It was snowing as I exited the last period of my day classes. My classmates swarmed around me as they all talked about what they would do with their Friday night. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't envious of their carefree lives. Sighing, I stopped my trek to cram school, my gaze going up toward the gray sky. Snow fell from the clouds above, creating a light blanket on the ground. I held my palm out, a few snowflakes landing on my hand before melting. Careful not to tip anyone off, I let the heat in my body climb, and small waves emitted from my palm. The snow that fell directly above changed states and fell into my hand like a raindrop. I flickered my gaze around, making sure I wasn't seen before I rubbed my damp hand on my jacket and continued my walk to cram.

My lessons with Shura have changed over the last month. We still practiced my swordsmanship, and she - true to her words - gave me my sword back when I'd mastered my connection. Said connection becoming a huge part of our time together. I was thankful for her guidance, because I wouldn't be as far as I was without her.

As I entered the gymnasium, a memory flickered through my mind. It was the one and only time I'd burned Shura. We were practicing with temperatures. She wanted to understand just how high, or low, my flames could burn. She had cooed at the small ember that had ignited on the paper she held. I remembered my wariness when she asked me to give it my all. I hadn't wanted to hurt her, and I had even begged her to at least place the paper on the floor. She had given me a coy smile and told me to use this as an exercise to navigate my flames around friend and foe. She'd put too much faith in me, however, and the paper basically combusted in her grasp. She had cried out, stumbling back and clutching her hand to her chest. The guilt I'd felt was immeasurable. I'd fallen to my knees in front of her, begging for her forgiveness and asking that she not report the incident to the Grigori. The look in her eyes when tears fell down my face was unreadable. She agreed to delete that days recording, but only if I pulled myself together and tried again.

I shook my head, ridding myself of the thought. I opened my locker and grabbed my gym clothes. Walking into the bathroom, I entered a stall and began disrobing. I'd taken one of the long sleeves Mephisto had given me and used it for my uniform. The thumb holes made sure I'd wouldn't have to constantly pull at my sleeves the way my other gym clothes did. Unfortunately, that uniform was mandatory and could not be revised. I sighed and exited the locker room, standing up against the wall and stretching.

The class had been uneventful, albeit physically taxing. I was sweating as I left the classroom, with Tsubaki-sensei calling after us. We would get our progress reports the next day.

I had expected the same from Adachi-sensei, but as the class neared it's end, he began walking around the room. He passed papers out to their respective owners, telling us we had all done well and to keep our grades up. He came up to me and handed me my report. I scanned the paper and a small smile crept onto my lips.

B+

It wasn't spectacular, but considering the rocky start to the semester, I'd take the grade as a win. After applying myself more, my efforts were beginning to pay off. I flipped the page over and read through each graded assignment. A tinge of satisfaction flooding my body as I saw the percentages rise as the semester had progressed. The last handful of assignments had perfect scores. I chewed on my lip and brought my hands to my face, trying to hide my blush. I was so happy.

The bell rung and I shoved the paper into my bag, practically skipping out of the class. I must've had some speed behind my legs, because I was the first one into Yukio's classroom. I sighed, seeing him scribbling on the blackboard. He didn't acknowledge my presence, and I didn't expect him to. I'd been ignoring him ever since he shot me. While he had tried to crawl himself out of the hole he had dug for himself, he soon realized I wasn't going to budge and left me alone.

Walking to my seat, I pulled out a book and plopped down, flipping to my current page. It was a manga I'd picked up, and I was excited to see how the main character got himself out of the pickle he'd gotten himself into. Only a few moments passed before a presence stood before me, blocking the light and casting a shadow on my desk. My eyes flickered up, half-expecting to see Yukio, but I was shocked to see Izumo.

"Kamiki-san?"

She huffed, an irritated look on her face. "Don't call me that; drop the honorifics." I nodded, confused as to why she was approaching me in the first place. A few moments passed before she sighed, "Happy Birthday."

My thoughts ground to a halt, my brows furrowing before the gears started to turn again. "Oh shit," I gasped, setting my book down and fishing out my phone. The display lit up and I read the date:

Friday, December 27th

I heard her laugh and my eyes met her maroon ones. "You forgot your own birthday? Are you stupid?" Just like earlier, my cheeks started to heat, but for an entirely different reason.

"I know when my birthday is, I just didn't know it was today!"

She crossed her arms over her chest, a small smile playing on her lips, "So you can't remember the date? You must be stupid." I recoiled at her words, my face burning red. I slumped in my seat, adverting my gaze.

"Why are you even talking to me?"

She scoffed, "Everyone should be wished a 'happy birthday,' dummy. Just because we aren't buddies doesn't mean I can't wish you one."

I sighed and my eyes wandered to the front of the room. Yukio was still writing on the board, and I realized just what today meant. "It's Yukio's birthday, too." I whispered it, but she still heard me.

"Duh, I told him in the hallway between classes." She dropped her hands from her chest, placing them on her hips and leaning forward. "Why are you so embarrassed? Jeez."

Honestly, I had no idea, either. And when my classmates began to filter in, Izumo left, relieving me of needing to find an answer. The bell rung after a few minutes and I couldn't focus on the task at hand. Yukio began his lecture, talking about a new type of herb that we would have to decipher. Yet, I found myself lost in thought. It's been over a month since he'd shot me. Over a month that I've been on my own. While the tension had died down with my classmates, that didn't mean they were being friendly with me. I suddenly realized how lonely I felt in my world, and as I gazed upon my only family member, something began to eat at me.

I shook myself out of my haze, trying to focus on anything other than that. My mind settled on the unexpectedly kind gesture from Izumo. While her words had been a surprise at the time, I should've expected them. Despite my classmates cold shoulders, Izumo has been the only one to remain unchanged. A small smile pulled at my lips as recalled her first reaction when I'd passed her in the hallway after Yukio shot me. She didn't overreact, she didn't try to harass me, either. She viewed me like she always did. Which meant with annoyance. While that wasn't necessarily a good thing, it was refreshing that she didn't see me differently than she used to.

The bell rang, and I was stunned out of my stupor. Had I just daydreamed the entire class? I inwardly groaned as I realized I'd have to use what little free-time I had to catch up on today's lessen. I sighed and shoved my books into my bag, making my way toward the practice room.

When I pushed open the door, I was surprised to see Shura leaning against doorframe. "Go home," she barked and I gave her a puzzled look.

"Is the memory on the camera full again?"

She rolled her eyes and dropped her hand, using her knuckles to give me a small nudge on the shoulder. "No, dumbass. Happy Birthday. Go home and enjoy the rest of your day." I wasn't prepared to be coddled as much as I had today, and she saw it reflected in my expression. "You forgot it was your birthday, didn't you?" I shook my head and she laughed, "don't lie to me, kid. Go home, and tell that brat of a brother I say happy birthday to him, too."

I blinked away my surprise and turned on my heels, thanking her quietly before making my way out of the ornate hallway. The chilly December air brushed against my skin and I shivered. I made my way toward the dorm, and when I pushed open the door, a blur of blackness approached me.

"Happy Birthday, Rin!" Kuro jumped up onto my shoulder, his forehead moving to rub lovingly against my jawline. I stuttered my appreciation, thrown off guard at everyone's thoughtfulness today. Kuro continued to ramble as I made my way up the stairs, but I found my mind preoccupied with something else.

.oOo.

"Shit!" I grunted, dropping the knife from my grip and clamping my hand over my left arm. It was not my intention to go any deeper, but I let my emotions get the better of me momentarily. Apprehensively, I removed my hand, my stress rising as blood poured from the wound just below my elbow. "Goddammit, look what you did now." I chastised myself, disappointed in the turn of events. No doubt I'd bleed through multiple dressing with this injury. What a pain. I sighed and clamped my hand over the wound once more, putting pressure on it. The wind blew through the trees and I glanced up at the sky. While I may practice my flames inside the dorm, I preferred to cut myself on the roof. Kuro never questioned my absence, but I'm sure if Yukio really wanted to, he'd hunt me down. Seeing as how he believed the roof was permanently locked, he'd never think to come check up here. I'd much rather he find me practicing my flames rather than find me filleting my arms.

Said twin had been my main reason for self harm today, my conflicting emotions over our shared birthday only fueling the fire. Today, I realized just how lonesome I felt, and rationally, I knew how to rectify that. However, while my heart craved the comfort of my brother, the logical side of me listed off all the reasons why I should continue to shun him.

I grit my teeth and pulled my hand away from my arm. the bleeding had slowed down. Thankfully, I missed the artery, otherwise that would have been a huge headache. My eyes wandered over my maimed arms. As time has passed, I have accumulated quite the collection of scars. It has gotten to the point that I'd started cutting over already scathed skin. My limbs were now a mess of healed and fresh lacerations, crosshatching each other. I'd moved up my arms and started cutting my biceps and shoulders. The leverage just wasn't there, however, and I much preferred when I had real estate on my forearms.

Sighing, I covered my wounds. I could feel as blood soaked into my jacket, but at least the uniform was black and wouldn't show the stain. Pushing myself to my feet, I walked to the door. My eyes trailed over the concrete of the roof. With the absence of rain, my blood hasn't been able to wash away. I'm sure if some sort of aircraft passed overhead, the pilot would believe some sort of crime had been committed up here. I shook my head and re-entered the building, going down to the bedroom and grabbing clothes for a shower.

.oOo.

I stirred the pot of miso soup, jamming out to the music that played in my earbuds. While showering, I'd come to a resolution. While hating Yukio made me feel justified, it also hurt me emotionally. I'd also realized that I was being selfish and that my ignorance may have been hurting him, too. So while it didn't quite sit right with me, I decided I'd try to patch things up between us.

Speak of the devil, or should I say his humanized son? The cafeteria door opened and I pulled one of my earbuds out, listening as Kuro greeted Yukio enthusiastically. I heard my brother laugh lightly, no doubt hearing the cat sidhe as an onslaught of meows. His footsteps entered the kitchen, but I didn't pause my cooking as he placed his empty bento box in the sink.

"You're home early," I mused, and the air around us shifted. I didn't have to see him to know he was confused. "Did the exorcism go well?"

He was quiet for a few moments, "I wouldn't know. My supervisor sent me home early." I caught on to what he was implying and I felt my heart lurch with guilt. I heard his footsteps again, and then he was in my peripheral, leaning against the counter a few few away. "You seem to be in a good mood." I heard the wariness in his tone, as if he expected bringing it up would ruin it.

I laughed lightly, "yeah, I've just had some time to think about things." He hummed and I cast a glance in his direction. For the first time in awhile, I gazed into his teal eyes, long enough to see the emotions that lay beneath. "I guess I'm just nostalgic." His eyes reflected my own conflicted emotions and I took a deep breath, "Happy Birthday, Yukio."

He exhaled, his body deflating slightly. "Happy Birthday, Rin."

A bit of disappointment flooded my system as he used my name. I adverted my gaze so he wouldn't see. "Haha, how disrespectful, Yukio. Where are your honorifics? Dad would be disappointed."

A small sound escaped his lips as his breathing hitched, and I wondered if I went too far. Yet, he chuckled after a few moments. He moved back to the sink, turning on the tap and I could hear him wash his hands. "You never cease to amaze me, Nii-san." The level of relief I got from that name swept me off my feet, and I couldn't help the smile that played on my lips. "Need any help making dinner?" I turned around and met his eyes, a smile that mirrored my own reflected on his face. I nodded and pointed to the nearby vegetables, asking him to chop them.

Every once in awhile, I could feel his gaze on me. And maybe it was my own imagination, but I swore I could feel his joy with how the night had turned out. I couldn't agree with him more.