"Shiori, when we first met I gave you one
wish as a gift for helping my foolish daughter.
You saved her from being discovered from others in
your world when she was caught in that hunters
trap," Byakko said quietly as she continued to
look out over the lake.
Shiori didn't have to be told the story she
already knew. When she was six she had found a
pale gold fox trapped in a snare in the woods
behind her grandfather's home. Instead of telling
anyone, she had sent the fox free. That night was
the first time she had seen Byakko.
"You could have wished for candy or toys or
any of the meaningless things that comes to a
child's mind when they are told they can have
anything they desire. Instead you choose to hold
on to your wish, saying you wanted to wait until
you had something really special to wish for."
Byakko finally turned to Shiori and gave her
a sad little smile. Shiori could have sworn she
saw tears in the youko's gold eyes, but Byakko
looked back at the lake before she could be sure.
"You wished for a child, and I granted that
wish."
Shiori felt the tears prickling behind her
eyes as she remembered the bitter desperation that
had taken her to the fox shrine. Shiori had five
children wither and die in her womb before she
remembered the wish the white youko had given to
her. She remembered crying at the temple steps
and the gentle mist that had surrounded her before
Byakko had shown herself.
Shiori had begged and pleaded with the fox
spirit to give her a child. Byakko had only asked
her once if she was sure that was what she wanted.
Shiori had grabbed the hem of the youko's long
robe and declared that she would do anything to
have a child. Byakko had smiled and said that her
wish would be granted and had disappeared.
Byakko slid off the rock she was sitting on
to stand in front of Shiori. The youko took
Shiori's hand and locked her golden gaze with the
human's.
"Wishes come with a price, and wishes granted
by foxes never come without a trick," Byakko told
her as she ran her fingers over the scars Shiori
had gotten when she had saved Shuuichi.
"If your talking about this," Shiori said,
indicating the scars, "I would do it again in a
second."
Byakko smiled and released Shiori's hand. "I
know. That's why I choose you."
Shiori gave her a puzzled frown that Byakko
dismissed with a wave of her hand. "I'm getting
ahead of myself. First I must tell you the trick
I played on you."
Byakko swept her hand over the lake and the
water rippled. As the waves stilled an image
formed on the surface. A male silver youko stood
there holding a blood soaked whip made from a
thorned vine. His light amber eyes were cruel and
cold as he glared at the dying demon at his feet.
The youkai reached his hand up toward the youko
and the fox spirit just kicked it's head from it's
shoulders with a humorless laugh.
"This is your son. In this form he is know
as Kurama," Byakko told her quietly.
Shiori hugged her stomach and stumbled
backwards until she felt the boulder behind her.
She sat heavily on the stone and stared at the
image in the lake. Kurama was rummaging through
the youkai's clothing looking for something.
Finally he found a bracelet around the demon's
wrist. He didn't bother to unfasten it, just
ripped it off the dead body. Shiori gaped with
horror and disgust as she watched Kurama lick the
blood from his fingers and the bracelet before
putting it in his pocket.
"This can't be Shuuichi," Shiori cried with
horror. "This can't be my Shuuichi. He is a kind
and gentle boy, not this cruel, heartless thing!"
"Kurama and Shuuichi are one and the same
person, Shiori. The soul that lives in your
little boy is that of Kurama. You wished for a
child and I gave you one."
Shiori shook her head in denial of the words
Byakko spoke. There was nothing about the silver
youko that reminded her of her beloved son.
Shuuichi would never hurt a soul if he could help
it, he was always kind and considerate, he was
gentle and loving, he was the perfect son. Too
good to be true, she realized.
"NO!" Shiori wailed as she picked up a stone
from the ground and hurled it at the lake.
The rock slipped quietly beneath the water
without a splash, the image undisturbed. Shiori
threw stone after stone into the lake. Small
pebbles and sand jammed under her nails making
them bleed as she dug in the ground for another
weapon to launch.
Byakko knelt down behind Shiori and grabbed
her wrists before Shiori could throw another rock.
Byakko applied pressure to the human's joints
until Shiori was forced to drop the stone in her
hand.
"Leave me alone!" Shiori screamed as she
tried to break Byakko's hold. "Don't touch me!
Don't ever touch me!"
Byakko turned Shiori around and made that
woman lay her head against her shoulder. The
human struggled, leaving bloody finger prints on
the front of Byakko's white robe and grass stains
on her own dress, but soon Shiori broke down into
huge sobs.
"Why did you show me this? Why did you do
this to me? Why couldn't you have left me alone?"
Shiori cried into Byakko's shoulder.
"I would have, Shiori." Byakko told her as
she slowly stroked the sobbing woman's back. "I
would have let you live your short life never
knowing Shuuichi's secret, but Inari wouldn't
allow it."
"What do you mean?" Shiori asked pulling away
from Byakko.
"Just like the stars must go out when the sun
rises, the wishes a fox grants must have a trick
behind them. The trick I played on you was that
your son isn't completely human. Inari said that
it wasn't a true trick until you knew about it, so
he made me tell you."
"You mean Inari, as in the god?" Shiori
gasped.
Byakko chuckled and grinned. "Do you know
another Inari?" she asked with a wink.
"He wanted you to tell me about 'that'?"
Shiori asked with a shudder as she pointed at the
lake.
Byakko frowned and looked deeply into
Shiori's eyes.
"There's something else I want to show you
about your son," she said as she pulled Shiori to
stand beside her.
" 'That'... is *not* my son," Shiori
proclaimed as she tried to keep from being lead to
the lake. "He never was my son."
Byakko dragged Shiori along with her and made
the human sit on the boulder she had been sitting
on earlier. The white youko knelt on the ground
beside Shiori and took the angry woman's chin in
her hand and made her look at the lake.
"Are you sure about that, Shiori?" Byakko
asked as she placed her slender fingers in the
water, making it ripple and change reflections.
========
end part two
wish as a gift for helping my foolish daughter.
You saved her from being discovered from others in
your world when she was caught in that hunters
trap," Byakko said quietly as she continued to
look out over the lake.
Shiori didn't have to be told the story she
already knew. When she was six she had found a
pale gold fox trapped in a snare in the woods
behind her grandfather's home. Instead of telling
anyone, she had sent the fox free. That night was
the first time she had seen Byakko.
"You could have wished for candy or toys or
any of the meaningless things that comes to a
child's mind when they are told they can have
anything they desire. Instead you choose to hold
on to your wish, saying you wanted to wait until
you had something really special to wish for."
Byakko finally turned to Shiori and gave her
a sad little smile. Shiori could have sworn she
saw tears in the youko's gold eyes, but Byakko
looked back at the lake before she could be sure.
"You wished for a child, and I granted that
wish."
Shiori felt the tears prickling behind her
eyes as she remembered the bitter desperation that
had taken her to the fox shrine. Shiori had five
children wither and die in her womb before she
remembered the wish the white youko had given to
her. She remembered crying at the temple steps
and the gentle mist that had surrounded her before
Byakko had shown herself.
Shiori had begged and pleaded with the fox
spirit to give her a child. Byakko had only asked
her once if she was sure that was what she wanted.
Shiori had grabbed the hem of the youko's long
robe and declared that she would do anything to
have a child. Byakko had smiled and said that her
wish would be granted and had disappeared.
Byakko slid off the rock she was sitting on
to stand in front of Shiori. The youko took
Shiori's hand and locked her golden gaze with the
human's.
"Wishes come with a price, and wishes granted
by foxes never come without a trick," Byakko told
her as she ran her fingers over the scars Shiori
had gotten when she had saved Shuuichi.
"If your talking about this," Shiori said,
indicating the scars, "I would do it again in a
second."
Byakko smiled and released Shiori's hand. "I
know. That's why I choose you."
Shiori gave her a puzzled frown that Byakko
dismissed with a wave of her hand. "I'm getting
ahead of myself. First I must tell you the trick
I played on you."
Byakko swept her hand over the lake and the
water rippled. As the waves stilled an image
formed on the surface. A male silver youko stood
there holding a blood soaked whip made from a
thorned vine. His light amber eyes were cruel and
cold as he glared at the dying demon at his feet.
The youkai reached his hand up toward the youko
and the fox spirit just kicked it's head from it's
shoulders with a humorless laugh.
"This is your son. In this form he is know
as Kurama," Byakko told her quietly.
Shiori hugged her stomach and stumbled
backwards until she felt the boulder behind her.
She sat heavily on the stone and stared at the
image in the lake. Kurama was rummaging through
the youkai's clothing looking for something.
Finally he found a bracelet around the demon's
wrist. He didn't bother to unfasten it, just
ripped it off the dead body. Shiori gaped with
horror and disgust as she watched Kurama lick the
blood from his fingers and the bracelet before
putting it in his pocket.
"This can't be Shuuichi," Shiori cried with
horror. "This can't be my Shuuichi. He is a kind
and gentle boy, not this cruel, heartless thing!"
"Kurama and Shuuichi are one and the same
person, Shiori. The soul that lives in your
little boy is that of Kurama. You wished for a
child and I gave you one."
Shiori shook her head in denial of the words
Byakko spoke. There was nothing about the silver
youko that reminded her of her beloved son.
Shuuichi would never hurt a soul if he could help
it, he was always kind and considerate, he was
gentle and loving, he was the perfect son. Too
good to be true, she realized.
"NO!" Shiori wailed as she picked up a stone
from the ground and hurled it at the lake.
The rock slipped quietly beneath the water
without a splash, the image undisturbed. Shiori
threw stone after stone into the lake. Small
pebbles and sand jammed under her nails making
them bleed as she dug in the ground for another
weapon to launch.
Byakko knelt down behind Shiori and grabbed
her wrists before Shiori could throw another rock.
Byakko applied pressure to the human's joints
until Shiori was forced to drop the stone in her
hand.
"Leave me alone!" Shiori screamed as she
tried to break Byakko's hold. "Don't touch me!
Don't ever touch me!"
Byakko turned Shiori around and made that
woman lay her head against her shoulder. The
human struggled, leaving bloody finger prints on
the front of Byakko's white robe and grass stains
on her own dress, but soon Shiori broke down into
huge sobs.
"Why did you show me this? Why did you do
this to me? Why couldn't you have left me alone?"
Shiori cried into Byakko's shoulder.
"I would have, Shiori." Byakko told her as
she slowly stroked the sobbing woman's back. "I
would have let you live your short life never
knowing Shuuichi's secret, but Inari wouldn't
allow it."
"What do you mean?" Shiori asked pulling away
from Byakko.
"Just like the stars must go out when the sun
rises, the wishes a fox grants must have a trick
behind them. The trick I played on you was that
your son isn't completely human. Inari said that
it wasn't a true trick until you knew about it, so
he made me tell you."
"You mean Inari, as in the god?" Shiori
gasped.
Byakko chuckled and grinned. "Do you know
another Inari?" she asked with a wink.
"He wanted you to tell me about 'that'?"
Shiori asked with a shudder as she pointed at the
lake.
Byakko frowned and looked deeply into
Shiori's eyes.
"There's something else I want to show you
about your son," she said as she pulled Shiori to
stand beside her.
" 'That'... is *not* my son," Shiori
proclaimed as she tried to keep from being lead to
the lake. "He never was my son."
Byakko dragged Shiori along with her and made
the human sit on the boulder she had been sitting
on earlier. The white youko knelt on the ground
beside Shiori and took the angry woman's chin in
her hand and made her look at the lake.
"Are you sure about that, Shiori?" Byakko
asked as she placed her slender fingers in the
water, making it ripple and change reflections.
========
end part two