A/N: Reuploading this particular fanfiction because I love Zen too much to pass it up.
Warnings: Genderbend Rikuo (as seen in my other fanfiction, The Third Heiress of the Clan). Zen x OC pairing. If you disliked OC pairing, please be kind and give it a chance if you want.
Disclaimer: I do not own Nurarihyon no Mago and the characters, they belonged to their respective owners. I do not own the yokai species I'm mentioning. I solely own the OCs.
Summary: Prologue: Jiaying just moved into Ukiyoe town and happens to join the Kiyojouji Paranormal Squad and she's about to spend her weeks in the Nura Clan's mansion. There, she met a rather interesting corpse – tripping her in the way.
Ukiyoe town – Nura Reika's house. Earlier today at school, her classmate, Kiyotsugu, nominated that they should spend their weekend at Reika's house. His reasons being Reika's house looks haunted, and it seems to be the most perfect place for the team to hold out an investigation about youkai.
Jiaying, the Chinese girl whom had just transferred to Ukiyoe Middle School not long after Yura, tagged along with the team. She was an open minded and easygoing girl, and since she practically has no plans during her day off, she decided to give it a go.
Dressed up in her white dress and a light yellow sweater, she took her sandals off and stepped into the main house of the Nura Clan's household. Her crimson pupil scanned around the house – somehow getting a weird feeling of herself being watched.
She ended up shrugging the feelings off and followed the rest into a dojo hall, where they should be spending their nights in.
"Are we done here?" asked Jiaying, seeing if there were any other needs that her new friends wanted her to help with.
"Nope~!" Toori, the girl with jet black hair tied into a pony-tail at the back replied.
"Alright. I'm going to the bathroom for a bit."
"Do you know the way? You should wait for Reika to come back."
"It's fine, I can steer around."
Bathroom was just her excuse just so she could walk around the mansion, touring freely on her own. Although Reika said that she will be back, Jiaying, who has a medium length, ashen coloured hair could barely wait any longer.
One would think that normally, at this hour, a mansion this big should be noisy around this time – since there should be maids running about – preparing lunch for everyone. The silence made it feel like it was deserted.
Though Jiaying knew it well, the truth. She knew about the youkai of Nura Clan, but she pretended as if she didn't know, and couldn't sense them at all.
As she was wandering around, accidentally, she stumbled across someone's leg. Jiaying nearly took a fall, but somehow managed to get her balance back to her feet. Turning around, she saw a figure that seemed to be in a deep sleep. So deep that he didn't even flinch when his leg was stumbled across
The girl silently observed the figure, whom has a short khaki hair sleeping near the screen door, with his leg stretched across the corridor – creating an obstacle for anyone who didn't pay attention on their way. His dark blue kimono seamed with red details over the sleeves and the neck were revealing his finely crafted tattoo on his chest. His skin was pale, and his fingers were slender. She knew instantly that this man isn't a human – and that he wasn't in his prime health.
Jiaying held her hand out, and waved it in front of the unknown figure, trying to check if he was awake.
"Dead asleep, huh? At this rate, everyone's going to trip over you," thought her.
"Mister? Helloooo?" She called whilst gently shaking his shoulder.
She could hear a soft groan coming from the lips of the unknown khaki haired male, but it was only for a short period of time before the groaning stopped whilst the snoring continued. He seemed pretty beat, she thought that it was probably a good idea to leave him alone.
She straightened up, about to leave but then turned back as she take her sweater off, and placed it on him to protect him from the cold breeze.
"I guess its fine like this?" mumbled her softly before she started walking off.
Soon as she reached the end of the corridor, she could hear a loud voice, nagging the other about him sleeping out in the open – hence making her ran off in panic.
It was Karasu Tengu, of course, the large crow yokai that has always been the loud and strict one in the household. He caught glimpse of Jiaying, but thought that he should leave her be, thinking that she might be one of Reika – the third heiress's friends.
"Zen," whispered her quietly as she stepped away, calling the name that she heard the bird was calling for.
A name that will surely engraved in her mind for a long while.
Though the two of them, aren't quite aware of it yet.