Hello, this is just a short story that I came up with about Tomoe's past, I hope you don't mind it. It had actually come from a dream I had the other night, so it is probably weird. ^^ Anyway, I hope you enjoy it.
Tomoe's Origins
Nanami was sat, eating silently and occasionally casting glances towards Tomoe who was sat across from her. Mizuki had long since left the two of them having been forced to do work by the fox demon. Nanami cast another glance in Tomoe's direction before he turned and looked at her, quickly she cast her eyes away but had been too late.
"What is it?" Tomoe asked in a bored tone but instead Nanami remained quiet and stuffed more food into her mouth in an attempt to avoid speaking, in turn annoying Tomoe. "What is it? Tell me." He asked again, eyebrows furrowed with impatience as he waited for her to speak, nervousness evident in her face. She swallowed her piece of food hard before she gained the courage to speak.
"I was just wondering, what your parents were like." She said quietly, Tomoe looked surprised for a moment before he suddenly turned his gaze away from her but was too late himself as Nanami saw a deep sadness hiding behind them. "Tomoe?" She asked curious and he glanced at her once before once again turning away, he eyes downcast.
"My parents died, a very long time ago." He stated sadly and Nanami froze.
"I'm sorry Tomoe; I didn't mean to bring up memories that would hurt you. Where they as strong as you are?" This time Tomoe gave her a baffled look.
"I don't know what you are talking about. My parents were human."
"Eh?" Noticing her confusion Onikiri and Kotetsu explained for her.
"In older times, pure Youkai were born from humans, however they had things happen to them that transformed them into the demons they are now. Tomoe is one of the oldest of Youkai's that were originally human. It's only in our times that Youkai are bred from Youkai."
"I see, I didn't know." Nanami remained quiet for a moment before glancing at Tomoe; he was looking away from her, and seemed to be deep in thought. Onikiri and Kotetsu silently left the room and Nanami and Tomoe was left alone together. "Tomoe?" She asked quietly again and his gaze returned to her, a look of sadness in them. "May I ask what happened?" He kept looking at her for a long moment before eventually sighing.
"Very well." He said and began his story.
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"Mother!" Came a small voice the bearer was a young spirited child of six, his hair was a jet black, grown just past his shoulders, honeyed skin and light hazelnut brown eyes, twinkling with young and innocence.
"Tomoe!" Came the soft response of a female voice, the bearer was an elegant woman, dressed in a grand kimono of dark blue with Sakura adorning the ends and long sleeves. "You're supposed to be in bed." She continued but had a small smile on her face. She had dark brown hair which was tied up with a dark blue ribbon which matched her kimono and was grown down to her waist, her eyes the same hazelnut brown as her son's.
"I heard you get up so I thought that meant father was coming back." Tomoe said excited and the woman smiled warmly at him and put a hand to his cheek.
"You're so clever for one so young; you always surprise me with your intelligence. Your father will be here shortly dear, but if you want to see him we'll have to tie up your hair." Tomoe turned around obediently and his mother tied up his hair gently, using a thin rope rather than a ribbon "Much better." She said with a smile and they both stood and waited in silence, watching the entryway to their large home.
"He's here!" Tomoe exclaimed as he heard the pattering of a horses hoofs, he immediately rushed over to the person that dismounted of a large deep black stallion. "Father!" He called and ran into an embrace.
"Now this is a welcome indeed to see my Son here." Tomoe's father said with a huge smile and he lifted his son in the air. "Here" He said as he settled his son on his horse. "Be careful and hold on tight." He instructed and Tomoe clutched onto the saddle in front of him as his father directed the horse towards his wife.
"Welcome back dear. I trust everything went well." Said the man's wife in greeting, offering a small bow before giving him a welcoming smile.
"Yes, although the battle is not quite over yet, I will need to return in a few days."
"Will he ever stop with all these wars?" She asked with a sigh.
"Ha, not anytime soon I'm afraid."
"You will have to go again Father?" Tomoe asked, still clutching onto to the saddle, a look of sadness in his large eyes.
"Yes Son, I'm sorry. But there are a few days before I have to leave, so we'll spend as much time together as possible. How does that sound? I'll even give some training lessons to you."
"Really?" Tomoe asked exhilarated.
"Yes" His father replied grinning. "How have your lessons been going so far?"
"They've been fun, I've been training with a Bokken, and the tutor said that when I'm older I'll be able to train with a real katana."
That's very good. I will have to see how much you have progressed tomorrow. But first you need to return to bed. Here." He said and lifted Tomoe off the horse, a servant soon appeared and directed the stallion to the stables and another took Tomoe to his room, leaving his mother and father alone together
"I'm not happy about this." Said Tomoe's Mother.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean the fact that your son is only six and already he is thinking about joining you in these endless wars." She said furiously, glaring at her husband.
"It isn't like I have forced him, and when he is older he is free to choose what he wants to do. If he decides to fight with me we will need to admit him to a dojo or bring a tutor here."
"That's what I'm talking about you fool. He's already decided, and when he is thirteen he'll be training not just to fight, but to kill."
"I know, but these are the times we are living in, nothing can be done." All of a sudden she started crying. "Hey now, I'm sorry."
"No it's, I know you are right, I just don't want to lose either of you."
"I know." He said softly and pulled her into a gentle embrace.
The next day…
"Very Good Tomoe!" But Tomoe was no longer listening to what his father was saying, focusing only on carrying out the attacks he had been taught but each one of them were blocked by his father's larger Bokken. In a flurry of attacks Tomoe was continuously getting blocked and getting more and more frustrated and he stopped using attacks he had been taught and started to use different techniques, hoping to throw his father off guard by moving quicker, he struck his father's Bokken near the top then instantly he struck it again close to the hilt. The force of the two strikes disarmed his father but he didn't stop moving and dashed behind him and struck his legs, causing him to fall to his knees, when he rested his Bokken on his father's neck. The now downed older male looked over his shoulder to his son, his expression clearly showing surprise and amazement. "Tomoe, that was fantastic!" His father said as got up, he bent down to pick up his Bokken and handed it to the servant who was waiting and Tomoe handed over his as well. Then they both stared at each other for a moment, Tomoe's father was a samurai soldier, high in the ranks, he had jet black hair, which was inherited by Tomoe and it grew down past his waist and was currently tied back. "You've learned a lot." He said seriously, locking his gaze with his son, his eyes were a coal black and showing no emotion as he was regarding his son with respect. Tomoe just stared back expectantly. "But it's not just training that has made you this good; you have a fighter's instinct. That will help you a lot in years to come." His father said and walked towards the house, Tomoe saw that his mother had been watching everything and was now staring at him in despair.
"Mother?" He said, but she turned away and walked back inside the house, leaving Tomoe alone.
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"After that my life mostly consisted of training. My father had immediately hired a professional tutor to come from a dojo to teach me sword fighting, because of how small I was I used a Wakizashi instead of a katana to begin my lessons with using a sword."
"A Wakizashi?" Nanami asked and Tomoe sighed before explaining.
"The Wakizashi is the short sword that Samurai's donned with their katana. I had to use a Wakizashi for training because of how young I was when I started."
"I see, sorry for interrupting."
"It's fine." He said before continuing.
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Tomoe had grown to the age of thirteen and was twice the height he was before his hair had grown midway to his back and he had grown bangs which grew to above his eyes, his mother had become very withdrawn and hardly spoke to him anymore, only on formal occasions or when they had guests she would say something to him, but that was only to keep up appearances. Tomoe was hurt by this and couldn't understand why she was treating him this way.
"Why does mother not speak to me anymore?" Tomoe asked his father one day, they had just been training, both with katana's. Tomoe had just been able to handle one recently and he wanted practice using it, although he hardly needed the practice as he had yet again defeated his father.
"It is because she knows what you are going to be Tomoe, and she fears that."
"But by becoming a Samurai, I'll be able to protect her."
"I know, but when we become Samurai we are accepting that we can die, either by an enemy's sword or our own. That is why your mother doesn't speak to you, because she has accepted that and she is detaching herself from you so that if you do die she will not be as hurt by it."
"But, that's as if she is thinking that I am already dead."
"I know, and that is the way it is. Now listen Tomoe, in a few years you will probably be asked to fight. You need to prepare yourself for that, because a battlefield is very different from sparring matches in the garden with me, you will be required to kill, and that can change people. Do you understand, Son?
"Yes father."
"Good, now go to your lesson."
Later that day, in the evening
Tomoe had returned from his lessons at the nearby dojo and was making his way to his room when he noticed a figure in front of his door sat on the wooden floor staring out to the garden where he and his father had been sparring earlier.
"Mother?" He asked as he had got closer and recognised the figure. She turned around and hazelnut brown eyes stared back at him, tears welling. "Mother, what is wrong?" He asked and sat beside her, setting his swords down beside him out of her view.
"I'm so sorry Tomoe. I had no idea how much I had hurt you." She said through sobs. "I just thought."
"It's alright Mother. I understand now why you did it. I suppose that it would be easier for you that way." Tomoe said, realising that his father must have told her what he had said, and feeling happier for it.
"But it isn't, it's more painful everyday treating you as if you were already dead when you were always with me. I'm so sorry my son; I'm never going to do it again." She continued through her tears, grasping her hands to her face. Arms shaking.
"Thank you Mother." Tomoe said simply and pulled her into an embrace. They remained like that for a moment before she pulled away and smiled at him warmly and placed a hand gently on his face. She then stood and walked away. Once she was out of sight Tomoe picked up his swords and walked into his room with a smile.
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"After that she was back to normal with me, it was if that past seven years of her ignoring me never happened. Everything just got better after that, until I turned seventeen."
"What happened?" Nanami asked when Tomoe suddenly went still and deep in thought. At the question he looked up for a moment before once again casting his gaze to the floor.
"That was when everything started, and when everything ended." He said sadly before continuing.
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"Tomoe had just recently turned seventeen; he had served in two battle campaigns with his father, and was instantly placed high up in the rankings due to his skill. His father was retiring when they returned home and Tomoe was going to take his place once he had left.
When they arrived at their house Tomoe's mother was waiting for them both. She came to Tomoe first and pulled him into an embrace, before rushing over to his father. Tomoe left them as he pulled his horse to the stables, During the years he had let his hair grow and it had eventually reached well past his waist, after he had removed the saddle and bridle from the horse he had removed the tie from his hair when he heard is mother scream from outside. He immediately rushed out and was stunned as dozens of soldiers had surrounded their home, his mother had been captured by two men and was getting dragged away when Tomoe rushed towards her, but he was soon stopped as he felt two men grab him from behind and locked his arms painfully. He tried to pull free but was not strong enough and he felt them take away his swords and drag him towards where his mother and father were. Is father had also been caught by the men but Tomoe saw blood dripping from his face and he realised he had been attacked, a gash bleeding above his eye.
"Father!" He cried when he saw that he was injured. He looked at him weakly and gave him a sad smile.
"It's alright son, look after your mother." Tomoe looked on in horror as he saw a sword glisten in the sun before slicing effortlessly through his father's neck, his head slid off and rolled along the floor, stopping inches away from Tomoe. He screamed in horror as he couldn't tear his eyes off his father's lifeless head, he looked to his mother and saw that she was just as horrified, tears streaming uncontrollably down her face calling out his fathers name.
"Lock her up." One of the rogue samurai's commanded and the two men that were holding Tomoe's mother dragged her off somewhere, he struggled to get free once again but he was hit from behind by something and knocked unconscious.
When he woke up he was surprised to find that he was still at his home, all the samurai had left, along with his mother. He tried not to scream out loud again when he saw that his father's head was still lying on the floor in front of him. He looked to the entrance of his house and saw that there was a dark figure approaching, as it got closer he noticed that he was on old man, frail and bald using a walking stick, when he got to Tomoe he bent down slightly and leaned towards him.
"I see that the seed of change has begun to grow in you. Be careful, those claws will start tearing away at things sooner than you think." The old man said before turning away to leave.
"Wait!" Tomoe called. The old man stopped and looked towards him curiously. Tomoe got up and ran towards him. "Do you know where they took my mother? Is she still alive?"
"Yes she is very much alive; they sold her to the brothel. That is where you will find her. However, they will kill her immediately if you go near there. I suggest you find alternative means to get her back again." Tomoe looked at the old man furiously.
"How do you know?!"
"Now, now, don't be getting angry at me; you won't need your claws yet. Save them for later, I only know of your mother because I know your mother. I was surprised as anybody was to see her at a place like that." Tomoe surprised himself as he heard a snarl come out from his throat in response to the old man's words. "I suppose it's too late, your claws are already hunting to kill."
"What the hell are you talking about?!"
"You'll find out soon enough." The old man said and walked away. Angry and confused Tomoe looked around the garden for his swords but they had been taken by the Samurai from earlier. Enraged he stormed out of his house and walked down the main street. Everyone stopped suddenly as he walked by and stared at him in shock, but he didn't care to notice and carried on marching towards where the Samurai were.
They had occupied a nearby house that belonged to a wealthy family, as it was large enough to house many samurai at once. Tomoe stormed in and headed straight to the first Samurai he saw. The young soldier looked at him in shock and terror as he saw him approach and made a move to draw his sword but he wasn't quick enough. Tomoe tore through his neck with his fingers and the samurai lay dead, a pool of blood now flowing from his throat. Tomoe looked at his hand stunned and saw that instead of nails he had long claws, now covered in blood, however he didn't stop. He hunted down every samurai he could find. After he had killed them all he made his way to the brothel, killing any samurai that attempted to stop him.
Once he got inside he soon found her and without a word grabbed her arm and dragged her away, not letting go. They soon reached their house and Tomoe took her to her room before returning outside to bury his father's body, only noticing that with everything he had just done he expected to be exhausted, but he did not tire, and soon finished burying his father and erected a small grave. He looked to his hands once more and noticed that they were still covered in blood, he went over to the nearby house well and got some water before washing away the blood from his claws. Once he had finished he returned to his mothers room.
Once he got inside he remained at the doorway and saw that his mother was standing in front of a full length mirror, he remembered the time she got it, they had been walking through a market and there was a merchant from the west, she had instantly fallen in love with the mirror and Tomoe had bought it for her the next day and surprised her with it.
"Who are you?" She asked coldly, drawing Tomoe away from his memories, she hadn't moved and was still staring into the mirror and Tomoe wondering if she had been thinking about the same memory he had.
"Tomoe" He said hurt. "Your son." She turned away from the mirror then and stared at him coldly, her eyes flicking to different places before they locked to his gaze. They remained staring at each other for a long moment before tears started welling in her eyes.
"Oh, my son. What has happened to you?"
"What do you mean?"
"Look at you! Look at what you have become!" She said furiously while still in tears, in her anger she pointed at the mirror and moved away from it. "Look!" She shouted again and Tomoe slowly walked over to were the mirror was waiting. He froze as he took in his reflection; his jet black hair was now silver, sprouting large fox ears in place of his human ones. A silver tail matching his hair colour had grown behind him, and his eyes, which used to be a soft hazelnut brown, were now a hard cold yellow, his pupils thin.
"What?" He choked out as he touched the cold mirror; his mother was just staring at him furiously.
"You've become a demon! A slaughtering beast! I don't want you here in this house! I don't want to ever see you again!"
"But mother."
"No! You are not my son! GET OUT!"
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Nanami looked at Tomoe in disbelief, not knowing what to say as he had finished talking and was no longer looking at her.
"What happened to her?" She asked carefully.
"She became cruel, the shock of losing my father drove her mad, and she refused to ever see me again, becoming violent whenever she saw me. Eventually she killed herself. I had found her one morning with a knife lodged in her throat. She had died a Samurai."
"Tomoe I – I'm sorry." Tomoe looked at her for a moment before giving her a soft but sad smile.
"It's alright. As I said, it happened a very long time ago." He said and got up and walked out of the room, leaving Nanami on her own.
"Tomoe." She whispered sadly, a small tear falling from her eye.
Well I hope you enjoyed it, please make sure to leave comments, I so love them, and if there has been anything that you have not understood, ask it in the comment or PM me I'll be happy to explain, thank you
~Killing Reality