A/N: Hiya~! Merry- ...holiday season. If you're not a Christmas person.

Okay, so maybe I lied like a filthy liar and I just might've failed all my finals this week because I was writing fanfiction. Aren't you proud of me?

I feel like I'm going excruciatingly slowly, which doesn't even make sense considering that I know stuff is happening. I just. This is more plotty than anything I've done before, though with less feels (so far). Maybe it's because I haven't reached the interesting bits yet.

GUYS GUYS I HAVE MY FIRST REVIEWER! 8D WinterBreezeDragon010, thanks muchly! It's great to hear you're still enjoying this!


It takes him a long, long time before Natsume comes back to himself enough to blink his eyes open, and even longer to process that he's face-down on the ground, fallen like a puppet with its strings cut. He's lucky his head was tilted to the side enough to keep from getting a mouthful of dirt, because he can't quite remember how to move, thinks he might puke or pass out properly if he tries. Even conscious breathing is a bit beyond him.

His ears are ringing, his body tingles and trembles, and his head feels sore, like a giant bruise on his brain. His pulse thuds in his neck and his temple, and he focuses on that to center himself.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

He draws in a shaky breath, lungs expanding as far as he can make them, and thinks a bit clearer for it. He's not... actually hurt. He thinks. At least, he doesn't feel like he's in any bodily pain, aside from something throbbing behind his eyes that the words 'massive headache' might just barely cover. Though there was something hard digging into his shoulder and he should maybe look into that.

So he... needs to move. Right? Right. He frowns, and with a concentrated force of effort, manages to curl his fingers. Pleased, he relaxes them, and gives himself a moment to breathe. Then, bracing himself, he pushes vaguely up, and ends up flat on his back instead.

"Ugh..." A little maneuvering, and he's almost sitting upright. Score. He's still in the clearing, so nothing's carted him off while he was out of it. Okay. The shadows look... a bit longer. Than they're supposed to. "Oh no," he breathes in dismay.

How long has he been here? Maybe an hour? More urgent now, he pushes himself to his feet, stumbling as his legs threaten to collapse beneath him. He catches himself on a tree, but a glance upward shows that it is one of the tagged trees, and he snatches his hands back—just in case. The clearing isn't humming anymore, which is a bit of a relief, but he's rather leery of upsetting anything further. He knows where the screams are coming from now, sorta (though standing in the middle of one as it goes off is very, very different from feeling it from far away), and he'd best get back to the Rakuto's before some curious ayakashi comes and finds-

"Oh? You again?"

Speak of the devil.

Acutely aware of the trembling in his limbs, he straightens and turns to see the thing emerging from the undergrowth.


Seiji stops, just beyond the rope boundary, when he spots the thing inside. It's pushing itself to its feet, back to him. He decides now is as good a time as any to make his presence known, and calls out.

He examines the youkai critically from behind his smile. The apparent-boy is dressed like any other child from the local elementary school, even toting a backpack, and he privately admits that the disguise is rather well done—had they passed each other on the street, he probably wouldn't have given it so much as a second glance.

Of course, they're not on a street, and Seiji doesn't let himself be taken in by the illusion. Twice now he's caught this "little boy" lurking near his spells, and Seiji is not a man who believes in coincidences —especially not where ayakashi are involved.

"And what might you, child," he mocks, "be doing in these woods again?"

The thing tenses, eyes a little wild, and Seiji knows the look of something about to bolt. He can't have that. A single gesture, and a shiki of his intercepts the boy and tackles it to the ground when it tries to flee. Ignoring its struggles, Seiji mildly comments, "I'm afraid you're not going anywhere until I get some answe-"

The boy manages to wrench himself enough room to solidly plant a foot in his creation's gut, and a follow-up fist to its mask. The mask loses.

They both pause for a second, taken aback and staring at the downed ayakashi in surprise.

(Useless, he'd thought when he'd discovered one of his shiki knocked out cold in the middle of the forest. Now, he amends the thought; perhaps his creations weren't too weak to be of use. Perhaps it had been simply outclassed, and alone.)

"Interesting." His smile widens. Perhaps he can use this youkai for something. Discreetly slipping a seal out of his sleeve, he motions towards the boy. "Get it." His other ayakashi slip out of the trees and converge, and the boy panics. A quick flick of his wrist and a small touch of power, and his tag neatly trips the thing up for his servants to pin down.

Before they manage it, though, something large and distinctly bird-like flows into the clearing. It weaves between his spirits like a rush of air, knocking them around like tumbleweed, and scoops up his quarry. A heartbeat later, they are gone —and Seiji can't tell which way they'd fled.

He scans the trees, scans the skies, and finds nothing. He suspects tracking them will be an effort in futility. "Find them," he orders anyway, and his shiki take off into the undergrowth.


There are talons firmly wrapped around him and the ground is a long way down. His heart is in his throat because oh kami he's flying, he's actually flying and the trees are blurring beneath him and this might be the fastest he's ever moved in his life and it's terrifying (it's amazing). He wants to laugh, wants to scream. He manages neither.

Soon (too soon) they have landed, he is set down with surprising gentleness. He finally gets a good look at his rescuer. It's some kind of bird youkai (no surprise there), and stands tall enough that he has to crane his neck back to see it properly. It's a mottled gray-brown and has, bizarrely, four legs (a pair of which are set higher on its torso and tucked close against its chest), along with a long fluttering tail and a flat, heart-shaped white face. The bird's beak is large and short, and is really less of a beak and more like two huge plates of pointy face armor around its mouth that are taking over its lower head, with a pair of giant amber eyes set above them. Those eyes are fixed unblinkingly on him, and he fidgets nervously.

"Did... did you save me?"

"Hmm."

"Well, thank you."

It makes a dismissive motion, still staring, and doesn't acknowledge the thanks. "You are the human who can See." It hoots instead, dry as bone and all rasping teeth coupled with clacking beak.

"I..." He swallows nervously and edges away a little, though from what he's seen of its' speed this isn't a youkai he can outrun. "Um. Yes. ...You know me?"

"I do. I suspected you were an exorcist, since humans who can see usually become such. But if you are, then you are a particularly helpless one." It looms, tendrils of shadow seeming to slither menacingly from its feathers, and Natsume's vision fills with amber as it leans down. "So. Are you?"

Natsume meeps. "N-no, I don't think so, I mean, I can see youkai, but I don't-I've never-uh," he tries to shut up, "...no?"

"I'd thought as much. It is good to be certain." The giant bird nods once in satisfaction, and Natsume can breathe normally again. It raises its head, unerringly seeking out the sun through the canopy. "It grows late. Human children are not to be out after-lights alone, I believe. Go home." It turns away with a little flick of its wing, feathers trailing gracefully, and Natsume knows a dismissal when he hears one. He meekly nods his acquiescence, a little relieved, and takes a good look at his surroundings.

...He has no idea where he is.

"Ah." The bird pauses at the involuntary noise of distress, and its' head swivels almost all the way around to look at him. Natsume hesitates, but it had already helped him once, so... "Um, can you tell me where we are?"

"You... do not know where we are." A flash of displeasure crosses the youkai's face. Natsume cringes a little, but nods at the not-question. "...And human children cannot fly." It heaves a put-upon sigh. Natsume hangs his head contritely.

"Follow me." It turns in a new direction and glides through the forest, disturbing not a single leaf in its passing. Natsume scrambles to keep up, and feels incredibly loud and clumsy in comparison.

They walk in relative silence. Natsume loses sight of the bird a few times —its' feathers are a rather drab color, and its' stillness complete enough to pass for a tree trunk or a shadow— but the youkai waits for him to catch up patiently. They reach the road, and Natsume quietly informs it that he can find his own way from here, but the youkai keeps walking with him anyways.

Out of the woods, it looks a little less forboding, more pedestrian—like any other large youkai he might've spotted on the way to school.

"Hey. What's your name?"

It gives him an odd look; like he's surprised it somehow. It hums thoughtfully. "The others call me Shadow, but I have no attachment to the name. You may call me what you wish."

Shadow? That Shadow? Natsume blanches a little, but reminds himself that this youkai had still saved him and he should be grateful. It helps, but not by much. Although...

He manages to say, around the tightness in his chest, "Then, can I call you Fukuro-san?"

"I have no objections."

"Um, Fukuro-san... Why did you help me?"

It rolls an eye down to look at him, observing him coolly. "You were not defending yourself—you are not a exorcist. I had no reason not to. And, I... have a question foryou." It swivels its head towards him and eyes him keenly. "I have been watching you for some time, but still I do not see. Why are you always alone? You do not appear dangerous or powerful in the ways humans fear, nor do you act in ways that I believe humans disapprove of in others."

Natsume blinks. "Wait, you're what's been watching me?" He stumbles for a second, nearly tripping, and the youkai casually catches him with a foot. It looks considering as it digests his words.

"So you could tell. I had wondered. You must See better than most." It tosses its head once, as if flicking the thought away. "Irrelevant. You have not answered my question."

"I... don't know. Why, I mean."

"You are lying." It rasps, eyes darkening dangerously. "I do not enjoy being lied to, human. If you do not wish to answer, then say you do not wish to answer."

"S-sorry. It's not that I don't want to say, I just... don't really know how." Natsume scuffs a shoe against the ground, looking down. He mutters, "People think I'm creepy. I'm not normal, so they don't like me."

"Because you can See?" Fukuro scoffs. "Humans. I don't understand them. At least ayakashi have the sense to respect talent and power for what it is." Noting that Natusme looks rather surprised, it adds severely, "Humans are fools. This should not be news. ...But then, I suppose you are human too. Such a waste of power, you are."

"Oh." Natsume shrinks into himself a bit. But there are humans who are kind, too, he wants to say. He doesn't.

"...Though," it tacks on slowly, as though talking to itself. It slants Natsume an unreadable look. "I suppose you could be worse." It makes a derisive motion. "At the very least, you don't go about arrogantly abusing it. The exorcists would love someone like youand likely stab you in the back once it suited them. They do covet their power so..."

Natsume perks up a bit. "You said that before. Do you mean there are really exorcists? Other people who can see youkai too?" He asks, and perhaps he sounds a little too eager because Fukuro gives him the stink-eye. It stares Natsume down for a long moment, before making a rude sort of noise and looking ahead.

"There have always been exorcists—more in the past than now. Meddlesome, dangerous pests. Hurting ayakashi and driving us from our homes and so, so greedy." It rustles its feathers crossly. "Some can See. Some are too weak to manage even that, and still they are arrogant and shameless enough to hunt us down and order us about and seal us. Disgusting creatures, exorcists. Things would be better without them."

Natsume's expression dims as the bird goes on. "Oh," he says, and stops because they have reached the street he's staying on. He doesn't pause to consider his next words before he blurts out, "Wait, but don't you hurt other youkai too?"

"Don't compare me to them," it snaps waspishly. "Feeding and greed are different. I do not hunt because I want to, but because I need to, if I am to exist. Normally I do not take more than the prey can give, but hunting has been scarce this cycle. Something is interfering, so catching youkai has become... difficult. And hunting humans is just asking to bring the exorcists down on your head, even if none of them die." Fukuro makes a disparaging noise in the back of its throat. "I suppose humans are such weaklings that they have learned they must respond swiftly to threats to survive. Though I might have to chance it regardless, if this goes on."

"You eat people?!"

"In a manner of speaking." It gives him an assessing look, and Natsume feels a pit drop in his stomach. "All sufficiently powerful ayakashi are capable of it. You'd probably be tasty, with power as you have."

"Ah. R-right." The apartment building was right there, if he could get inside the bird was probably too big to follow. He edges away, trying to be discrete about it. "Well, thank you again for sav-" the words end in a shriek. Natsume darts away as Fukuro lands where he'd been standing, and takes off down the street. He doesn't make it far before something crashes into him, stealing the breath from his lungs and knocking him down. He finds himself looking up at the youkai's perfectly composed face.

"Hmm..." It rumbles, head tipped to one side as if considering how best to savor this, and Natsume feels sick. He twists desperately, but his limbs are pinned and there is a claw wrapped around his throat. His fear spikes, mounting higher and higher as the thing leans closer, slowly, slowly...

And suddenly it drains away. Natsume blinks in surprise for a moment, struggles ceasing because he's... not... afraid. Fukuro hoots out quiet, harsh laughs as it steps backwards and allows Natsume to climb to his feet, which Natsume does cautiously, a little shaky.

"What...?" He coughs, and manages to dredge up something like indignation. "What was that?!"

The laughter dwindles to the occasional chuckle. The bird looks... a bit bigger, now that Natsume thinks about it. "That... is how I feed." It gives Natsume an amused look."I'd forgotten how pure emotion tastes. You humans have the most amusing reactions."

"So you just wanted me to be scared?" He doesn't quite reach exasperation, adrenaline still clogging his thoughts, but he makes a good show of it. "You could have justasked!"

"Are you saying you would have agreed if I did?"

"...maybe. If you asked nicely and told me, I don't think I'd have said no."

"You... are telling the truth." For a moment Fukuro looks absolutely stunned, before something satisfied and almost warm crosses its features. It warbles a soft laugh. "Most certainly not an exorcist. I think I like you, child." Shaking the expression away, it continues, "But if I'd told you, it would not have worked as well. And I took the fear with me, did I not?" It gently nudges him towards the apartment with a wing. "Go rest. We shall meet again."

Natsume watches as it turns with a dramatic little sweep of its wing and flies away, before turning back to his building. Feeling rather subdued, he makes his way up to his floor, and lets himself in with the spare key he was given. He dumps his bag and shoes in the entryway and collapses lengthwise on the couch.

He doesn't want to move. He's feeling oddly apathetic, actually, now that his blood is no longer singing in his veins. Maybe he's just tired; today has been a lot of everything, after all. He sighs, throwing an arm over his eyes and, while he doesn't quite fall asleep, he rests. Just for a bit.

(Back in the clearing, Seiji distractedly notes the return of each of his shiki, all empty-handed, as he examines a fallen ofuda. His eyes narrow in thought—and interest. Someone's interfering. This merited investigation.)

He is filthy, Natsume suddenly realizes half an hour later, and he scrambles to shower the dirt out of his hair and scrub to worst of the it from his clothes. He's just barely finished fumbling through his homework when he hears Aunt Arisa come home, and gets up to greet her.

Natsume has all but fallen asleep when he abruptly realizes—he doesn't feel eyes on him anymore. ...He's not sure how he feels about that.


A/N: That headache stuff in the beginning? Mostly just sensory overload, guys. Spiritual energy (youki?) is not something chibi!Natsume is used to; even canon!Natsume has the occasional bit of trouble with it. (I'm talking specifically about Volume 13, in the Matoba Branch House when Natsume feels sick at the overpowering presence of so many powerful people and shiki, though I'm sure there are more instances.)

ARGH PEOPLE DO NOT HAVE CONVERSATIONS LIKE THESE IN REAL LIFE HOW DO I EVEN SWING THIS SO CRAZY AWKWARD *cries tears of pure frustration* Natsume stop trying to be polite to it that's not what I want you to say there how do you even do polite in Japan *deep breath* *exhale* ...Okay. I'm okay.

I feel like pointing and going "HEY LOOK U GUYS THINGS R HAPPENING 8D". The focus of this fic is supposed to be Natsume and Matoba, though. Stop being so antisocial, both of you! Gahhh I need to lock these two in a room until they play nice. *Makes wringing-someone's-neck motion* And maybe confiscate Seiji's fancy toys while I'm at it.

I might be wrong, but I'm pretty sure "shiki" is Japanese for "servant" or some equivalent. I'm using it specifically to refer to ayakashi; there are no human shiki as far as I'm concerned. And "Fukuro" basically means owl, to the best of my knowledge. Yes, Fukuro is basically a ginormous barn owl with a bit more gray than usual, and a lower-face-mask that thinks it's a beak. And a Phoenix-type tail. And glowy amber eyes instead of solid black, just because. (Natsume names a lucky cat what basically amounts to "Teacher Meow" in canon. Do not judge me.)

***TO MY OLD READERS (if any of you are out there): Yeah, no, Fukuro's still there. Just, kinda, repurposed.

Next time: The spirits have an encore, and end their turn. Your move, Matoba.