Kazu awoke with a start. As his vision came into focus, he found himself staring up into a pair of large pale green eyes. Ren stared back at him; the daemon's tiny hands holding one of his comfortingly.
Yakumo Ren was Kazu's first daemon; a Phantom type who'd been with him since before he could remember. Though Ren was well known throughout the prestigious circle of ghost agents, the Phantom remained unregistered with the Guild; his skill and stats unknown to anyone but Kazu.
"Master, are you alright?" Ren asked, letting go of Kazu's hand and climbing up onto the bed. "I came as soon as I could."
Kazu let out a long sigh, stretching languidly across the mattress. He knew exactly where he was; the feel of the covers and the scent of the room were clues enough. He was at Nina's; locked in the suite just across from hers.
The moment Mordred brought in the glass of wine, Kazu had known exactly what was going to happen. It was laced with a sleeping drought the Guild had specifically created to supress The Shota King, a.k.a, Kazu. It was designed to temporarily seal his powers and place him into a deep sleep. It worked, most of the time. And when it wore off, Kazu could usually feel the effects running through his system for several hours after. Like right now for instance. Though he was awake, his mind remained fuzzy and his powers still blocked.
"I'm fine, Ren-chan," Kazu said reaching up to wipe the tears from the Phantom's cheek. "How long have I been here?"
"Master's been here for over an hour. It took us forever to find you! You didn't tell us where you was going, so we had to search everywhere!"
Kazu frowned, sitting up on his elbows and giving Ren a stern look. "Did you hurt anyone?"
"No, Master, but…" Ren bit his lip, obviously worried he'd done something wrong.
Kazu smiled sweetly, cupping the daemon's pudgy little cheek. "Whatever happened, you can tell me."
"Well, the mean Phantom at the door wouldn't let us in, so we had to…" Ren bit his lip again. "We didn't mean to, Master, but he wouldn't open the door!"
Kazu pulled the young boy onto his lap, patting his head gently. "What happened, Ren-chan?"
"I drained him, but only to get him out of the way. Th-then another one came. A big, mean Divina! And the twins was scared, so I drained him, too. And then, well, it kind of got out of hand… b-but we was only trying to save you, Master! We have to protect you! That's our job! We didn't mean to hurt anyone, I swear!"
Kazu took a deep breath, taking the daemon's chin and forcing him to meet his gaze. "I'm sure you did what you had to, but we must always remember self-control. Did you ask nicely to be let in?"
"Umm, y-yes."
"Ren-chan?"
"I-I don't remember."
Kazu sighed heavily; the answer to his question more than clear. "Did you hurt any humans?"
"Umm, I don't think so."
Ren's uncertainty put Kazu on edge. His grip tightened on the daemon's chin, causing the Phantom to wince in pain. "Is Nina here? Did you hurt her?"
"No, Master! We'd never hurt Nina-sama! Master says she's special and that we must never, ever, hurt her! Ever!"
"Good," Kazu replied, releasing Ren. "Where are the others?"
"Ranmaru is standing guard just outside. And the twins… well, I'm not sure where they went, but Yoshitsune is downstairs making sure no one else comes in until we get you home."
Kazu lifted the boy off his lap, getting to his feet and stretching once more. "And did you find Oneiros?"
"We did, Master, b-but…"
"But what?!"
Ren shrank back in fear; his jet black hair obscuring his tear-filled eyes.
"I'm sorry," Kazu said soothingly, reaching down to hug the daemon tightly. "I shouldn't have raised my voice at you, but it's very important that Master know where Oneiros is. Now tell me, where did you find him?"
"Akasha has him," Ren replied, snuggling into Kazu's embrace.
Rage filled Kazu, momentarily blackening his vision. He despised Akasha. She'd been one of the ghost agents to take him down a few years ago. It had all been a silly misunderstanding, but Akasha refused to let it go. She'd pushed for the removal of his title as a ghost agent, and propositioned the Council for his immediate imprisonment. "Menace," she'd called him; a "ticking time bomb waiting to go off." In the end, Kazu had been cleared, but Akasha remained his greatest threat within the Guild.
Kazu released Ren, smiling down at him. "No worries, dearest one. We'll get him. By any means necessary." He held out his hand for the daemon to take, and they walked out the bedroom together.
"Master!" Ranmaru said excitedly. "Are you alright? Did they hurt you?"
"I'm fine Ru-chan, you needn't worry." He ruffled the Divina's hair then pinched his cheek playfully. "Why don't you go find the twins so we can go?"
"Yes, Master!" Ranmaru saluted then took off down the stairs.
Kazu and Ren followed after the Divina. He was still a bit woozy, so he allowed Ren to lead the way. When they reached the bottom floor, Kazu took in the scene with abject interest. At the front door, Mordred lay unconscious; propped against the door frame. Just a few feet away was Motochika, lying face down on the wooden floor.
As Kazu continued further down the hall, checking in both the parlor and library, he found more daemons passed out; all in various stages of activity. He sucked his teeth reproachfully, looking down at Ren. The daemon gave him the same watery-eyed expression as he had upstairs, softening Kazu's heart ever-so-slightly.
"S-sorry, Master," Ren mumbled. "We might have gotten a bit… carried away."
"I see that. I will be having a talk with you and the others when we get home. I believe punishment is in order. You all know better than to feed so freely, especially on other daemons. You better hope I don't find any humans amongst the casualties. Now, where is Yoshitsune? I thought you said he was down here."
"He was, Master. I don't know where he went."
A commotion in the kitchen drew Kazu's attention. Taking the lead, he pulled Ren towards the source of the noise.
"I said give it back!" Yoshitsune screamed; shaking a fist at Castor.
"No!" Castor shouted back, sticking his tongue out. "It's mine now!"
"But it's my cookie! And you already had like a ka-billion!"
"Nuh-uh!"
"Yeah-huh!"
"Nuh-uh!"
"Yeah-huh!"
The argument went on like that for several more seconds. Kazu was about to break it up when he caught sight of Polluck, Castor's twin, cornering the female cook on a counter. He was waving a wooden spoon at the poor human, shoving what looked like a giant cookie into his mouth.
"I said give me back my cookie!" Yoshitsune lunged at Castor, taking the boy down to the floor. He landed a blow square to Castor's jaw, splitting the Divina's lip. Yoshitsune pulled back to hit him again, but Kazu's booming voice rang out.
"BOYS, STOP IT THIS INSTANT!"
Four pairs of frightened eyes turned to Kazu. Pollock dropped the spoon in his hand, inching away from the weeping woman. Yoshitsune climbed off Castor, dropping his head in shame. Castor climbed to his feet as well, making sure to hide the cookie in his hand behind his back.
"What on earth do you think you're doing?" Kazu put his hands on his hips, trying to sound as threatening as possible. "This is Master Nina's home; therefore, you will treat it with the same respect as you do ours! Polluck get over here now! Yoshitsune and Castor, apologize to each other at once!"
"But he started it!" The two boys said in unison.
"I don't care who did what! Apologize! Now!"
The boys muttered an apology, but Kazu had the feeling their fight wasn't over.
"Now clean this mess up right now!" Kazu ordered. "You, too, Ren. You should have been watching them!"
They all slunk off, straightening the room as best they could.
"And give me that cookie, Castor. By looks of it, you've had enough sweets for today."
Kazu took the cookie from the pouting Divina, and then went over to help the confused cook off the counter.
"Are you alright, Miss?" Kazu asked, offering his hand to help her down. "I am sorry about the mess my boys caused, but they'll have this place cleaned up in no time. Why don't you come over here and sit down for a bit?"
The woman nodded, allowing Kazu to help her down from the counter and lead her over to the small kitchen table. Ranmaru entered the kitchen right as Kazu was pulling out the chair for the stuttering cook. He ordered the daemon to pour a glass of water and bring it over to the table.
"Here you go, Master," Ranmaru said, handing Kazu the cup.
"Thank you, Ru-chan. Go and help the others finish up."
"Yes, Master."
Kazu eased the woman into one the seat. Her hands were shaking uncontrollably, so when Kazu gave her the glass he had to wrap his hands around hers in order to keep the poor woman from spilling. He helped her take a few sips then set the cup on the table. She'd regained some of her color, but Kazu could still sense her fear as she eyed both him and the boys warily.
"Don't worry," Kazu said, brushing a strand of hair from the woman's eyes. "You're safe now, I promise." He let his fingertips brush the warm skin of her cheek, holding her gaze with his own. "That's it, just relax."
Her eyes glazed over; her anxiety quietening as her body slumped forward in the chair. Kazu adjusted her slight frame so that she lay with her head on the table, almost as if she were taking a late afternoon nap. Kazu straightened, fixing his shirt and tie. He felt even weaker now, but it looked like part of his power was back.
Kazu was among the few agents within the guild who'd been recruited for reasons outside of his ability to see daemons in their spirit form. But unlike most children recruited by the Guild, Kazu's story was filled with sorrow and hardship.
At the age of 10, he was labeled a sociopath with psychotic tendencies; incapable of expressing emotion and lacking what the world would call a conscience. Afraid of who he was and who he might become, Kazu's parents abandoned him to the system shortly after his diagnosis.
After 9 years in a psychiatric facility, alone and unwanted, the Guild stumbled upon Kazu and his strange abilities during an inquiry request from the asylum's director. There'd been reports of several disturbances on the facility grounds, and when it was determined that the cause of these incidents were… supernatural, the Guild's services were requested.
At first, the ghost agents sent to investigate found nothing. It was as if whatever was hiding within the asylum's walls sensed their presence and crept back into the shadows. But, on the last day of the inquiry, right when the agents were about to pack up and leave, one of them caught sight of a peculiar exchange between a young dark haired patient and small ghost child.
Upon closer examination, the agents identified the daemon as a Phantom type. And based on the height and stature of the child, he'd died somewhere between the ages of 5 and 7. But it wasn't the discovery of the daemon that surprised the agents. It was the patient who'd been seen talking to the Phantom. That patient was Kazu.
The agents approached Kazu with caution. He had a history of erratic behavior; spurts of violence whenever he felt trapped or threatened. In fact, Kazu's doctor had given the agents strict instructions not to touch him, or let Kazu touch them. When asked why, the doctor refrained from answering, merely stating that the hospital would not be held accountable for any injuries received from one of their patients.
In truth, no one could have prepared for what happened next. And looking back, it was amazing no one had died that day…
It would take nearly a year before the range of Kazu's gift was unearthed. He was a rare breed, a human, but…not quite. He lingered somewhere between the land of the living and the realm of the death; his ability to commune with daemons so unnaturally natural that the Guild couldn't afford to leave him unsupervised.
After another year of observation, Kazu was re-evaluated by one of the Guild's psychiatrists. Determined to be rehabilitated and no longer a threat to himself or others, he was released into the Council's custody. Kazu would never forget the day he left the wretched, over-crowded hospital. It was the first time he'd ever experienced anything remotely close to the feeling of joy.
It was Nina who'd come for him. Nina who'd taken him under her wing. And as his primary guardian, it was Nina who Kazu had devoted himself to entirely. In fact, if he was capable of loving anyone, it would be Nina.
But sadly, he wasn't capable of love. And he never would be…