A/N - First chapter! I really like this idea and hope you guys enjoy it too.

chapter i
there is a house by the woods

in which there is a normal day in the life of Ryuji Suguro, complete with runs in the forest, feelings of imminent doom, and up and coming missions

It was his own muffled sounds that woke him in the stead of his alarm, the end of a panicked yelp cutting off as Ryūji slammed back into consciousness, the grey light of pre-dawn filtering faintly through his window.

Blood, and ash and fire, the crushing boom of explosions distant but near enough to be a very real danger and…

And… nothing, nothing but the faint sound of birdsong and his own uneven breathing. Safety and warmth, huddled in his thick comforter in his warm bed. Thin light, grey and dark, signaling a time well before sunrise. And it was… Ryūji groaned, grappling at his side table until he found his alarm clock and turned it towards him, squinting at the bright surface screen in the near dark. And it was five in the shitty morning. He let his hand fall back onto his pillow with a small thwap, his other coming to rest over his eyes.

He stayed like this for a couple of minutes, shaking off the unsettling remnants of nightmares not quite remembered and counting his breathes. A second passed, and Ryūji sat up, his mop of bicolored hair falling over his eyes. He swung his legs over and stood up, feet sockless, onto the wooden flooring of his room – ohhh, cold ground, cold ground – and walked towards the bathroom he shared with Shima and Konekomaru. When they had first come to True Cross, both of the other boys agreed that Bon could have the smaller spare room to himself while they'd share the first one. He got up at, and he quoted Shima here, "Satan's ass-crack of dawn," and the pink haired boy and Konekomaru had agreed that they'd rather share a room than be woken up at 5:30 in the morning.

'Or earlier,' Bon mused, wryly amused, toothbrush dangling from his mouth. He dragged a brush through his hair and then pinned and tied it back. Newly able to see – he needed a haircut again, he swore his hair was some kind of weed, it grew so fast - he stretched to warm up his aching muscles. True Cross had been fully overtaken by fall's changing leaves and cooling days. Not that Ryūji truly minded. He far preferred colder weather over True Cross's truly awful summer temperatures, and fall brought the kind of peace that he craved year long.

Warmer and looser, he reviewed yesterday's lesson notes, painstakingly neat and organized. He'd read somewhere that the mind tended to take in information better just before going to sleep and just after waking, and so going over his notes in the morning before his run had become a routine. Speaking of his run – he glanced at his phone – it looked like it could be a mile or two longer today thanks to the extra time his subconscious had inadvertently gifted him. Another thing most of his friends (read: Shima) thought he was absolutely ridiculous for doing.

"C'mon man, waking up that early is bad enough, but doing it to exercise? I'll get Neko to pray for your soul," Shima had laughed at him over his coffee one morning when they'd somehow managed to be in the cafeteria at the same time – he tended to leave early and Shima tended to get up late. Oddly enough though, his run was one of the moments of true peace in his life. He could only imagine the look that that statement would garner from his pink-haired friend. It was nice, to be able to put his headphones on and blast music and not think of anything but the burn in his muscles; the morning quiet and still and people-less around him. His somewhat introverted ways had not improved much since he came here, unlike Shima, who's socializing (womanizing) ways had drastically increased since the introduction of freedom.

Headphones plugged in and running shoes tied tight, Ryūji walked down the stairs and out of the dormitory sedately, picking the song he wanted from the long list his iPod presented. He settled into a medium pace just outside the courtyard. He veered left, deciding that he could do the woods run today. Calling them "woods" was over exaggerating a little, the patch of trees only two or three square miles wide, barely holding on against True Crosses' booming industriality and cramped buildings. He still liked them though. They reminded him, however slightly, of the unbridled wild of the forests surrounding his old home. Those trees had been his playground and nursery, and later his escape.

It was a mile or so run to the woods themselves, so Bon settled into his sedate pace, nodding and murmuring a polite "good morning" when he passed the little old lady who walked her equally little and old dog every morning. It wasn't long until he reached the soothing sanctuary of the trees. About a mile and half or so in lay a little shrine, mossy and crumbling slightly with age. Bon slowed when he reached it, stopping to sweep dead leaves off with his hand and to leave a small offering – a couple of tangerines still left over from a few nights ago when he'd swiped them from dinner. He had no idea what ancient guardian the shrine dedicated itself to, but it never hurt to be respectful of his surroundings.

'It might even help me in the future,' he thought wryly, bowing once to the shrine and resuming his run.

Coming back, Ryūji felt a prickly sensation along his neck and jawline, crawling its way down his spine. He'd scanned his surroundings more than once, even taken a different route home, but couldn't shake the idea that he was being watched. It's probably nothing, he thought to himself uncertainly, and after all he was nothing if not paranoid at times, but his thoughts didn't stop him from getting to his room as quickly as he possibly could without straight out running. The feeling quickly faded afterwards, and Ryūji scratched uneasily at his arm. It's nothing, he reminded himself, and went to shower.

Fifteen minutes, an achingly hot shower, and some clean clothes later, the feeling had been forgotten, and his attention firmly turned over to fixing his hair. Konekomaru came stumbling in to brush his teeth and shower sometime later, offering a sleepy "good morning." He returned the greeting and went to go eat breakfast and buy one of the power shakes they sold at the nearby convenience store. Shima thought they were gross – "They have spinach in them, Bon. Spinach." – but they weren't that bad tasting, and very healthy besides.

He only went back to the dorm to grab his bag and say goodbye to Konekomaru – Shima had yet to rouse – and then left again, heading towards his first class of the day. Normally he'd leave a little later, but he felt that he'd better make sure he was on time today. After this morning, he inexplicably felt as if something bad was going to happen. He figured it was the left over anxious tension from his dream and the disruption of his routine, which he firmly stuck to. Nonetheless, he was extra early in class that day, arriving before all of his other classmates and sitting sedately in his seat, telling himself multiple times that his nervousness stemmed from his dream and enjoying his final moments of peace before the shriek of the school bell and babble of his classmates broke it.

Classes passed as normal that day, and as no disasters seemed immediately imminent, Bon felt himself relax. Now he only had "cram school" to get through and he'd be home free to complete his homework and get to sleep early, and when he woke everything (mentally) would be normal again.

Unfortunately, it seemed, fate had other plans.

His first warning flag was the nervous tension in the class. He and his two companions had arrived third today, after Okumura-sensei and Kamiki, who was sitting in the corner and glaring at everything that moved and breathed, as per usual. The atmosphere seemed anxious to Bon, and a quick look to his side at Konekomaru's slightly pinched facial expression confirmed that Ryūji wasn't just imagining things. He first thought that maybe Okumura Jr. and the grumpy girl had gotten into a fight, but another look around the class once he'd sat down confirmed that both were acting completely normal, not that they was any cause for them to have fought in the first place. His only choice was to sit and wait to see what was going on as his classmates began their slow trickle into the classroom, ending with the older Okumura brother.

"Late as always, huh, Okumura?" Ryūji couldn't resist calling at the boy. Said half-demon twisted, tail lashing.

"What! I'm practically on time today!"

"Practically is not actually, Okumura-kun," their teacher's smooth voice broke the cresting fight before it could break, much to Ryūji's disappointment. He'd stopped truly disliking the kid pretty early in the year, and even the whole "my friend is one of bastard sons of the devil himself, however the hell that worked" debacle had been firmly squashed by Rin's actions when they'd defeated the Impure King, but faux fighting with him had become something of a past time, something genuinely not meant to hurt and relieved tension at that. It seemed that Yukio wasn't going to let them waste time today, however, because he quickly started his lecture before either of them could continue.

"Now that everyone is here," cue somewhat evil eye directed towards the teacher's brother, "I've been instructed to brief and accompany you on another mission." Ryūji didn't even have to look to know that Rin was practically sparkling at this piece of news; everyone else, however, didn't seem very enthused.

"Not to worry," Okumura-sensei continued, "this mission is much less risky than the one in Kyoto. Actually, there should be practically no danger." Now Bon did look, and, to no surprise of his, Rin seemed to have deflated a bit. Only Okumura Rin would be disappointed at the prospect of no danger. Ryūji resisted the urge to snort and roll his eyes and instead returned his gaze to the front.

"Our mission involves searching and investigating an abandoned laboratory. Officially, the building was used for stem cell research, but the Order suspects that an ex-exorcist on the roster of scientists may have conducted some kind of illegal experimentation in the building. What he did, if he did indeed do anything, remains to be seen. You will," Yukio's words sharpened and he seemed again to glare at his brother behind the glare of his square glasses, "have to write an official report on your findings and conclusions, and you will be graded." At this point it seemed all excitement had left Rin, and he even released a little whine at the word "report."

Ryūji tried not to laugh and went up with the rest of the class to collect the official mission statement. "We meet seven thirty tomorrow in front of the train station. Pack clothes for two or so days and lunches for tomorrow. No tardiness will be accepted," the teacher finished, and Bon wryly assumed that that too was directed towards Okumura, whose tail had drooped to drag against the floor. With that, Yukio had finished the mission's introduction, and started up on his pharmaceuticals lesson without further ado. It took little more than the words "lifespan of the purple demon weed" for Okumura Sr. to fall fast asleep. Bon tried to dredge up the usual annoyance and quiet rage towards the slacker, but only succeeded in being somewhat amused. 'What the hell, I'm going soft towards Okumura. Next thing you know, I'll be confessing my love to him,' Bon firmly cut that thought off as soon as it began and focused on taking notes. The last thing he needed was Okumura to gain knowledge of his sexuality, let alone be the actual object of his affections.

Ryūji pretended that thought was unappealing and let himself be caught up in the lesson, sparing no more thoughts towards the slumbering half-demon in the front.