I've chosen to side with Rin." Rin's heart skipped, eyes widening.

What did he-?

Whatever Lucifer might have thought about the insult to his name, he gave no reaction, something in the back of Rin's mind wondering if he must have put up with much worse from his rebellious younger brother over the thousands of years they'd existed.

"And does Samael accept this?"

Fangs bared in Amaimon's own challenge. "Again. Yes."

Lucifer nodded, calm in the face of Amaimon's declaration.

"I see," Lucifer said, then paused, glancing at a stunned Rin, "congratulations, then. I'm very happy for you, Amaimon."

"And, Rin," Lucifer began as he turned to leave, "should you decide at some future point to join myself and my cause, you and Amaimon will always be welcome. It was a pleasure to meet you, finally."

"Welcome to the family."

Amaimon ignored the shell-shocked humans and their shouts to the retreating spy whose name he didn't care to remember. His attention stayed focused on Rin, watching to see how he was taking everything.

Unfortunately, that was when the explosions started. The Seraph stationed at the academy and elsewhere around the world at the different branches of the True Cross order suiciding in burning implosions of light, the real declaration of war Lucifer had appeared to deliver.

The barrier around the academy fell and Amaimon shared a grimace with Mephisto at the mess that would have to be cleaned up. Not, of course, that Amaimon would be assisting Mephisto's exorcists with anything.

But Rin would have to and Amaimon would help Rin.

A defeated and solemn group was left flat-footed to watch the helicopter bearing their friends away.

Fury spun through Rin without an outlet.

Well,not quite without an outlet. He glared at Mephisto, who was definitely responsible for at least half of this mess. He was still looking to the sky, following the path the helicopter bore.

But, and Rin felt like gnashing his teeth and spitting flames about it, he had been warned that he was not going to be happy so he at least owed Mephisto a conversation with a more level head before he decided what level of retribution he was owed.

Then he could yell at the scheming bastard.

The sound of a gun cocking snapped Rin's attention away from his thoughts and up to Yukio only for his heart to stop as he pointed his guns at Amaimon.

"Why is Amaimon here, Sir Pheles?"

"Ah, please lower your weapons, Mr. Okumura, we're all on the same side here," Mephisto said, hands raised and a placating smile on his face.

"No, please, keep your pitiful weapons pointed at me," Amaimon hissed out, claws flexing in irritation.

"Yukio!" Rin snapped, moving to stand in Yukio's path. "Back off, we've got bigger issues here."

Yukio looked like he was about to start spouting his own flames until Shiemi stepped forward to put a calming hand on his arm, eyes wide and bright with tears. "Please, Yuki, we have to go save Izumo."

Seconds passed where Rin almost thought Yukio would shoot Amaimon anyway, hating being backed into a corner. But, with a sigh, Yukio lowered his guns, though he didn't holster them.

"Fine. I'd still like answers. What was all that?"

The ball returned to Mephisto's corner and he scratched at his chin, contemplating the view of the city from the overlook they were on. "What you have just witnessed is the king of light destroying the main barrier."

Already, Rin could see lower and middle-class demons swarming the skies and moving in from the water.

"I suspect," Mephisto narrowed his eyes, "that the rest of the branches of the True Cross have experienced similar attacks."

He kept speaking, and Rin listened through a haze as he made his orders. They'd be going in alone, Yukio leading with that weird kid, Nemu Takara, who was apparently a third-party high-level puppet-master exorcist under Mephisto's employ and knew how to track Izumo until Mephisto could get back up sent in. Mephisto himself would be busy repairing the barrier.

That left one other.

"What about him."

Bon finally spoke, shooting a wary look at the idle Amaimon while Konekomaru trembled behind him at the remembered pain of his arm snapping like a twig with just a gentle poke of one of those black claws.

His question made Rin flinch, remembering his friends hadn't exactly gone through the same revelations about Amaimon as he had. The last time they'd seen him he'd been, well, a demon. Vicious, taking cruel joy in forcing Rin into fighting him, all so he could have his fun and get Rin to bring out his blue flames.

In truth, if Rin hadn't been through the last week with Amaimon, seeing all new sides to him and demons in general, then he would be just as suspicious as the others, if not more so. Up until now, he'd always hated whenever anyone reminded him that he was half-demon, the shame eating at him. It was only because of Amaimon that he'd started to overcome that feeling.

A growl tried to bubble up out of his mouth, caused by the instinctual need to defend Amaimon. Nobody would even be thinking about messing with him while Rin was there.

He was about to say so, stepping forward, when a warm hand came to rest on his shoulder. Mephisto smiled down at him, asking without words to let him handle things. Rin let out a shaky exhale that carried hints of the roiling flames in his gut, bowing his head to hide his eyes because he was still not anywhere near over his anger.

"Amaimon will also be accompanying you. Please try to get along, as I've said, we're all on the same side."

Rin shot a quick look over to Amaimon. He stood, bored expression back on his face while he let Mephisto do the talking. When Amaimon's gaze slid to meet his, Rin's heart twinged, wishing he could stand next to him but unsure if he could afford to with the tensions running so high in the group.

"What about Shima?" Shiemi spoke, turning worried eyes up to Mephisto as Bon and Koneko flinched at the reminder that their childhood friend had apparently turned traitor.

Green eyes flicked as Mephisto glanced at Rin out of the corner of his eyes before he spoke, "I can't say. We'll have to work under the assumption that he is indeed a spy until or unless new information proves otherwise."

Okay, now Rin was pissed.

"We don't know that," he hissed out, glaring with dark eyes up at Mephisto as his claws bit into his palms. "I'm going to drag him home and make him tell us what's going on. Then we'll decide whether he's a spy or not."

Mephisto answered him with a wry smile. "As you say, we must first retrieve him."

The urge to yell that it wasn't good enough pressed at Rin's lips, even though he'd suggested it. That there was no way Shima could have actually sold them out like he had, especially Izumo, who he'd always seemed to like the most.

He didn't, backing down and seeing the acknowledgment of his concession in Mephisto's eyes.

"I'll take my leave, then. Those barriers won't repair themselves."

Helplessness welled in Rin as he watched Mephisto turn to leave, emotions conflicted and his heart aching. He wanted to go back to the comfort of the futon where it was just the three of them and he didn't have to worry about the end of the world or Mephisto's possibly sinister plans and he could just be.

Turning his head showed Amaimon leaving as well, sending him one last blank look over his shoulder that made Rin want to scream with how frustrated he felt. He was trapped between wanting to go to Amaimon and shake him until he talked or hide in his arms until the world made sense again.

And he couldn't do either because he had to maintain appearances for his friends and his brother, who had no idea he was even having this problem.

Instead, Rin turned away and began the long walk back to his dorm to get ready for the mission ahead, heart heavy and soul-weary.

"Rin. Why did you appear with Mephisto and Amaimon? We couldn't find you after we left you with-" Yukio slid a suspicious frown at where Rin walked beside him, having left the other exwires behind to head back to their dorm- "Ambrosia."

Rin winced, tired and worn after the emotional rollercoaster he'd just been on. He knew Yukio wouldn't let it go about Ambrosia.

"I," he sighed, repeating the prepared lie Mephisto had given him for this exact situation, the words feeling like ash in his mouth, "went to go drop Ambrosia off at Mephisto's after we danced. She's Amaimon's daughter. I talked with him. We hashed things out. It's cool now."

"Pfft! That mad dog has a daughter? Who's the unlucky woman?"

His eyes widened, pupils narrowing to slivers.

Rage welled up in his heart at the insult. His thread-bare emotions were already so close to snapping, having taken one too many hits that night.

And he was just. So. Angry.

"Say that again."

Yukio stopped laughing, turning shocked, fear-filled eyes to him at the dangerous growl and Rin realized he'd let his flames burst out in patches over his body, something he hadn't let happen around Yukio since he'd gotten control over them during the Impure King mission.

His fangs had elongated in his mouth and Rin ran his tongue over them, letting out a shuddering breath as he forced himself to calm down.

"I'm sorry." Rin closed his eyes, anger evaporating and leaving him even more drained than before. "I'm just tired. Can we not talk about this?"

"Sure," Yukio mumbled, wide eyes not leaving Rin even as they reached the dorm and Rin pushed past him to head to their room.

They packed in silence until a curious and worried Kuro asked them where they were going.

"An important mission, no idea when we'll be back," Rin responded.

Something in the way he answered must have sounded off to Kuro, who determined he would be going with them. It made Rin feel a little better to know he'd be in the company of his familiar.

He slept in fits, waking up to a pale watery dawn and feeling no more rested than when he'd gone to bed.

An even quieter group greeted them as they met up with the rest of the exwires at the train station and Yukio conveyed their marching orders while on the way to the airport.

Rin perked up a bit when he found out they'd be taking a plane to the Inari Shrine in Shimane Prefecture, which also turned out to be Izumo's and Paku's hometown. The fact that Izumo had been taken back there by her kidnappers was an unusual coincidence that no one had an answer to but was worrying regardless.

Still.

"I've never been on a plane," Rin gasped, a mixture of excitement and anxiety running through him at the thought of being so high up. He shared an apprehensive look with Shiemi who'd also never flown.

They made it on the plane and Rin was just settling down when he realized he still hadn't seen a sign of Amaimon.

His heart dropped, disappointment eating at him, although he hadn't even been sure he'd wanted to see Amaimon until just then. Kuro gave him a worried look, purring in an attempt to comfort him.

Looking at his friends and the rest of the humans on the packed flight, Rin could imagine why Amaimon had foundhis own way, probably by one of Mephisto's transportation keys.

It would have been a special kind of torture to have to sit next to Amaimon on a flight and not be able to touch him or talk to him the way he wanted to. To have to pretend to be strangers within inches of each other and deal with his friends' suspicions the whole flight would have killed him.

So, he spent the time going over what information they had on the situation, trying to plan as much as they could with so many unknowns, and gagging down one of Shiemi's thoughtfully prepared-but so, so nasty tasting-bento boxes she'd made for everyone.

Then they arrived and Rin found himself scanning the crowd for a hint of Amaimon, scenting the air and hoping he was there.

Nothing. Rin crushed the bitter disappointment before anyone could notice and tried to get excited as they decided to walk from the airport to the shrine, apparently the quickest way to get there.

The peaceful fields of golden rice and the pleasant sunny weather made the walk pretty nice, actually, and at least he was able to talk some sense into Bon, the serious guy still not handling Shima's betrayal well at all.

Their path took them to the road leading up to the gates of the Inari shrine and Rin's heart leaped.

"Amaimon!"

"Where?" Konekomaru squeaked out, looking around for the dangerous demon.

A beat, and the rest of the group, except Takara, who was just so weird, jumped as Amaimon appeared next to Rin, contemptuous glare on his face and his usual sucker in his mouth he held between the points of his fangs.

It took everything Rin had not to burrow his face into Amaimon's chest and just breathe. Even so, he turned a brilliant smile on Amaimon only to see him flinch, turning Rin's smile into a confused frown.

"How did you know he was here?" Shiemi questioned, head tilted as she overcame the fright of his sudden appearance.

"Ah," Rin grinned, rubbing the back of his head, "I smelled him."

Kuro, who'd been hiding in Rin's arms when Amaimon had arrived, blinked up at him. His eyes widened as if he'd had an epiphany and Rin winked down at him, wondering if he could sense the claim on him as Mephisto and Amaimon kept telling him other demons could do.

Luckily, Kuro was discreet, though the way he kept glancing between Amaimon and Rin with a happy smile on his little cat face told Rin he approved of his choice.

"Yes, well, as fascinating as that is, we should head in and scope the area out," Yukio interrupted, narrowed eyes beneath his glasses as he turned to lead them up to the gates.

Rin didn't care about his twin's attitude for once, breathing in again to take in Amaimon's scent, feeling settled in a way he hadn't since the day before.

But Amaimon still wouldn't look at him, staying a few feet away with his hands shoved into the pockets of his coat. Rin noticed the tensed way he carried himself, something he doubted anyone else would have. Something in the sharp angle of his shoulders and the way he stalked forwards as if heading into a battle made Rin start to worry and once again he cursed that he couldn't get Amaimon alone to find out what the problem was.

Their arrival to the shrine entrance paused his worries and Rin could only gape as they were greeted by the sight of a complete tourist trap, filled with crowds of, well, tourists. He heard Amaimon let out a soft growl and Rin winced as he remembered how little he loved crowds of humans, wishing he could comfort him in some way.

And of course, that Takara guy disappeared on them the second their backs were turned, although Rin couldn't say he missed him much.

The flow of the crowd swept them up until they walked past stalls almost exclusively selling delicious smelling foods that had Rin's mouth-watering, having not eaten except for Shiemi's attempts at cooking.

"Guys, can we please get something? It smells so good!" Rin said, eyes roving over the many options and stomach growling.

"I don't see why not," Yukio said, acquiescing easily, probably just as hungry.

"No!" Rin jumped as Amaimon spoke up for the first time, glaring at the food around them like it was insulting. "Are you stupid or something?"

"Hey what's your problem?" Bon snapped out, coming to Rin and Yukio's defense. Although given that Amaimon was only glaring at Yukio, Rin didn't think he had included him in the insult.

Amaimon grit his teeth but answered, "We're in my brother's territory, can't you morons tell there's something wrong with this food? This whole place?"

Eyes widening, Rin took a closer look at the food in a nearby stall, even smelling it to see if he could sense what Amaimon was talking about, though he couldn't pick up on anything.

Still, he trusted Amaimon to know Lucifer best and edged away from the tempting food.

"What do you mean?" Yukio demanded, not trusting Amaimon at all.

Gold eyes narrowed at the mobs of people around him, as Amaimon explained, "Nothing here is natural, it's a trap for blind humans to happily walk into. And I doubt they ever leave."

"This is a tourist trap, to be sure," Konekomaru hesitated in saying, "but everyone just looks like they're enjoying themselves."

Amaimon snorted. "They're manic, high. The food is a drug."

A long breath exhaled through Yukio's nose but he took a level-headed approach to the information. "Alright, no one eats the food. We need to search the area. I'll be heading up to the shrine, everyone else, take it by sections. Head to the shrine when you're done with your section."

"And Rin," Yukio flicked his eyes between Rin and Amaimon, frowning at his next words, "you take Amaimon with you. Don't let him out of your sight."

"Sure," Rin agreed, torn between being pissed about the tone Yukio took and thrilled he'd finally get some alone time with Amaimon.

The exwires split but Rin didn't pay them any attention, eyes boring into the back of Amaimon's coat as he waited for the moment they were out of sight.

They rounded a corner and Rin reached out to grab Amaimon's arm, shivering at the excitement of getting finally his hands on him after the torment of holding off like he had.

Amaimon vanished.

Panicked confusion stung at Rin's heart, watching the path Amaimon took over the roofs of the buildings as he fled.

Then he got angry.

Frustration that had been building for the past day exploded in his chest and a furious snarl shook its way through his teeth, startling the people around him who heard it, as he took off after Amaimon.

Like hell he'd let him escape without any kind of explanation.

Rin tore through the streets, eventually taking to the rooftops after the bolting form.

Every time he lost sight of Amaimon, he'd catch his scent and be on the trail again, hunting him down like a dog after a fox that had scented blood.

How dare he run.

A burst of flame at his feet and Rin dropped down into an empty side alley, slamming Amaimon into the brick wall behind him as cracks erupted from the impact, Amaimon grunting in pain.

"Don't run from me!"

He saw himself reflected in wide eyes. His fangs filled his mouth in a ferocious snarl, ears elongated into points, irises a warped blue, and pupils gone red. He looked out of control and pissed. He felt it.

His claws gripped into Amaimon's coat, tearing holes in the maroon fabric until his knuckles whitened and creaked as he panted in fury.

Amaimon immediately tilted his head back, baring his throat and letting out a soft whine. The sight had an instant effect on Rin and he found his fangs around the presented jugular, growling and pressing his teeth in until he was sure Amaimon couldn't escape without doing serious damage to himself.

They stood like that-Amaimon frozen in place and Rin growling into his neck-until Rin came back to himself with a huff.

He breathed against Amaimon's throat, feeling his fangs shrink back to their normal pointedness as his adrenaline left him and he could speak. Rin licked at the throat once before pulling back, glaring as a warning for Amaimon not to take off again.

"Why are you avoiding me?"

The question made Amaimon look down, averting his eyes until a soft growl from Rin jerked them back up.

"He said you'd want space."

"What?" Rin hissed out.

Amaimon flinched. "Mephisto. He said you'd be angry and would want time to yourself. That I should let you have it and not pressure you before you were ready."

Inhaling, Rin took a shaky breath, another, bringing a hand up to lay it on Amaimon's chest, feeling the thudding heartbeat there and letting it calm him more.

"I don't want space." Rin made sure Amaimon was looking him in the eyes, deadly serious.

"I. Want. You."

He watched Amaimon's eyes widen and he couldn't take it anymore, crushing their lips together and shoving his knee between his legs, giving him no space to move except forward into his body.

Amaimon moaned against his mouth, bringing his arms up around Rin's shoulders and pressing closer to him, grinding against his leg, and Rin hummed his satisfaction at the response.

Instincts drove him to deepen the kiss, feeling a hint of fangs scrape against his lower lip until a sharp pain hit him and he tasted his own blood in Amaimon's mouth. His pulse rocketed, somehow the flavor heightening his senses to a fever pitch and he bit at Amaimon's lips until blood welled up and mixed on their tongues and Rin groaned into the kiss.

They broke apart, a line of faintly red saliva trailing between their mouths, and Rin wiped it away before bringing his teeth to Amaimon's neck again to nip at the racing pulse there.

"You're not mad at me?" Amaimon panted out, hand clutching at the back of Rin's head to bring him closer to his neck, arching up into his body like he was trying to meld the two of them together.

At his question, Rin growled again, closing his eyes and inhaling into the crook of Amaimon's neck.

"I'm furious."

The pulse beneath his tongue skipped a beat.

"You said you were mine, and then you ran."

Rin brought his narrowed gaze up. "Like a coward."

Teeth grit as Amaimon sucked in a sharp breath at the label.

"If I'm angry at you, I'll tell you and we can work it out. And you do the same for me," Rin stated, gaze softening.

"Just," Rin said. He smiled, pressing his forehead against Amaimon's, bumping their noses together, and speaking against his mouth, "Don't run from me again. Okay?"

A shuddering exhale fell from Amaimon, eyes closing at Rin's request, and he nodded silently.

"Thank you, Amaimon," Rin murmured, leaning in the last few centimeters to meet his lips again, a sense of relief washing over him in a wave.

Amaimon settled, no longer wary of him, and he brought his hands up to card through Rin's hair, savoring the unhurried kiss.

Then Rin found himself flipped and pressed to the wall with the rough brick scratching his back through his jacket.

He blinked up at Amaimon, finding him smiling, and was about to question him when a clawed finger tapped at his bottom lip in a request for silence.

"Mephisto is dumb sometimes. I told him you wouldn't be happy at being ignored."

"Yeah, well, I'll let him know that when I see him again," Rin laughed, glad to know Amaimon was of the same opinion about meddling demon kings.

"I'm going to apologize to you now, okay?"

The casual promise stopped Rin's breath in his lungs, a prickle of sensation rolling across his nerves as he watched with heated cheeks as Amaimon knelt down to the ground of the alley in front of him and began undoing his belt.

His breath stuttered free as Amaimon nuzzled his face into the jut of his hips, staring up at him with a sly smile and dark eyes.

Rin bit his lip until it bled as Amaimon slowly unzipped his pants and pulled his length out, grasping it in his calloused hand right next to his fanged mouth.

Whimpering escaped him as Amaimon trailed the tip of his tapered tongue over his head, knees going weak at the sight. He'd seen what Amaimon was capable of with Mephisto and it was all he could think about now, staring into gold eyes.

It was all he could do to stay standing. Rin gripped at the surface of the wall, pressing back into it as he tried to hold himself up while Amaimon teased him mercilessly with light licks of his tongue, not giving him the pressure he needed.

Clawed hands gripped his hips, the thumbs massaging warm circles into the skin beneath his untucked shirt and he shook as he held himself back from moving into Amaimon's mouth.

"Amaimon, please," Rin gasped at a lick to his sensitive slit, hitting his head against the brick wall behind him at the suddenness of the sensation and seeing stars.

"Anything for you, Rin."

And then Amaimon opened his mouth, letting his fangs peek from under his lips and his long tongue loll out, winding around Rin as he worked his way down until he'd swallowed him to the root.

Rin let out a helpless groan and he felt his claws gouge at the bricks behind him, trying to stop himself from grabbing Amaimon's hair.

When he began sucking, Rin couldn't hold back the keen that left his mouth, throwing his hand up to muffle the sound, suddenly very aware that they were in a public alley where anyone could just walk in.

But Amaimon's mouth was stretched around him and he'd never felt anything like it before.

It became obvious to Rin within moments. Amaimon was really, really good at giving head.

He panted, chin tucked towards his chest as he found his eyes glued to the sight of Amaimon's lips moving along him, cheeks hollowing and tongue flattening to the underside of his length to apply delicious pressure.

Then Amaimon pulled Rin's hand away from the wall and placed it on his head and Rin felt his heart slam to his ribs until he grew dizzy, realizing what he was asking for. He flashed back to the way Mephisto had taken Amaimon's mouth just the night before and Rin moaned at the thought, fisting his hand into dark green hair.

Amaimon hummed around him, the vibrations tightening Rin's stomach as heat coiled through and began to overwhelm him.

His vision had gone hazy, hypnotized by what Amaimon was doing. He hesitated before pushing at the slowly bobbing head, watching his eyes shutter closed.

Rin tried a few experimental pushes until Amaimon flashed him impatient eyes and he gave in to the urges he'd been resisting.

He shoved into the tight heat, finding no resistance, bringing Amaimon all the way to his stomach, pulling him back until he was almost off, and then bringing him back again.

The sight entranced Rin, thrusting into Amaimon's mouth at a faster rate and still finding no resistance.

Fully giving in, then, Rin gripped Amaimon's hair harder, bringing his hips to meet the waiting mouth, his own thrown open in a soundless gasp as he felt himself nearing completion.

Blood rushed in his ears, everything else muffled, and the world narrowed down to just the two of them in the alley.

Adding to the sensations consuming him, Amaimon slid his hands up Rin's heated sides, scraping his claws along his skin. The light pain sent electricity through his nerves until Amaimon found the base of his tail and squeezed.

Rin came with a shout, pushing Amaimon's head to his stomach and holding it there as he released into his throat.

Without hesitation, the hot mouth around him swallowed, Amaimon taking Rin down without any hesitation as Rin groaned at the sight.

His legs trembled, strength leaving them until it was only Amaimon and the wall holding him up, totally spent.

A few, breathless moments passed before Amaimon drew back to lick at his bruised mouth, lips stretching into a satisfied smile as he surveyed his work.

Rin gave up and slid to the ground beneath him, legs coming out to frame Amaimon's kneeled form.

Shuddering breaths heaved out from him, Rin staring up with wide eyes at Amaimon. His gaze traveled Amaimon's until he saw how tight his pants were and realized he still hadn't come.

That wasn't right. Rin pushed himself up, bringing his hands to Amaimon's hips and enjoying the way he leaned into his hold, hands coming to wind around his shoulders.

"Thanks, Amaimon," Rin grinned, resting his cheek against the trembling stomach and pressing his mouth to cloth-covered skin. "I forgive you."

He brought his hands up to Amaimon's belt, quickly undoing it and his pants until he was presented with his length and hesitated, not knowing how to proceed.

"Just be careful with your teeth," Amaimon offered, appearing calm but for the way his pupils were utterly focused on the sight of Rin's mouth centimeters from touching his length.

"Kay," Rin agreed, opening his mouth and taking Amaimon in, trying not to let his fangs anywhere near the sensitive skin.

Amaimon was a heady presence on his tongue and Rin took as much of him in as he could before he had to stop, not having his lack of a gag reflex. He could feel Amaimon trembling, knew he was forcing himself not to move, to let Rin take his time figuring out what to do.

So Rin tried an experimental suck, tonguing at the underside of Amaimon's head and tasting the pre-come that dripped out into his mouth at the move.

Was he doing ok? He glanced up then froze at the hungry look in the lidded eyes and flushed cheeks.

A light trail of the tip of his tongue became Rin's next move, watching to see the reaction on Amaimon's face and purring at the shudder it sent through his frame, deciding he really liked seeing the different ways he could make Amaimon react.

The vibrations his purr sent through Amaimon made him release a low gasp and Rin realized he wanted to hear him make louder sounds. He thought he understood why Mephisto and Amaimon always tried to get him to make those sounds, himself, now.

Well, Rin narrowed his eyes, determination taking over, he had a mission now.

He reached his hand up, grabbing the base of Amaimon's length and squeezing at the same time as he began sucking in earnest, bobbing his head over him as best he could.

Rin kept his eyes on Amaimon's the whole while and let him see as he brought his other hand up to pull at the tucked-in shirt, sliding inside it to find histail.

Running delicate claws over the smooth scales at the base hit Rin with a feeling of satisfaction as Amaimon finally let out a moan, hands clenching at Rin's jacket as he bowed his body over his head.

When a throb of Amaimon's length in his mouth came, Rin knew he was close and increased his pace. He dragged his hand over the tail while at the same time dragging the flat of his tongue over Amaimon's slit, his eyes closing to half-mast as he concentrated on his task.

Shivering went through Amaimon's body, nearly quaking where Rin held him still. He'd begun panting against him and Rin knew he was doing everything in his power not to thrust into his mouth. The thought seared its way into his head, seeing the way Amaimon had let him do so earlier and imagining what it would look like the other way around.

He would learn to do what Amaimon could if it took him a thousand years, Rin decided before he gave a firm tug to his tail and felt him stiffen in his mouth, only to cough as Amaimon came, releasing into him with a long groan.

Even trying, Rin couldn't swallow, feeling the hot liquid escape the edges of his lips to trail down his chin, and finally pulled off to cough to the side, eyes squeezing shut as tears pricked at the corners.

Amaimon slumped back on his legs and Rin licked his lips, looking to see how he'd done.

Clawed hands gently turned his jaw, bringing him forward until Amaimon licked at his face, cleaning the trails of his release off.

His eyes closed, Rin relaxing into the ministrations as another soft purr left his chest.

A brush of claws drifted over his cheeks, running up and tracing at Rin's brows as Amaimon pulled back, satisfied with his efforts.

Rin forced himself to open his eyes before he got too comfortable, the sounds of the crowd finally filtering their way into his senses.

"I'm glad you came here with me, Amaimon," Rin said, breaking the silence and moving to kneel over Amaimon's folded legs to bring him into a hug.

"I told Samael and Lucifer," Amaimon spoke over his shoulder in a voice Rin couldn't parse, wrapping possessive arms around his back, "in this war, I've chosen you.

They cleaned themselves up and made their way to the shrine, not bothering to search their section. The rest of the group was already there, even Kuro, who'd made his way on his own after Rin had ditched him to chase after Amaimon.

Kuro shot him a look, clearly guessing at what he'd been up to and Rin really hoped no one else suspected that he'd been neglecting the mission in favor of making up with Amaimon.

That was when Takara popped back up, a new puppet in his possession that turned out to be one of Izumo's fox-demon summons, Mike.

Rin listened in distressed silence as he learned about the horrible past Izumo had struggled through. His teeth grit in rage at the manipulations of the Illuminati into conducting experiments on her mother as the host of the Inari fox-demon, with her and her little sister set aside as replacements, to create an elixir for Lucifer. And now Izumo had been kidnapped to replace her mother as the host of the Inari demon as her mother's body was giving out after the years of abuse.

He suddenly understood why she kept such a distance from them the entire time they'd know her. Why she had trouble trusting them despite their attempts at friendship.

None of that would matter, Rin decided through the red haze of his anger. He vowed to make it up to her once she was rescued and safe at home.

Through it all, Amaimon remained silent at his side, blank-faced as he listened to Lucifer's crimes. Rin wasn't sure what he thought about it all, whether he felt any pity for the humans whose lives had been ruined.

Although Rin could see some of the wary looks his friends kept sending Amaimon and he just wanted to tell them to stop, but he knew his friends would have to take their own time to trust Amaimon the same way they'd done for him when they realized his true nature. And, Rin grimaced, shooting his own look to Amaimon, he would have to learn to like his friends, or at least tolerate them, too, so they could all be in the same place without threatening violence.

Yukio telling them their destination distracted out of his daydreams of all his friends and Amaimon getting along. An underground lab with an access point in the Inari Stay With Me Mall where the brainwashed people would enter and never leave, used in whatever elixir experiments were being conducted there.

Still, Rin allowed himself to brush his hand against Amaimon's as he prepared to enter the lab. He didn't know what they would find in there, if they'd be able to rescue Izumo and get Shima back with them, if Lucifer was somewhere in there, waiting, and how or even if Rin would be making up with Mephisto when he made it home.

But he had Amaimon next to him as a steady presence and his friends in front of him and he was going to push forward until things were right in the world.

He took a deep breath, got out the Koma sword, and went to storm the base.

End Notes:

Ooh buddy I could not figure out where to cut this chapter off but it's already running on 20 pages and I'm just going to start the next chapter with the end scenes for this chapter so it doesn't turn into a massive monster lol

According to the outline I was forced to make this fic has turned into a 10 chapter beast, and seeing as we're already at 35 k with the addition of this chapter I can only shudder in horror at what the end length of it is gonna be.

So wish me luck :D