Youkai Red Riding Hood.
O
Once upon a time there lived a youkai in the Human Village. Her name was Sekibanki, and she had a detachable head.
Like most youkai she was born of fear, fed on fear, and was unpleasant to have as a neighbor. Her house was gloomy, her garden was messy, she rarely spoke to anyone, and often sent her head to stare into windows of hard-working and honest folk.
"Please leave," the victims often said. Sometimes, they gave her sweets.
One evening, someone knocked at Sekibanki's door. She sent her head to peek out. On her doorstep stood the village elder, Hieda Akyuu, a girl only nineteen winters of age but knowledgeable beyond her time. She was wearing beige formal attire, the flower in her hair was red, and she was holding a wicker basket.
Puzzled, Sekibanki scratched her exposed neck holes. She recalled her head, popped her collar up, and went for the door. She opened it and stared the human down.
"Good evening," she said.
Akyuu fidgeted. "Um, good evening. I wanted to ask for a favor."
Sekibanki stared.
"You see, in the Forest of Magic lives a human witch, Marisa Kirisame. She used to visit the village often, but I haven't seen her for over a month now, and I'm starting to get worried."
Sekibanki stared.
"Would you kindly deliver these pastries and check on her?"
Akyuu shoved the basket forward, looked down, and her cheeks flushed. She knew through memories of reincarnations what Sekibanki was, what she was capable of, and clearly, she was afraid.
"Fine," Sekibanki said. She took the basket. It smelled nice, and was covered with a white handkerchief.
"Y-yes, I will visit again in a few days. Please don't follow me with your head."
Akyuu bowed, clumsily turned, and hustled down the street.
Sekibanki followed her with her head for three houses or so.
O
The Forest of Magic at night was filled with eerie sounds, ghostly lights, and bizarre smells. The moon was full, shining brightly through low, fast moving clouds. It was windy on the ground level too, and Sekibanki didn't like it.
She didn't like the forest at all. Youkai here were too feral for her taste, human dwellers were scarce, and most of them were utterly crazy. At least fairies were somewhat docile, and there were few of them around.
Sekibanki adjusted her hood and pressed on. The hood was screamingly red, and was there for two reasons: to hold her head in place for the journey, and to signal would-be predators she was a youkai and not to be disturbed.
She was disturbed anyway. A tall woman slid out of the bushes, graceful and fluid despite her heavy dark gown. She blocked Sekibanki's way. Sekibanki stopped.
"Hello there, little red one," the woman said. "I am known as Imaizumi Kagerou."
The woman was obviously a youkai. She had prominent canine ears, needle-like claws, eyes the color of curdled blood. She had a hungry smile on her face. Sekibanki didn't like that smile.
"I'm Sekibanki," she said.
"That's a very pretty name. Do you live nearby, pretty one? Lovely night to get home after sunset hunt, is it not?"
"I suppose so."
Kagerou licked her lips. Her smile widened. She inched a little closer.
"You are not a forest youkai, are you now? You are one of those civilized village ones, are you not? Tell me where you are going."
Two questions were made in a sweet, sultry tone. The last line was flat, a demand.
"The house of a human witch, Kirisame Marisa," Sekibanki responded. She didn't know the forest that well to make a convincing lie on a spot, and she didn't want to offend or provoke. The whole affair was a chore, no need to complicate it with a spell battle.
Kagerou's eyes flashed. "A human, you say? How quaint. See, I am not native to this forest either, but I've walked by a tiny cute house recently. Never would've guessed for a human to live there…"
She trailed off. Sekibanki remained silent, and remained alert.
"Oh my, look at the time!" Kagerou chirped. "I'd chat, but I really have to go!"
She dashed to the side and disappeared in the forest. Their conversation ended abruptly, but Sekibanki shrugged it off. The overly pushy and slightly annoying youkai was gone, no reasons to dwell on a pointless random encounter.
Sekibanki continued down the path.
O
Marisa's house was surrounded by scorched earth. The smell of ash was heavy in the air, drowning all others. As Sekibanki walked closer, she stepped on and crushed a charred skeleton of a small bird.
There was light inside the house, and it meant that Marisa was at home, and awake. The moon was full, it was the night of mystery and magic, the time when spirits roamed and youkai went wild. No, Marisa would not sleep on a night like that.
The blinds were open on one window. Sekibanki detached her head, flew it forward and peeked inside. The room was illuminated by a flickering oil lamp, and the witch was in a rocking chair, moving back and forth.
Sekibanki recalled her head and walked to the porch. She knocked on the door, and it opened with a creak, revealing the destroyed latch, destroyed by someone with needle-like claws. Sekibanki cleared her throat.
"Good evening!" she called out.
"Oh my, a visitor! Come on in!"
Sekibanki made her way towards the lit room, through a corridor choked up with stacks of books and bulky items. She brushed against an unstable low stack and knocked a large brass kettle from it. It clanged on the floor, rolled away, and disappeared in the darkness.
Sekibanki entered the common room. The witch was rocking back and forth, her face hidden under the wide frills of her hat. Her dress seemed familiar somehow.
"Come closer, young one," the witch said. Her voice seemed familiar too.
Sekibanki walked closer. She set the basket on a low table next to the lamp.
"Akyuu Hieda sent me," Sekibanki said. "She is asking why you are not visiting the Human Village anymore."
"Such a brave youkai girl, going through such a dangerous forest at night on a whim of a human. Little pet dog in a little red hood, are you not?"
Sekibanki frowned. "Are you mocking me?"
"Of course."
The witch reached forward, and inside the basket. Her hand was hairy, and ended with needle-like claws. The light fell on her face for a moment, and it was the face of a wolf. She grabbed all the pastries, crushed them in her hand, pulled the mush towards her maw and swallowed it in one gulp.
Sekibanki stared.
"I killed the witch," Kagerou said. "Tore her throat open, it was so easy. Her dying fear tasted delicious."
Sekibanki stared.
Kagerou tapped her claw on the table impatiently. "Is this all you are going to give me? A judging look? What's the matter, why are you not happy?"
"Reimu is going to exterminate you," Sekibanki said.
Kagerou sneered. "Are you really going to tell her? Are you really going to squeal? I expected better from-"
Sekibanki attacked. Her bullets crackled, impacted on one another, created curves in air. Kagerou flipped back, and let projectiles shatter the rocker. The lamp went out.
"Oh, you show teeth now? Alright, let's have a little dance."
Kagerou deftly dodged the bullet curve and rushed forward. Sekibanki stumbled out of the way, too slow to dodge, but the wolf youkai ran way to the side, jumping in the end and crashing through the window.
"Hey, cutie, come out! That room is too tight for a dance!"
Sekibanki swore under her breath. The other youkai was obviously much stronger than her, and battlefield size made no difference. Even worse, Kagerou was clearly moon-crazed, and there was no telling what she was going to do after Sekibanki's likely defeat.
"I'm waiting!"
Dragging this any further was pointless; she'd have to win then. Sekibanki floated up, and carefully passed through the broken window. Kagerou was stretching in the open, her form shifting in moonlight.
"You ready? Okay, let's go!"
She dashed to the side, at a speed untraceable for a mortal, and even Sekibanki had trouble keeping up. She expected a physical attack, but no, it was a normal spell card, Kagerou dashed back, and left behind a triangle of bright blue orbs. They broke down and clustered into a swarm of smaller red ones. There were too many to dodge, and Sekibanki reeled back under multiple impacts.
The spell card ended. Kagerou struck a pose.
"Is that all? Sheesh, I never expected you to be so weak. How could I be so mistaken about you?"
She walked closer. A strong beam of moonlight fell on her, transforming her body to a hunched wolf once again. Sekibanki backed away, until her back hit the wall.
"You know, devouring humans becomes boring after a while," Kagerou mused, her tongue slopping inside her elongated maw as she spoke. "Sometimes I long for a juicier, more challenging prey. A prey like, say… you."
Kagerou stepped closer, and grabbed Sekibanki's shoulders. Her head shifted to a human one, she leaned forward, and playfully bit Sekibanki's ear. Sekibanki yelped.
"Shh, cutie, I am not going to hurt you," Kagerou whispered. "I was just playing around with you. I thought you'd be stronger, and take the lead, but we are still going to have fun together, some wild fun under the moon. Just relax, and I-"
Sekibanki detached her head and floated it up. Youkai or not, Kagerou was not prepared for that. She gawked at the bizarre sight, and Sekibanki used that moment to fire beams from her eyes right into Kagerou's face.
Kagerou screamed, stumbled back, started spinning in place, clutching at her head. Sekibanki fired again, and again, hitting every time, pushing Kagerou further back.
The wolf youkai regained her footing. She snarled, but her snarl was full of pain, and she still cradled her face with one arm.
"That was not fair!"
Sekibanki smirked cruelly. "Really, murderer? Let's see how fair you find this."
Sekibanki multiplied her head. It was a risky tactic, for it required splitting her essence. The head copies were not capable of thought, but they all possessed senses and could be used to attack. Four of them she made, and all five of her heads surrounded Kagerou, fired crimson eye beams, hit her from all sides.
The moon disappeared in clouds. Kagerou fell to the ground and curled up, whimpering. Sekibanki stared with all her heads. There was a pause.
"This is your end," Sekibanki said.
"Auuuu~"
"Be silent." Sekibanki brought her real head close to the face of the wolf youkai. "You killed a human, you are rabid, you had it coming. I'll bring you to Reimu, she will end you quickly and painlessly. Get up and walk, or I will slice you in half for easier carry."
Whimpering, Kagerou crawled in the ash. Sekibanki ordered her spare heads to pull the wolf youkai up with their teeth. After a while, Kagerou managed to sit. She was crying.
"Pathetic," Sekibanki said.
"So what if I am?" Kagerou cried out. "What of it? I'm all alone, I'm cursed to turn into a wolf, nobody is afraid of me, nobody takes me seriously… how are you any better? A slave to humans, a toy, an amusement for children. I'd bet they give you sweets if you show them tricks with your head."
"I am the terror of humans," Sekibanki said proudly. "I am feared and respected. I am the stalking horror, the true youkai. A wild mutt like you is not worth to lick dirt off my shoes."
Kagerou wiped her tears. She laughed sadly. "If you truly believe this, then you are a shallow fool. And there I hoped I finally found someone special. I guess it can't be helped…"
"Stop wasting my time and get up. It's time to go."
"Oh no, you are not going anywhere."
The voice came from behind, and Sekibanki turned her spare head to see who it was. Someone stood at the edge of the burned circle, someone in a soiled dress and torn black hat. She was holding a broom in one hand. She was holding a small wooden object in another. She stepped forward.
"You broke my window. Oh no, youkai, you're not going anywhere after that. Nobody breaks Marisa's window and lives to see another sunrise."
She took another step forward. An octagon in her hand lit up, and a burst of wild flame shot out for a split second, illuminating the witch's face. It was covered in ash and dust of destroyed fairies. It wore an expression of absolute cruelty.
"You didn't kill her," Sekibanki said slowly. "You made it all up, Kagerou. She wasn't even at home."
"I thought an older youkai like you would respect me more for that. I thought you'd be impressed, and pat me on the head."
"I…" Sekibanki stumbled. "Well, it makes sense, in a way, but-"
"Burn!"
A flame jet shot out from Marisa's octagon. It widened, spread, turned into a devouring stream. Sekibanki instinctively covered her face, but all of her heads were in air, and arms of her body covered an empty space. But even distracted, she still managed to create an absorbing aura shield before the flames reached her. Her spare heads blinked and crumbled, and she returned the real one to her neck. The shield was small; she couldn't allow stretching it.
"You still resist?" Marisa shouted. "Yes, fight back! Squirm! Squirm!"
Marisa made a sweeping motion with her hand. The flames changed direction, and Kagerou's dress and hair caught fire. She yelped and rolled, and huddled behind Sekibanki. Marisa twisted her wrist, and the fire stopped flowing.
"Aw, how romantic," Marisa said. "Two youkai, faced with inevitable death, protecting one another till the end. Too bad you are both ugly and gross."
"Kagerou, run," Sekibanki said.
"But together we can-"
"Run."
Marisa started giggling. The spell furnace in her hand lit with purple, and coils of purple streaked up her arm, went into her mouth and nostrils, lit her eyes from inside.
"My new Hakkero is so fun," Marisa said in a strange, distorted voice. "Can't get enough of it. So much fun. Yes. Die. Black Spark."
It was indeed black, a beam so powerful it knocked Marisa back a few steps. It shattered Sekibanki's shield and slammed into her body, eating through it with incredible speed.
It is said that youkai can survive even if cut in five pieces. In truth, every youkai has its own threshold of survival. Kagerou's instincts screamed to her to run, so she picked herself up and ran the narrow tunnel of safety cast like a shadow by Sekibanki's crumbling body.
Sekibanki was too slow and clumsy to run; she relied for survival on her mastery of energy transfer, and agility of her flying head. She pulled all her essence into her head and shot it up. Her body disintegrated, her blue hair bow burned away, and still she lived, and watched as Kagerou made it to safety of the forest line. The wolf youkai looked like she got her fair share of the black beam too, but she wasn't hurt too bad, and Sekibanki felt relieved.
The spell ended, and the purple energy was gone. Marisa stood up and shook her head. Slightly dazed, she looked around, then up, and met Sekibanki's stare.
"Don't look at me like that," Marisa said. "Windows are expensive, and hard to repair with magic. You deserved it."
"You broke the spell card rules. I am going to tell Reimu on you."
"Sod off, you're still alive. All non-lethal and fair. Go away, ugly, you make me sick. Ugh…"
Marisa made a choked sound, and bent over. It looked like she was going to hurl, but she didn't. She straightened up and waved her blackened Hakkero in the general direction of Sekibanki's head. Sekibanki took cover behind a tree.
"Yeah, run away, stupid youkai. Be thankful I'm not Reimu, she'd give chase and finish you off. Sheesh, now I know how she feels when her shrine gets destroyed. Makes me wanna burn and kill. Burn and kill…"
Sekibanki carefully peeked. Marisa was walking towards the house, leaning on her broom as a walking stick, and the furnace in her hand was glowing purple.
"What the hell, you broke the lock too? I'm going to-"
Sekibanki decided it was time to leave. She spun her head around, turned it upside down so less of her essence would spill on the way, and started her long flight home.
O
Two days have passed. Sekibanki made herself a new body, bones from planks of wood, veal tied to bones with straw, a spare dress to cover it all. She asked humans nicely for things she didn't have. Humans helped her, faking smiles. They wanted the floating head out of their lives.
There was a knock at her door. She sent her head to peek out. Akyuu was on her doorstep, in a green dress this time, and the flower in her hair was yellow.
Sekibanki recalled her head and managed to stand up. Her new body was still weak, and half of the organs didn't work properly yet, but it was enough to keep appearances.
She hobbled to the door and opened it. Akyuu's eyes widened. Sekibanki hid hands of meat and straw behind her back.
"Good day," she said.
Akyuu swallowed hard. "G-good day."
Sekibanki stared.
"I'm checking, you know. I said I'd return, so… how did it go? Did Marisa like my cooking?"
"Another youkai ate your cooking, and your precious Marisa attacked me," Sekibanki said. Standing up was difficult, but she didn't want to show weakness. Akyuu would remember, pass the memory to future reincarnations.
"Oh. But this means she is doing fine, right? The forest has become so dangerous lately; I was very worried for her. When will she visit the village again?
"She didn't say. She was busy burning me. She broke the spell card rules, and nearly killed me."
Akyuu sulked. Her eyes darted from side to side. Sekibanki kept staring. It was difficult to stand. All she wanted was for the human to leave already.
"Is this all?" she snapped.
Suddenly, Akyuu's head jerked up and she met Sekibanki's gaze. Her eyes were a shade of deep violet, not much unlike eyes of a youkai. Her glare was cold.
"You are very hostile," Akyuu stated. "If you had some manners, you wouldn't get into a fight with Marisa. Be polite, and stop slandering her."
Sekibanki's mouth twitched. She looked to the side. She understood now. Kagerou was right after all.
Akyuu was never afraid of her. Her shy behavior, the way she spoke – it was all an act, a trick to give the youkai an illusion of power, and real power always belonged to the humans. The village elder knew perfectly well that if worse came to worst, all Sekibanki would do was glare, and stare, and try to spook with her head.
And all it would take to permanently get rid of the pesky stalker was one message to the shrine maiden.
"I'm just tired," Sekibanki said. "Sorry."
"Ah, I see. Get some rest then. Here, have something for your forest troubles. You like sweets, right?"
Akyuu pulled a tiny bundle out of her pocket. Sekibanki took it, shifting energy to her hand so it would look normal. She almost succeeded at it, just as Akyuu almost succeeded at hiding her disgust.
"I'll be going now," Akyuu said. "Do not follow me with your head."
She turned, walked away, and lived happily ever after.
Sekibanki closed the door. With a stifled scream, she threw the bundle of sweets at it.
There was a tiny willow grove near the village Sekibanki liked to visit. A month later she joined the youkai rebellion, was cornered there by Reimu and exterminated.
The End