The next morning, I was in no mood to go to school. Yukio had reluctantly agreed to let me stay home for the day; he didn't understand what had happened (and I hoped he never would), but he hadn't seen me cry like I had the night previous since Dad died. That had obviously set off a few alarm bells in his mind, and he had left for school without me. I had watched him go from my perch on the edge of the roof, my face an expressionless mask. After he had left my sight, sadness crept across my mask and swallowed it whole.

"Why the long face, my young prince?" A light voice asked behind me. I jumped up to my feet and whipped around in a defensive stance. What I saw threw me off guard; rather than a horrible demon, a woman of around twenty stood, her hands behind her back. She had very long white hair, and a thin face the color of bleached paper. Her eyes were a deep red, but seemed inviting rather than the cold and heartless look I too often saw on demons. She wore a tight, shear gown, that may have been an old-fashioned night dress. She was my height and would have appeared to be human, if not for the waves of cold coming off of her body. She hovered a few inches off of the ground, her legs translucent past the knees and fading slowly to invisibility by her ankles.

"I am Kurumao, one of the stronger of Azazel's warriors and protectors. I had heard that the scion of Satan has been having issues relating to his demon side, so I came to help. I simply cannot allow the only human bearer of the divine flames perish. Will you accept my assistance, or shall I return to Gehenna?" Her speech was strangely formal, as if she did not know Japanese very well or only understood a form of the language from long ago. That wasn't so far-fetched, seeing as demons could live for thousands of years without changing. Her formal speech didn't affect how strangely soothing her voice was, and I was on guard. She could easily be a Siren (a type of demon that lured in men while in the disguise of a beautiful woman, just to kill them), and I couldn't let her control me. I was silent, not trusting myself to refuse her offer.

"My prince, must you deny my assistance? Shall I show you what will happen again if it is not accepted?" She waved her arm down, and a mist formed. Out of the mist an image slowly formed, and I soon recognized it. It was a moment I would never forget; the girl's mangled body, surrounded by exorcists. Yukio was among them.

"What monster would do this?" He muttered, messing with his guns.

"I don't know, but we may be able to trace the culprit with some Bloodhounds..." Shura replied, standing next to him. She sighed, and shook her head. "What's even more messed up? See those bite marks? They were made by a human. That's what I saw last night, too." Ah, so that happened while I was up on the roof the day before. I wondered faintly if Yukio had made a connection between my strange activity since the night before. "A person did this. The whole school will probably have to go into lockdown with someone like this on the loose. But, knowing Mephisto, he'll just brush it off and keep quiet like he does with everything else."

"What do you even have on their description, anyways?"

"Well, under six feet, with dark hair. I didn't see the bastard's face, but I could tell it was a male, maybe a teenager. He was wearing an old suit and was strong enough to find footholds on the brick wall and jump across the rooftops. I lost track of him after about a minute, but..."

Suddenly, Kurumao swept her hand through the mist and the image dissipated. The look on her face made her seem as if she had just eaten an unsavory meal; I didn't quite understand, but I had began to trust her.

"It has happened once, and will happen again if you are to continue on the path you are taking. Let me carve you a new path, one cut to suit the heir of the throne of Gehenna." She held out her hand, and smiled at me. "Take my hand, young prince, if you promise to let me guide you."

Her offer did sound tempting, and before I even realized what I was doing, I reached out my hand and grabbed hers firmly. Her smile widened, and I thought for a second that I saw an animalistic hunger in her grin; it soon faded, however, and I brushed it off.

"You have made a wise choice, my prince. I am here to guide you. Worry not; I must return to Gehenna, but if you use a summoning circle, I will come to you. Hold the circle, and say clearly, 'Return to me, Goddess of Darkness, and fill my heart with your shadow'. I will arrive as your familiar." As she spoke, she pulled out a few thick pieces of paper with summoning circles on them. She slipped them into the front pocket of my shirt. "As long as I am summoned, I can help manage your bloodlust." With that, she faded into mist. Before she went, however, she said one last thing; "I hope to see you again, my young prince."

After Kurumao had faded away, I glanced up at the sky. Our conversation had lasted for much longer than I had expected; the sun was already setting, and Yukio was probably already back to the dorm. I was proven correct when I heard Yukio at the stairs to the roof. He came up, and opened the door.

"Who were you talking to?"

"I-I was..." I sighed, frustrated. "I was listening to music." This made Yukio raise an eyebrow.

"I didn't know music could a conversation with people. Come on, Rin. You've been acting really strangely for a while now. What's happening that you aren't telling me?"

"Nothing, Yukio. Why can't you just mind you own goddamn business?" He was silent for a moment; then, more quietly, he said,

"Rin... Everyone is worried about you. Please... Try to act normal, like you used to..." I stared at him coldly, wondering faintly if I would be able to go to school with Kurumao helping me. I sighed, and my expression softened.

"Fine. I'll go to school tomorrow. Better?" Yukio gave me a slight smile.

"Okay. Just make sure to get some sleep. You look dead on your feet." With that, he clattered back down the stairs. I sighed, and followed him down. I went straight to my bed, and threw myself onto it. After a while of laying there I closed my eyes, and drifted into a nightmare-filled sleep.