Chapter 1 - A rather strange birthday

It happened in a dark alleyway, fireworks lit up not far off. It happened at a summer festival 18 years ago.

When I was a little girl.

I witnessed my parents' murder.

There was a lot of blood. So much that my parents were almost unrecognizable.

There was a man there. He had his back towards me, so I couldn't see his face very clearly, if at all.

I was dizzy, my young mind couldn't comprehend what I was seeing. My brain couldn't compute the situation. The man muttered something to me, but I couldn't hear it well, then he fled. Not a trace left of him. I heard shouting coming from behind me. A woman screamed and a man told me to not look. It was too late. I had looked enough, and then I fainted.

xxXxx

The girl groggily sat up in her bed as she blinked several times. How long had it been since she remembered that night? She remembered every little detail despite the age she was. That kind of image burned into her memory, never to leave her alone. She felt dizzy. She put her hand to her head.

"Will I ever forget?" She muttered, her hand falling to her side once again. She let out a smile as a few birds were perched outside on a tree. "Cute!"

"Botan? Are you up?" Asked an elderly lady outside her door.

"O-oh, yes! I'm up, grandma!" The lady knew this was the sign that she could enter. She slid open the shoji door, a small grin forming.

"Looks like you had a nice sleep, Botan, if your bed hair is any indication." At that comment, Botan walked to her mirror and growled.

"Grr, why is my hair always like this?!" She complained as she began to brush her hair. The old woman let out a laugh.

"That's my dim-witted granddaughter for you." Botan turned around and spat her tongue out at her.

"With your hair you can't tell if you have bed hair or not!" Botan quickly moved out of the way as one of Genkai's slippers went towards her head. "Looks like you're in a good mood today. I would have had no chance of dodging that slipper otherwise!"

"Hmph, maybe so. Did you forget it's your 22nd birthday today?"

"Uh, yeah. I really don't see why people celebrate becoming one year older. Just seems kind of, I don't know, stupid..." She replied as she continued to brush her hair. "And besides, I have to work today..."

"I'll be making your favourite food tonight." That made Botan's mood brighten.

"Really?! It's been a while since you made it! Now I have something to get me through the day." She saw Genkai give her a dark look. "O-other than you off course! I always look forward to seeing you everyday!" Genkai nodded as she got up to leave the room. As she was about to step out of the room she turned back towards Botan

"Be careful, alright?" This caught Botan's attention.

"Hm?"

"I feel a strange energy in the city. Just, just be cautious on your way home. It's almost winter, so it'll probably be dark by the time you leave work." At that, she shut the girl's door and made her way down the corridor. Botan blinked once, twice, three times.

"What was that all about? Strange energy? Well, I've heard grandma say weirder things before." She grinned as she looked at her hair in the mirror in it's normal ponytail. An image of the man from 18 years prior flashed in her mind. "Come to think of it, that man also had a ponytail, didn't he?" She fiercely shook her head, she got dizzy soon after. "This isn't like me! Get a hold of yourself Botan!" She threw her fist in the air. "You must seize the day! Yeah!"

Genkai was leaning by the wall near her room, listening in. 'So, those dreams still haunt her.' She pushed herself off of the wall and went towards the kitchen. 'Off course they would, to see such images at a young age such as hers? They would drive a strong man mad.'

xxXxx

"I'm leaving now!" Botan yelled as she walked out of the Temple. She was wrapped up in a coat much too big, along with a scarf.

"Be careful." Genkai called back, sipping her tea.

"Sure." She began her long walk down the steps leading to the Temple. She didn't rush as she always leaves early, making sure there was plenty of time for her to admire her surroundings. She smiled brightly as a robin landed not far away. "Hey little fella!" She stuck her hand out, some bird food splayed out. The robin immediately went up to her and flew to her hand, taking a bit.

"You always appear here, don't ya?" The bird tweeted, as in saying yes. After it took it's fill, the bird flew away. She let out a quiet sigh as she resumed her trek towards her destination. A leaf landed right in front of her, but that's not what caught her eye. Whatever it was, it shined red. As she walked closer towards it, she realised it was a necklace. A pendant. "So pretty." When she touched it, a strange sensation overcame her. As if the pendant was rejecting her.

"A-a piece of jewerelly doesn't have that kind of power."

'I feel a strange energy in the city. Just, just be cautious on your way home.'

'Could this be what grandma was referring to?' She ignored the strange feeling as she picked it up. She continued to stare at it for a time until she vigorously shook her head. "It's just a necklace silly!" She put it in her backpack, looking around once more. "No one's around. I wonder who it belongs to?" Shrugging, she hummed as she trekked down the path.

xxXxx

It was hectic, to say the least. It was a cold morning, and so the cafe had many customers. The owner was rushing around, begging for the clock hand to turn to 10.

"Hey! Mr Sasaki! Can I have another coffee over here?!" Yelled a male customer.

"Yes! Comin' right up!" The man yelled back. He took a deep sigh as he looked pointedly at his employee, the girl nodded and went to the coffee machine. "Yer a life saver, Maya."

"I serve to please boss!"

"Don't call me boss...makes me feel old, ya hear?" He spoke, slightly embarrassed. Maya hummed.

"Yeah." When the sound of the chimes rung, he turned around, forcing a smile to form.

"Welcome to our-"

"Boss, it's only me." Botan said as she stepped into the cafe. The man's smile brightened.

"Oh, thank goodness. Yer finally ere'!" Botan tilted her head in slight confusion. "It's been really busy today fer some reason. I've barely had any time to think let alone serve. Oh, and let me introduce my newest employee-"

"Botan?!" Maya shrieked as she pointed at her. "What are you doing here?!"

"M-Maya?! I'm the one that should be asking that!" Sasaki looked to and fro between the two of them, utterly confused.

"Ah, so you two know each other already? Well, tha's jus' perfect! Introductions are no longer needed. Tha's good." When he realised the two had not moved an inch, he let out an irritated sigh. "Listen, whatever beef ya two had in the past, ya need ta let it go! Now!" He clapped loudly which got the two's attention. "Get ta work, or have ya forgotten how busy we are?" The two nodded as they went to work, glaring daggers at each other while doing so.

The whole morning was completely hectic. The number of customers had been coming non-stop, and the workers were running ragged, until lunch finally came around. Sasaki sat at the lunchroom, happily eating on a sandwich. He looked up when Botan arrived and sat down opposite him. She too took out a sandwich and was quietly eating at it. He wanted to ask her about her and Maya's relationship but the dark aura around her was stopping him. "U-um, Botan-san. I-is there something, b-bothering ya? A-are ye jus' tired? I can understand tha' if it's..." She turned her dark aura on him. He jumped out of his chair. Said object falling over backwards onto the hard ground. The noise seemed to have jolted her from her earlier state.

"Huh?" She stood up, leaning over the table to stare down at him. "Um, sir? Why are you on the floor? Did you trip over? It must be your old age. I told you that you might want to retire soon." Sasaki began to shake in aggravation.

"I keep telling you people! I'm not old!"

xxXxx

"Oops, I guess I did go a little over-board there. Ah well." The rest of the day went quickly enough, and to her surprise everyone had yelled happy birthday to her and even got her cake. She and Maya even made up for the day, since it was her birthday. 'But I doubt this truce will hold out...knowing how she operates...' Memories of the past came back to haunt her then. Memories of when they actually got along, and times, when they didn't. The latter taking over in number.

That was when she remembered the pendant from earlier. "Oh yeah." She dug around in her bag and pulled it out. Her fingers smoothing over the crimson surface. "I was meant to ask around, wasn't I? Looks like I'll hold on to it, for a while anyway." Not like she was complaining. The necklace was a beautiful shade of red, although it looked quite old, seeing as you could see the chain rusting. It was barely wearable. Maybe she should buy a new chain? "Hm." She shook her head as she pocketed the pendant. "Who cares? As long as I can still wear it." She grinned as she continued down the road. She was so happy to get home that she almost didn't see the tiny creature that was injured. "Hm?"

It had wings, pointy ears, blood and-

Wait, blood?!

"Ah, you poor bat!" She knelt down beside it. She was relieved to see that it was still breathing. She gently, gently picked it up as to not cause it further harm. It let out a light squeak but thankfully nothing more. "Don't worry lil fella, you'll be safe with me." She immediately went onward to the temple, dreading the stairs she would have to climb.

xxXxx

"Hm, it's just like you to bring a stray creature back home. You usually did this a lot when you were a child."Genkai said, tending to the bat's injuries.

"I did? I don't remember ever doing so, strange..." Botan replied. "Oh, and will the little guy be okay?" Genkai nodded.

"He'll be fine. He's a strong one. Although, his injuries would leave any normal creature of it's size in writhing agony." Botan hummed in response, sitting a little bit closer. "All he'll need now is some food and rest then he'll be healthy.

"Oh, thank you grandma. I appreciate it!" Genkai nodded. She stood up and went towards the door.

"I'll be making dinner soon. When he wakes up, be sure to feed him some fruit." At Botan's nod, Genkai left and closed the door behind her. Botan let out a sigh as she looked at her house guest. The bat seemed to be sleeping more peacefully since his injuries were healed. She let out a smile.

"I'm glad I found you when I did. Otherwise, who knows what would have happened." She let her finger gently touch it's head and rubbed the fur there. It moved it's head towards her finger. It slowly opened it's eyes, and stared up at her. She thought it was the cutest thing she ever saw, but, she knew she would hurt it if she continued to pet it. So she brought her hand back. The creature continued to stare at her, it's head tilting to it's right. She relaxed a little, happy knowing it was finally awake. She sat back, getting her bag. She searched around, grinning when she finally found the object she was looking for. She brought the necklace up to her eyes, and tilted it to the side, making the surface shine.

She didn't know why she felt so transfixed to this pendant, there was just something that was pulling her in. As if forcing her to look at it. Which was impossible, right? 'Maybe grandmother should have a look at it?' She looked below her at the bat and realised it was also looking at the pendant.'Maybe it wasn't just me after all?' She shrugged and then stood up. She was startled when the creature started to move. "Hey! Don't move anywhere, your injuries haven't healed yet. Far from it actually..." Honestly, she felt stupid talking to an animal. She sighed as the bat continued to move from the cushion it had been resting on. She gently picked the creature up and put it back on the cushion. The creature hissed at her as it reached one of it's injured wings towards the necklace.

'Okay, now I know this is no ordinary necklace...' In an attempt to calm the animal down, she hid the pendant in her bag once again. As she hoped, the creature did indeed calm down and it went back to sleep once again. "That's a relief." She stared at her backpack. "What the hell was that about? I need to ask grandma, pronto." She picked up her baby pink bag and quietly shut the door behind her. "Grandma?" She called as she entered the kitchen area. Confusion took over her as her grandmother was nowhere to be seen. She could have sworn the aroma of tea leaves was wafting through the air earlier. "Grandma...?" She dropped her bag as she began to walk at a quicker pace.

"Grandma, where are-" She stopped mid-sentence when Genkai's pink hair could be seen behind the counter. "Grandmother!" She bolted forward, going to her knees and holding Genkai's head to her lap. She began to feel for a pulse, sweat dripping from her forehead. A small smile graced her features when a pulse was felt. Faint, but still there. There was no blood, injuries or anything indicating that she was attacked. "What happened?" She thought out loud. "Ah, right. I should phone an ambulance."

"I don't think that'll be necessary, little girl." A cold chill went down her spine when a smooth but menacing voice cut through the air. She slowly turned around, hoping, yet not hoping, to see the owner of the chilling voice. A perplexed expression took over when nobody showed themselves to her.

'Am I going crazy? There's nobody here.'

"Wrong direction." A pair of bony hands crept around her neck. They started to play with her side hair a second later. Her body went stock still. Too afraid to move an inch, fearing one his long fingernails would scratch her skin. "No need to fear, young girl. I just want to know where that pendant may be."

'Pendant? The one in my bag? Why does he want to know that?' So many questions formed in her mind all at once. It was hard to keep up.

"Your eyes tell me..." He leaned down closer to her. "...that pendant? Why does he want that? Am I correct?" Her eyes widened. She was never the best person to go to to keep secrets. She really wishes that weren't true, especially now. Now that a psychopath was asking her.

'Maybe if I just give him what he came here for, he'd go away.'

"Oh, yeah. N-now I remember. Sure, it's in my bag! The pink bag by the kitchen counter." She wanted to point to it, but his overbearing presence was still too much for her. 'Hopefully with that, he'll go away and I can get grandma some medical attention.' She began to panic when the man made no movement. She hesitantly looked up, but was not expecting what she saw. Yeah, he had a creepy look about him, sinister to add to that, but he also had a rather handsome face, from what she saw anyway. She wondered what his lower face looked like without the mask covering it. His eyes were a beautiful amethyst, almost the same shade as hers. He wore all black, he resembled that of a crow.

"I thought as much. A rather strong demonic energy is coming from it." He stared down at her. Botan could swear she saw somthing in his gaze for a second, however, what it was, she couldn't place. He let her go then, however not too gently. With the dark atmosphere gone, she glared daggers at him. If he felt it, he didn't say. He walked elegantly towards her bag, leaning gently and picked it up. He dug around and picked the necklace up with a clawed hand.

'Wait, clawed? I knew his fingernails were long, but they look like claws of an animal. Minus the paw, off course.' She felt movement to her right and immediately helped her grandmother sit up right. "Grandma, will you be okay?" Genkai took a while to come to her senses.

"Botan?" She asked shakily. That was when Botan realised Genkai's skin was starting to turn purple

"I-it's me. Hey you!" She yelled towards the stranger. The man looked towards her, giving her a disinterested look. "Why did you attack my grandmother?"

"I did not attack her. She was already out cold when I got here. So, before you begin to point fingers, why don't you look at her legs." Botan glared at him before doing as he said. She didn't see anything.

"Do you take me for a fool? There's nothing there!" The man let out an irritated sigh.

"Fine. I suppose this'll have to do then." He walked towards her and knelt down on Genkai's other side. Botan's grip on Genkai tightened. This did not go unnoticed by the man. "I can understand your hesitance with me, but if you wear this necklace you'll be able to see them. I've purified the pendant, so ordinary humans like you will not be affected by it's dark aura." He put the necklace around her neck. At first, she didn't feel any different, but after a minute she started to see things she hadn't before. Such as insect like creatures crowding around Genkai's feet.

"Ack! What the- What are these horrid things?!" She shrieked as she looked downwards. The insects reacted to her shout by looking at her.

"Hey! Watch who you call horrid, rude girl!"

"Uh, s-sorry. Hey, wait. You're the ones making my grandma ill!" The insects stopped wriggling around. They were a cross between worms and spiders, a combination she did not appreciate much. One looked up to Genkai.

"Oh, you're right. Hey boys, we should back up a little!" The others nodded and did just that. Genkai's colour returned to her face. Botan helped her it up.

"Thank you, Botan. There is nothing to worry about." Botan smiled in response. Happy to see her grandmother return to her usual self, but still wanted to be careful. "How are you able to see them?"

"Oh, this guy here-" She pointed to her left but realised the man was already gone. "...helped, me... I wonder where he went?"

"Hm, I did hear another voice earlier. Was he dangerous? Did he hurt you?"

"Well, he did seem like a dangerous guy, and I don't know why he had to be so creepy to add to that, but other than startle me (or maybe terrify me would be more accurate), he didn't hurt me." She pointed to the pendant around her neck. "He said he purified this of evil, or something, and gave it to me, then bam, I was able to see, well, whatever they are." She looked towards the insects when she said the last bit. Genkai nodded slowly, trying to comprehend what motivations the man could have.

"I, see."

"Grandma?"

"Yes?"

"What are these things?" The insects had now began to swarm around the young girl. She was nervous that she may also get sick. Some strange birthday this has been so far.

"They're Wormpiders, demon insects. They're only children now, but even as adults they aren't much bigger than a greyhound."

'She makes that sound like it's small, wait...'

"Demons?!"

xxXxx

"Karasu? Karasu? Answer me, will you?" A female's voice called. The voice was coming from a dark alleyway in an abandoned neighbourhood. The man from before kicked a tomato soup can from in front of him. The sound startled a nearby cat and it fled.

"I hear you, Ayame. Is this about my report?" His dark voice held a little anger behind it.

"Off course. The same as last time?"

"It was a dud, a fake. How many more of these senseless pendants are there?" He grinded out. He kicked another can, and this time it hit the back of a man. He was in the middle of making out with his girlfriend, and he was far from happy from being interrupted.

"Yo man! What's the big idea?!" He yelled as he began to walk towards the crow demon. Karasu did not have the patience. When the man got within 5 feet of the man, Karasu reached out and grabbed the man by the neck.

"Such fragility you humans possess. You're lucky my right arm is already holding something, otherwise your face would be a bloody mess already."

"Karasu, do not harm him. Let him go, remember your deal with Koenma. Harm anyone but your target, and you know what will happen." Ayame scolded. This one sentence was enough to convince him to let the man go, although his menacing glare was enough to scare the couple off.

"Hn, you always ruin our fun."

"Yes, and I am glad to hear of it. So, it was another dud? And I don't know how many there are out there. However we mustn't give up. One of them possesses-"

"I know already. You've told me many times before." The girl coughed to clear the silence that came after.

"Anyway, we've covered all the known locations. Come back to HQ and wait until we discover more." With that, she shut off communication with him and left him alone in the dark, silent alleyway. Just how he liked it, however, add a few explosions here and there and it would be perfect.

'Alas, it is not to be at this point in time.' He started to make his way back, his soft footsteps making little to no sound in the small alleyway. He had almost made it to the end of the path when the sound of a crow was heard overhead. He tilted his head upward to get a better view of it. "Hello, my old friend." He reached his arm towards it. The crow immediately flew towards him and perched on his index finger, feet not causing any scratch or bruise as he did so. He brought the crow closer to him. "I have a small task for you." He brought the crow's forehead closer to his mouth and whispered. "Keep an eye out on that blue-headed girl. She may, be useful in the future. Maybe for a certain test." His arm went upward and the bird took flight once again, heading to start its task. Karasu continued to stare on from where he last saw it, the bright moon causing highlights to appear throughout his jet black hair.

"Such an interesting girl she is." With that, he tore his eyes away from the sky and continued his way back to his destination.

xxXxx

"S-s-so, you're telling me that Demon world and Spirit world actually exist? That when we die, our souls get judged by a prince? Who can send us to get either reincarnated or sent to Limbo? Is that what you're saying?!" Botan asked all at once. They had moved to the kitchen table, each having a cup of tea in their grasp. It had taken Genkai a while to explain everything to her, and off course, it was a lot to take in. The Wormpiders were still hanging around, Genkai feeding one a biscuit. "And I still don't understand why these little guys are here."

"Momma said Master Genkai would be taking care of us." One near her stool had said. She hummed in response then turned her attention back to the older woman.

"They don't seem dangerous, so why did you faint before?"

"Oh that. Well, they all started crowding around me all at once, the fools. You see, the Wormpiders, when bundled together, can form a powerful demonic aura. I had told them time and time again to not do such a thing, but they seemed to have forgotten that important detail." The Wormpiders started to shrink away when Genkai glared fiercely at them.

"W-we're sorry! We did forget!" One pleaded.

"But we were so hungry!" Said another. Genkai let out a tired sigh as she continued to feed the Wormpider from before.

"You may be small, but your appetites are something to fear." Botan was about to eat a biscuit of her own when another Wormpider looked at it longingly. She shrugged before giving it the food.

"Hope that'll make you happy..."

"Thank you Miss!" The girl couldn't help but smile down at the creature. While at first, looking at it made her slightly uncomfortable, now, she actually found it rather cute, in it's own strange way.

'There are still many questions to ask about every-' She stopped mid-sentence. She had the feeling she was forgetting something. Then it hit her."Oh my gosh! I forgot to check on the bat!" Botan cried as she shot out of her chair and bolted for her room. Meanwhile, Genkai had been sipping on her tea.

When Botan had gotten to her room, she was more than a little surprised to see, not a bat, but a man, with wings and pointy ears sleeping where the bat should have been. She didn't know how to react. Scream for Genkai to come or just sit there, and stare. She decided to go with the former.

"Eeeeeek!"

Tbc

AN - I hated how the old version was going and I want to get back into writing again!