Teaser: Terazuma and Wakaba encounter a demon on a case.
Notes: Thank you to EvilAsianGenius for the beta.
Wild Things
By RubyD
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The blast from the demon's fiery attack forced Terazuma Hajime and Kannuki Wakaba both backwards. They tumbled over the rubble of what once was the street, and the heat, while not deadly, could be a dangerous distraction if the wolf-like monster managed to get them in its fangs.
"Kannuki!" Terazuma shouted as he tried to get to his feet.
"Hajime-chan," she answered. She shook the hair from her face, eyes wide. "Are you - ?"
"I'm fine," he growled, a fierce sound building up from somewhere inside.
"None of the spells worked! We can't wait for the others to get here or it might kill Yokoshima-kun!"
Trapped somewhere deep inside the hairy bulk of the massive wolf was a young man who had been possessed. The demon had caused havoc in the town for the last few months – every full moon to be precise. It would feed by possessing its victims, who would then become ferociously large, before draining their host like a parasite and leaving only a dried husk. Beforehand, vicious claws and fangs sprouted from their warped bodies and they would hunt live prey, like the Western story of the werewolf.
"A parasite, huh?" Terazuma muttered.
"You'll have to get Kuro-chan – " Wakaba started, but he cut her off.
"I have an idea. Just… just stay here and don't get close!"
"What? No, wait!"
He ran towards the demon, thinking himself suddenly very stupid. The beast was in the process of tearing up the ofuda Wakaba made to entrap it, but it whipped around to glare at him. He gulped, but took a fighting stance.
"Come and get me, stupid mutt! Why stay in that weak mortal body when I'm right here?"
"What are you doing?!" His partner sounded horrified. He was half-terrified himself, but something had to be done if they were going to keep this kid alive.
He jabbed a finger at the snarling, pissed-off face of the massive gray wolf, and returned the expression. "What, are you so low-classed that you can't take on a Shinigami? Maybe ya wouldn't dare 'cause you're too much of a chicken to – "
It dove at him. A ghostly bright form spilled out of the body of the boy and reached Terazuma before he could finish speaking.
"Hajime-chan!Run!"
He didn't. The demon struck his chest, and suddenly he couldn't move. Light and energy swirled and drained into him like a whirlpool and he felt something trying to creep its way into his veins. He fell on all fours, and tried to breathe. It had gone into him.
"Fuck," he gasped. Well, it worked. Now came the part he wasn't certain about – what the hell was he thinking by doing this? Energy crawled through him, angry, trying to take control and his head hurt. "Any time now, Kuroshuki!"
Suddenly he could feel his Shikigami lurch, and his body fell to the ground, shaking. Wakaba was screaming at him, but he couldn't hear the words. His skin… shifted, maybe even bubbled, and flickered between pale skin, black and gray. A howl of rage rang in his head, followed by a lion's roar.
"Find something ya didn't like?" he rasped.
Terazuma tried focusing on his Shikigami, willing it to come out, to make him change into that lion-beast rather than the demon. There was a shredding sound, first of cloth then of something else, wetter and sickly. He remembered reading the reports of when Tsuzuki had been possessed and how it ripped out of the man's back. But this – this felt like something clawing out of his chest and it was painful as hell. He fell to his back, feeling warmth seeping into clothing. Then he thought, maybe this was a bad idea.
Nausea and the blood-loss caught up with him and he knew he was about to black out. Instead of feeling Kagan Kuroshuki taking control, he could sense energy surge back out of his body. Impossibly, before his vision blurred and faded, he seemed to see two creatures fling themselves into the air – a large gray wolf, and a larger black lion.
He shut his eyes and the world slipped away, but not for long. Once his body began knitting itself back together, the sound of his partner's voice greeted him and washed away the ringing in his ears – and she was angrier than he remembered ever hearing.
"Stupid, stupid, that was so… stupid!"
As soon as lungs resurrected themselves and he could breathe, he managed to gasp harshly, "Don't worry. I swear I ain't doing that again."
"You're lucky that you can do anything!"
Terazuma opened his eyes and stared up into Wakaba. Her lashes were wet and expression upset but relieved, and he felt the same. The odd-eyed girl scrubbed her face with her knuckles and attempted to glare.
"Sorry," he said reluctantly, feeling chastised.
"You could have been in serious trouble!"
"It's not over… yet…!" He tried to sit up, but the muscles in his chest and abdomen weren't fully healed. Whether unconsciously or by accident, Wakaba caught him when he swayed back to the ground. Her arm settled at his shoulders and they stared at the other in mute surprise.
"Kannuki," Terazuma started, but before he could finish a hot explosion of air made him look towards the source.
The schoolyard, wall, and street looked like an earthquake had hit. It was late evening, but he didn't need much more light to clearly see that the wolf demon was fighting his own Shikigami outside of him.
"Is this what you had in mind?" Wakaba asked, hushed.
He slowly shook his head, not looking away once.
"Stand up," she coaxed. There was the strange sensation of a girl, his partner, gripping his arm tightly to help him to his feet. Due to habit, he almost shied away but she held on. They swayed but were good enough to start walking away from immediate danger. He grunted in pain, noting that the front of this shirt had been ripped completely apart and covered in blood.
The ground shook with the weight of the battle and he nearly tripped. Not far, Kagan Kuroshuki roared as the demon tried to clamp down on a leg with its jaws. The lion then bit down on the back of the wolf's neck, while his powerful dark wings beat heavily and dragged the both of them high into the air.
"What the hell is he doing?" Terazuma asked. "Half the town's going to see him."
Flight faltered as the two beasts thrashed it each other's grasp. They plunged back down and slammed into the side of the school. The wolf looked desperate now, baring its fangs with tail lowered against the stronger opponent. It was weaker without a host.
"Stay here!" said Wakaba as she guided him to a bench. "We can't let it to get back to Yokoshima-kun."
"Eh? Wait a second!" But she had already run off, drawing ofuda from the pockets of the local school uniform she wore. Still feeling drained, the man could only lurch to his feet unsteadily as Wakaba went to the boy. He lay in a heap where the demon left him, possibly unconscious or even dead. She hovered over the student, a protective ofuda between her fingers.
The wolf turned to the figure, as if looking for a way out. It snarled, snapping and twisting away from the Shikigami. One didn't need any spirit sense to see its sickly aura reaching out, its shape becoming less defined.
Terazuma realized that it intended to possess her.
"Kannuki! Kannuki, get back!" He forced his feet to move, willing himself to become stronger with every step. He wouldn't make it in time. He called to the Shikigami, "Damn it! Kuroshuki, don't let it - !"
The demon dove, power drawing around it.
Then, a familiar voice shouted, "Reibaku!"
Bright light exploded and for a moment he couldn't see. Blinking, he could make out the figure of the demon - now encased in a glowing sphere - snarling in pain and anger. On one side stood the kid, Hisoka, with his hands clasped and focusing on the spirit trap. On the other side, Tsuzuki stood as a mirror to his partner, chanting and hands also working through various forms.
"…Retsu, Zai, Zen!"
The golden bubble of the spell shrank and collapsed inwards on the demon. It clawed and fought the shield, but could not win over the combined experience of the two Shinigami. The Reibaku shank further still, smaller and smaller until it was no larger than a marble before disappearing with a snap. The pressure in the air disappeared, and its final howl faded away.
Terazuma stood, rooted to his spot and stared as Kuroshuki bounded almost playfully now towards Wakaba, who had dropped to her knees. With the danger over Tsuzuki ran up to the lion, his fist waving.
"You bastard, couldn't you protect Wakaba-chan any better?" he scolded, mimicking anger. "What would of happened if we weren't here to save your ass?" He poked the lion in the nose, who rumbled grumpily.
"Are you okay, Kannuki-san?" asked Hisoka. "We came as soon as we could."
"Thank you Tsuzuki-chan, Hisoka-kun. I'm fine, but…" she said distantly. As if remembering, she looked behind her and caught Terazuma's eyes. Hisoka followed her gaze, and stared too.
"Uu-agh!?" Tsuzuki cried out as the giant lion calmly swatted him to the ground and held him there with a large paw… and licked his face. "Terazuma!? L-let me go!"
This was quickly becoming embarrassing. He frowned and came forward, reaching the group.
"Oy, sempai - " He used the term sarcastically, " – I'm right here."
"Hey," was the absentminded answer. Tsuzuki scrambled out from under the Shikigami, who had decided to curl up next to Hisoka and Wakaba. Then, "…Huh? Terazuma? Hey! What are you doing over there!? And you're over… here… Are there TWO of you now!?"
"No, you idiot, that's just my Shikigami!" he said, falling into a familiar routine of schoolyard bickering when it came to Tsuzuki. "Kagan Kuroshuki is not… we've split."
"The demon tried to possess Hajime-chan," Wakaba explained. "But something happened and they both got out of him."
Shinigami and Shiki stared at each other, unsure. Terazuma tentatively touched the winged lion on his mane. No flashes of light, no grumpy feeling melting into the back of his mind - nothing happened. Personally, he felt relieved. It was no secret that he hadn't wanted a Shikigami in the first place, and didn't have one until it was forced on him. Kuroshuki turned towards Wakaba, gloomy.
"I think we better hear the rest of this back in Meifu," Hisoka said. There were sirens in the distance. No doubt the town would be wondering what had occurred. At best, they would think the damage was caused by a freak earthquake.
"Yeah," he sighed. Terazuma looked down at his partner. "How's that kid?"
"Just asleep now, I think," she said. The young student breathed calmly, probably worn out from the earlier activities. "He should be okay once help gets here. I hope he doesn't get into trouble."
"It'll be fine," he grunted, and to his own surprise he found himself offering a hand to her. "Let's go, Kannuki."
Wakaba just gave him a small nod and took it. He helped her up and tried to ignore the looks the other two traded. When they were ready, the four Shinigami and one Shikigami disappeared, leaving for home.
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To be Continued