"I thought you were going to eat that and take the book for yourself?"
He shifted his muscles, watching carefully out of the corner of one eye as the pale boy murmured in his sleep and turned, burying his face in thick white fur. More red seemed to be staining the bandages. There wasn't much more time that could afford to be wasted laying about here, but the child was hurt. Hurt and tired, so tired-
"After he dies," Madara repeated the phrase absentmindedly. He had said it so many times now, it had become a mantra, meaningless except in serving as a reminder that the child of man was still there. Still breathing. "They live so short a time, the diversion is hardly more than an inconvenience."
"They say you're getting soft, Madara."
He turned his head to fully look at the weaker Youkai, golden eyes narrowing in warning. "Who does?" His voice came out amused, but there was a hard edge to it. An unspoken promise of violence.
The weaker Youkai tumbled back in its hurry to bow and succeeded only in falling on its rump, "N-n-nn-not me! Of course! I would never-!"
Madara snorted, and turned away from the weakling to look at the child again. He had his grandmother's face, but none of her savvy or sharpness. None of her strength. He is weak. He needs me.
"Go see what is taking that screw up Natori so long."
"T-tt-thh-the e-eee-eexxx-exorcist?"
Madara didn't bother looking at the weaker Youkai again. "You know another? Go now. Tell him to hurry his lazy ass."
He only half listened as the weakling muttered to himself and fidgeted before deciding it was a better for his health to follow after the exorcist than test Madara's patience when it came to Natsume's life. With the other Youkai gone, he tentatively bent his neck down, gently whuffling Natsume's hair as he tried to sniff out... something. The boy's normal scent beneath the blood and pain. The slight difference that would remind him the injured child was Takashi, not Reiko. It was not one of the dreams. History would not repeat.
Natsume was not strong like Reiko. He was weak. He drew danger to himself every inch as much as Reiko ever had by picking fights. And yet, the child was strong in his own way. He drew allies and understood in a way Reiko never had. Reiko would not have put up with gentleness from him unless she was dying. Natsume accepted that Youkai could care as deeply as humans did, that only their way of caring was different
Natsume's arm reached up, trying to push his nose away. Madara allowed it, not wanting the child to strain himself before he had a chance to recover.
"Sensei...?"
"You did something stupid again, Natsume." Madara allowed the anger to seep into his tone, "You were already hurt and I told you not to go searching for that Youkai by yourself. That Natori is coming to help get you home."