This is a Nobunaga/No centric fic. A smut warning was inevitable.

Chapter 6

Four years earlier

If she peered outside the window in the handmaidens' quarters, No could look down on the portion of the graveyard that wrapped around the castle. From her old room, which she had still not dared to step inside since returning, she hadn't been able to view it at all. How strange it felt, even after two months, to be back in the home that she remembered, only to continue realizing there was so much of it that Hideko's daughter had never truly seen.

The black fabric of her cloak felt heavy on her shoulders, and No restlessly drummed her fingers along the window ledge as she waited for the three girls who were now her constant companions to finish donning their disguises. It was the first time since they had all been paired together that they weren't matching, No realized.

Chigusa was the only one of them who had disguised herself as a spirit rather than a Pokemon, in a simple white kimono. The sash was the giveaway as to which folktale she had called upon - for the past several nights, No had watched Chigusa sew a repeating pattern of nine red circles, then one missing in white, into its deep blue fabric. She had even loosely braided her russet hair with small blue beads to achieve the illusion of dripping water. It was well-crafted, and No supposed it made sense given that Chigusa hailed from the city quarter the story was said to have occurred in.

No looked out the window again with impatience, only for a light gasp to leave her mouth as she saw the thick fog that had fallen over the graveyard. The night sky was clear, and as the gleam of the half moon reached the land below, the fog reacted to its touch. With bated breath, No watched as white tendrils began to rise from the dark earth, swaying on the night breeze like ghostly willow fronds. That was exactly what they were, No realized as one curled upwards into the armored figure of a man - ghosts.

It was the first time that she was able to see them. No leaned in closer, watching in awe as one spirit after another ascended from the graveyard. Some wore armor like the first, others ceremonial funeral garments, and others still in clothing that wouldn't have been out of place in Spectra's city. None of these seemed like entities that wished to do the living harm, despite what certain narratives around the Festival of Ghosts tended to lean towards. There was something otherwordly about them, to be sure - but No felt an inexplicable certainty in her chest that there was no reason to fear them.

"Whoa, careful, Kicho!" A hand grabbed onto her shoulder, and No tensed up on instinct before hearing Miyuri's laugh in her ears. "I know you want to get out into the city, but maybe don't fall out the window?" The dark-haired girl smiled through the green paint around her eyes when No turned around.

Gesturing towards the graveyard, No said, "Look out there! It's the ghosts!"

This reaction was the odd one out. Chigusa visibly blanched, and from where Tsubaki stood by the mirror in her pink explosion of a disguise, she nervously chuckled. "Don't even start that, Kicho! Some of us want to have fun tonight, not be scared for our lives."

Frowning, No clutched onto Miyuri's wrist and pulled her towards the window. "Can't you see them?" No asked, pointing to the procession of spirits that was vanishing through the castle gates and out into the city. This festival was meant for them after all, wasn't it? It couldn't be that No was the only person who they were visible to.

Miyuri's exaggerated mannerisms as she leaned out the window made it clear that she was only humoring No, but then No saw her blink in surprise, the dark-haired girl's breath seeming to catch in her throat. For a moment, No's heart leaped as Miyuri's mouth opened then closed again, as though she was trying to make sense of the dozens of specters that she could suddenly also see, because of course somebody else was able to...

Then she stood back, giving a high-pitched laugh that sounded too thin to No's ears. "Okay, Kicho, funny joke. But it's just a bunch of fog."

Hearing the conviction in her voice, No realized that Miyuri had already managed to convince herself that was the truth, regardless of what she had just seen. Perhaps the stories that practically every child of Spectra could recite from memory, the trust that was instilled into them since birth that their home was called the kingdom of ghosts for a reason, still wasn't enough when one simply didn't want to believe what was in front of their eyes.

Resisting the urge to look back over her shoulder for herself to make sure that the ghosts were still there, No dismissively waved her hand in the air. "Alright, I was joking. The stories we'll hear in the city will be a lot better than that, anyways."

"You all really take the Festival of Ghosts to a whole other level in Spectra, don't you?" Tsubaki asked as they exited the castle. She was the only one among them who hailed from an outside kingdom, although No couldn't match the faint traces of a dialect that the pink-haired girl's voice occasionally betrayed to anything she had heard in Nixtorm.

"Well, it comes from here," No said as they passed beneath the dark wood of the castle gates. Just as she remembered, the way into the city was lit by deep purple lanterns that had been set up along the path. "It only feels right that Spectra's should be the largest celebration."

The Festival of Ghosts was honored all across Ransei now, and No had partaken in Nixtorm's version every year. It was that first night returning to Spectra's though, that she had finally felt home for the first time that she could recall in a long while.

It had also been No's first reminder that her awareness of the veil between the human and spirit worlds was one possessed by precious few others. What she could do was not something many else would understood, and the abilities of the matriarchs were not ones to be shared.


Yet No's abilities were on full display now, for all of Spectra to see. The stage was hers as she conducted the spirits who had answered her call, allowing the magic that was rising from her palms to thicken into an opaque purple haze. It swirled around her feet, the silhouettes of the former matriarchs continuing to rise around her as she raised her head to stare Fuyuka down.

Her aunt was leaning forward on the throne now, her blue-lacquered fingernails that No had painted just hours earlier pressing into its arms. The October wind continued to blow around them both, sending stray locks of Fuyuka's dark hair loose from where they had been woven into her golden headdress. "Well," she whispered, no amount of softness in her voice able to conceal her fury. "Isn't this a development?"

No refused to look back at the crowd, fully aware that her tattoo was on display to them as she heard the murmurs begin to spring up. It was common knowledge that wisterias were the symbol of Spectra's matriarchs, and No had just displayed far too much magic for the choice of flowers inked into her back to be coincidence. How strange it had been over the years, to hear herself being spoken of in hushed tones as Spectra's lost daughter. Few had truly thought that No would grow up with the desire to trade the safety of Nixtorm's glaciers for a kingdom of ghosts.

She matched Fuyuka's glare without flinching. Slowly, No let her next words leave her mouth one by one, making certain that the crowd clustered around the stage could hear them. "Hideko sends her regards." Without even having to turn, No could feel her mother's presence behind her, two ghosts from Fuyuka's past back to haunt the warlord who should never have been.

Fuyuka drew in a small breath as she looked upon the face of the sister who she had killed a decade earlier. Then her eyes shifted back to No, and she grimaced. "I had my suspicions for two years. Did you think yourself clever, hiding as my servant? I heard the stories tying you to those two men, what you did to them. It was only a matter of time before you couldn't restrain yourself again." She stood from the throne, her shadow cast across No's face. "You should have stayed in Nixtorm, my dear niece."

Before No could respond, Fuyuka unsheathed a dagger from beneath one of her sleeves, clenching her fist around the blade and letting the metal slice into her palm. No felt her mother's spectral hand clench protectively into her shoulder. "No, summon Misdreavus," Hideko breathed in warning.

It was easy now to feel her wavelength with Misdreavus flare into life, and one advantage of her partner being a Ghost Pokemon was that it could almost always be at No's side within an instant. But No couldn't properly welcome its company as she watched her aunt's blood drip onto the throne, and heard an unearthly groaning in response. A dark red vein of magic crept down the platform that held Fuyuka's throne, and as No watched in shock, it latched onto the nearest matriarch's spirit. The ethereal woman cried out in pain as the magic sunk into her, before her veins began to glow the color of dried blood beneath her pale skin.

Her body maintained its spectral form, but the violet of her eyes faded to a blank, pupil-less white. Fuyuka pressed her injured hand flat against the throne, forcing more blood out of the wound. The same dark red aura began to radiate from the affected matriarch, catching a second in its grasp. Then a third. No watched in horror as both of the women she had summoned underwent the same transformation, their cries of pain abruptly cut short by that eerie whiteout of their eyes.

"What is she doing?" No asked, tearing her gaze away from the three ghosts to make sure that Hideko and Misdreavus were safe.

Hideko's eyes were wide as she answered, "She's using blood magic. She can't call upon the matriarchs on her own, but since you brought them forth... she's using her own blood to take control of them by force. I didn't think -" Hideko shook her head. "All daughters of Spectra possess spirit magic. But hers was never this strong before."

A scream rose from the crowd as the matriarchs under Fuyuka's control turned towards the edges of the stage, their pale arms moving like marionettes on strings. Fuyuka raised her injured hand, the sleeve of her dress falling around her elbow and allowing the red rivulets of blood to run down her arm. As she did so, No noticed a strange bracelet hanging from her aunt's wrist that hadn't been there earlier in the night.

"Haven't you heard, sister?" Fuyuka asked, with a sickeningly false earnestness. "Things in Spectra have changed since I took your place." She swept her other arm out, eyes narrowing. "Guards! Subdue this woman!"

The possessed matriarchs turned to face No in sync, and there was more panic in the crowd as several armed men and women began to advance towards the stage. No saw Tsubaki push a protesting Miyuri back towards safety, Tsubaki's eyes a mixture of confusion and hurt as she looked over her shoulder at No. Chigusa was already standing further away, struggling to keep her face composed. And despite the masses of people retreating from the edge of the stage, Nobunaga remained staring at No for another several moments before an advancing guard nearly collided with him. No lost sight of the Dragon warrior as Hideko's voice filled her ears again.

"You still have most of us at your command. Follow what I tell you." Before No could ask her mother's spirit what she was supposed to do, she felt a strange vibration down her wavelength with Misdreavus. "I know it feels strange, but don't fight it," Hideko encouraged her. No's vision blurred for a moment as the second ripple pulsed through her body, and she feared that she was about to be at the mercy of Fuyuka's guards and wraiths. Then she opened her eyes, staring at - herself?

She was inhabiting a split consciousness, part of No still in control of her own body, but the other part now having access to Hideko's spirit. The sensation was disorienting, to put it mildly. The magic, though...

No didn't have time to test the full extent of her control over Hideko's spirit, but as the first of the guards reached the stage, No found that it was now much easier to conduct the matriarchs she had summoned. It was as though Hideko had given her access to some sort of hive mind connecting them.

Two of the ghostly women closed in around the guard at No's orders, and he began to frantically swing his katana at them with little success. Hoping that she could keep the rest just as preoccupied, No sent the remaining four matriarchs who hadn't been transformed by Fuyuka after the guards moving through the dissipating crowd.

Fuyuka looked between the trance-like veil that had fallen over No's eyes and how Hideko's outline seemed to be brighter than it had been moments before, her dark red lips twisting into a scowl. Wordlessly, she pointed with her uninjured hand at No, and the three wraiths began to close in. No struggled to re-balance the scales her consciousness seemed to rest upon, trying to shift more weight back to her own body. There was just enough of a connection to tap back into her wavelength with Misdreavus, and No's partner rushed to her protection.

The Ghost Pokemon was dwarfed in size by the first wraith that attacked. Nonetheless, it launched a Psybeam that scrambled the wraith's senses long enough for No to feel Hideko pushing back against her slightly.

Allowing her mother to guide her more precisely, No raised both her hands and Hideko's. The semi-possession she was sharing with her mother still didn't feel totally natural, but No was beginning to gain a more balanced perception of the way she assumed it worked - now, it was as though one of her eyes was Hideko's and the other her own.

Ordering Misdreavus to draw back, No looked down at the purple magic rising from her fingertips. "Ghosts work the same way that Ghost Pokemon do," she reminded herself. "The easiest way to hurt them is by giving them a taste of their own power."

The wraith had recovered from the disorientation of Misdreavus' attack, and swiped at No just as she thought this. No barely managed to throw herself backwards in time, noting with horror that Fuyuka's hold over the wraiths had done more than just alter their appearances. It was almost like the matriarchs were growing more animalistic. The one that was currently on the attack sliced its fingernails through the air like talons, while the other two were slowly closing in at the edges of No's vision.

"I'll keep them busy," Hideko assured her. "Let me go and focus on that one."

Relinquishing the possession was gratefully much less stressful on No's wavelength. She stumbled as she was thrown fully back into her own body, though, throwing out a hand for protection more on instinct than any planned strategy. A thin, translucent barrier of violet magic unfolded between her and the wraith, and while the spirit's nails shredded through it quickly, it provided No the crucial time to regain her footing.

Her mind raced back through the year's worth of lessons that she had received from Eika before No and the older woman had fallen out. How differently did hand-to-hand combat work when it was against a ghost? No had to hope not too much as the wraith rushed her once more.

No ducked to the right, passing beneath the wraith's arms and forcing the palm of her magic-enshrouded hand into the point just below its chest. The wraith let out a shriek as No's hand made contact, although No couldn't tell if she had injured it or only made it more vengeful.

A flash of black hair registered in No's peripheral vision from where Hideko had been standing, and a chorus of inhuman snarls and howls erupted behind No. She didn't dare look over her shoulder, but she hoped that her mother's spirit was strong enough to fight two of her own predecessors. Some matriarchs carried more magic than others, but while Hideko's had been nothing to scoff at, the odds were still one against two - bringing No back to her own fight.

The wraith was trying to back her off the stage, No realized as it renewed its advance on her. Had Fuyuka's magic left it with some semblance of free will, or was it now being entirely controlled by No's aunt? No suspected the latter. She eyed the platform that Fuyuka stood rigid upon, her aunt more focused on Hideko's fight than No's. The only thing protecting Fuyuka was her height advantage; she was wide open other than that. If No could only find a way...

Deciding to take a risk, No lunged forward, moving to pass beneath the wraith's reach once more. Taking advantage of her disguise's long sleeves, she flicked her wrist and sent the fabric upwards, sacrificing the silk to the wraith's talons for the barrier that it provided. Of course, No only had one other sleeve she could pull that trick with, but at least she now had the majority of the stage at her disposal again. She wondered if she could find a way to conceal her own weapons like that...

From the sounds of fighting that were reaching her ears, No hoped Hideko was still holding out. "Misdreavus, keep it distracted for as long as you can," she ordered her partner. The Ghost Pokemon briefly phased into the shadows, then reappeared directly in front of the wraith's face. It gave an annoyed hiss as it swiped at Misdreavus, and the fact that Fuyuka's twisted magic had reduced a matriarch of Spectra to the feral thing that was attacking her now filled No with fury.

Weaving around the wraith's side as it became preoccupied with the nuisance that Misdreavus was making of itself, No's steps were almost an imitation of her earlier dance. She met eyes with Misdreavus, nodded, and kicked out at the wraith's legs just as her partner vanished to rejoin No's side. The wraith, having already thrown itself forward in an attempt to grab the Ghost Pokemon, tilted wildly to the side. Its blank eyes met No's for a moment, and No saw the path to finishing it laid out before her.

She used the momentary break to plant herself in preparation for the burst of magic, then thrust both of her hands outwards, the bursts of violet magic that shot from them seeming to pierce right through the wraith's chest. It froze mid-fall as it was cocooned by No's magic. Red light dueled purple as both seeped up through the spirit's skin, No's magic fighting to expel that of Fuyuka's from the dead matriarch.

The spirit seized up for a moment, and No feared that she had somehow caused more damage. Then a fragmented shadow was thrown outwards from the spirit's body, and when her shape took on a clear form again, No felt a jolt of triumph as she saw that she had returned the matriarch to normal. She locked eyes with her predecessor, offering the matriarch a nod of respect. "I'm sorry for bringing you into this."

The dead matriarch returned the gesture, seemingly satisfied. She looked to where the other of her kind who No had summoned were still engaged in fighting the castle guards, moving to join them without No having to give the order.

No turned towards where Hideko was fighting the remaining two wraiths in a grotesque blur of dark hair and white fabric. It couldn't quite conceal the jagged fingernails that the wraiths were using to swipe at Hideko's face, nor the glint of what looked like fangs now extending from Hideko's mouth. But it wasn't No's imagination - the wraiths' behavior was growing less and less human by the instant, and Hideko wouldn't be able to keep up with them for much longer without losing control of herself.

As No moved to help her mother, Fuyuka seemed to sense that she had lost control of one of the matriarchs. Her eyes moved back to No as she raced across the stage. "I don't think so," Fuyuka snarled.

One of the wraiths that had been attacking Hideko swiveled its neck towards No with an audible crack. Before No could react, it dropped onto all fours, scuttling across the stage towards her like some hellish insect. No jumped back out of revulsion, her eyes trying to track the pattern of its movements.

She brought her hands back, prepared to hit the wraith with the same magic that had healed the other matriarch - only to find the magic that came from them much weaker than before. In fact, it was barely even a sputter.

An unexpected throbbing burst in No's head as she tried to reach for magic that she realized wasn't there. Her world slowed to a halt as the wraith brought itself upwards in front of her. No was powerful, but her magic was not unlimited. She had hit her body's final reserves, and there wasn't nearly enough of it left for her to force Fuyuka out of one more matriarch, let alone two.

A shaky gasp tore from No's chest, and she had to throw herself to the floor of the stage to avoid a slash from the wraith that would have torn her throat open. She hit the dark wood harder than intended, and stars swam before her eyes as she tried to right herself. Even with Misdreavus, how was No supposed to fight against spirits without her own magic?

The most that she could call up now was the same thin barrier as before, holding her hand out in front of her face as the wraith's teeth snapped at the magic. From where Hideko was fighting the final wraith, No's mother threw the spirit off of herself with an angry cry, sending it sliding across the stage. Taking in the sight of her daughter's faltering shield, Hideko realized what had happened. "Retreat, No!" she shouted. "You need to recharge!"

"What?" Retreat? That had been how Hideko had lost Spectra ten years earlier. What was No supposed to do, run back to Nixtorm because she'd made one foolish mistake? That could not, would not be an option.

But the reality of her situation crashed down around No as her ability to sustain the barrier failed, and the fingernails of the wraith hooked into her skirt as No tried to roll to the side. No fought to pull away, finding relief only in the fact that her wavelength with Misdreavus seemed to operate separately from her spirit magic.

Misdreavus charged the wraith from behind, and No used the distraction of her partner's attack to tear at the damaged fabric of her skirt, freeing herself from the wraith's grip. "If I had known that I would be in a brawl before the night was out, I would have worn something with less to grab onto," she thought with some annoyance. She had worked hard on this disguise, too.

"Get ready to run, Misdreavus," No warned her partner. They would find some refuge in the city, it didn't matter where, and she could regroup once her magic was restored. But No refused to leave her home again.

Hideko abandoned her own fight to aid her daughter, despite the scratch marks trailing across her face and neck. Standing in front of No and looking over her shoulder, she reassured, "I'll buy you as much time as I can. Misdreavus and the other Pokemon will help you, too." She nodded to No's partner, who gave a determined cry.

From atop her platform, Fuyuka was clearly losing patience, even as her guards began to shake free of the matriarchs and advance once more. No eyed the path off the stage that would create the largest amount of distance between her and them. She felt confident that she could lose any pursuers if she could make it into the alleyways that wove throughout every corner of Spectra's city. "Go!" she heard Hideko cry out just as Fuyuka shouted, "Finish her off!"

No ran as though she had all the wind in Ransei at her back. She barely even felt the impact of her feet against the ground as she jumped off the stage, immediately making for the shadows cast by the nearest street.

The candles on nearby shrines that might have betrayed her location sputtered out whenever she drew near, and No gradually recognized the silhouettes of Gastlys and Haunters hovering never too far away, their handiwork obvious. After completing the gauntlet of alleyways which she knew had left her on the boundary of Spectra's red light district, No finally stopped to catch her breath.

Even with the unrest that she could already pick up coming from the city, this neighborhood could always be counted on to conduct business as usual, especially during festivals. No probably wasn't far from Chigusa's former home, she realized. Looking down at her stained and shredded disguise, No grimaced. She looked the part of a street girl without a brothel a little too well for her liking. Where else in the city could she lie low for the night, though?

As she did her best to rearrange her skirt so the tear in the violet fabric could pass for deliberate, it struck No - the kimono shop. The tailor and her apprentice had always supported her claim, and No had planned to be there anyhow tonight. She retraced her steps back through the narrow roads hidden among the buildings of Spectra, doing her best to avoid the entryways that led out to the city's main streets. Although it hadn't even been an hour since the fight on the stage, No could already hear Fuyuka's guards beginning to patrol.

After several minutes of backtracking to mask her trail, No saw the familiar streetlights of Spectra's clothier district leaking into the shadows between its shops. Pressing herself against one wall of the alley, No cautiously peered out, then almost immediately brought her head back into cover. The kimono shop and several other businesses that she had frequented with the handmaidens were all surrounded by at least three guards each, with one warrior for every building. So that was out as well.

What did that leave her with? Although No had built herself a decently-sized network within the city, there weren't many people that she trusted well enough to place her safety in. Anywhere near the barracks would be nothing short of suicidal, and No didn't feel like banking on the hope that Eika would be willing to talk to her. Still, her head unconsciously moved in the direction of the soldiers' quarters...

And the idea fell into her head.

It would be a risk. But hadn't everything she had done over the past four years been a risk? Besides, No didn't have many other options if she wanted to remain in Spectra. Turning back in the direction of the city square, No began to retrace the path that she had taken the night of the fights.

When she reached the alleyway that ran behind the boarding house, No paused, sending Misdreavus ahead to ensure the coast was clear. After a tense minute, her partner reported back that the guards had already finished patrolling the inns around the square. Besides, No figured they probably thought she wouldn't be insane enough to hide so close to the scene that she had just created.

No looked at the open window of Nobunaga's room, three floors up. It was practically an invitation. She would have to climb, but after conquering the walls of Nixtorm's castle five years earlier, everything like it following had presented little challenge.

Misdreavus floated closer to her, the beads around its neck lighting up. No reached out, brushing them with her fingers, and drew her hand back sharply as an uncomfortable icy sensation charged up her arm. Then she gave her fingers a flex, and watched in fascination as the air around her skin seemed to shimmer. Hideko's final words to her in the square rang through No's mind - "Misdreavus will help you."

"Thank you," No sent down her wavelength. The glamour wouldn't last for longer than a handful of minutes, but that was all No needed. Fortunately for her, the boarding house was an old building even by Spectra's standards, and its wall provided plenty of footholds. She was slightly out of practice, but after a handful of false starts, No found herself falling back into the familiar motion of hand and foot as easily as breathing.

She pulled herself onto the window ledge, taking a quick look inside the room while she still had the advantage of the glamour. Empty. It didn't seem as though Nobunaga or Zweilous had returned since she had last seen them just before the fighting had broken out. The autumn wind was blowing now with a determination to make up for the time it had missed, and No felt goosebumps break out over her skin at its cold touch. Her mind made up at that, she slid off the ledge and into the room.

She didn't have to wait very long.

Stiffening as she heard the sound of approaching footsteps, No leaned against the wall nearest to the door as Nobunaga said something in a low voice to Zweilous before entering the room proper. The horned mask that he had been wearing earlier in the night was hanging from his hand, and No waited for him to rest it on the table beside the bed before clearing her throat.

Nobunaga unsheathed the sword hanging at his waist quicker than breathing, eyes narrow with focus on his perceived enemy before the moonlight falling into the room cast itself across No. Both of them stood tense, waiting for the other to make a move.

Finally, Nobunaga slowly propped the sword up against the table, although his eyes never moved away from No. "That was quite the show you put on," he said. "Even more so the talk spreading through the taverns now. I wonder how much of it is true, Kicho?"

Still eyeing the Dragon warrior, No arched an eyebrow, half a smile playing across her lips. "I think you already know that's not who I am. Just like I think you want to do more than overthrow those warlords in Dragnor we spoke of. All you need is an army."

Nobunaga's body played the role of unfazed well, but his eyes betrayed him. They both already knew exactly how this was going to end. "Is that so?"

Closing the distance between them with a soft rustle of fabric, No reached upwards with one hand to brush her fingernails along Nobunaga's face, gazing into those black eyes that promised a future of fire.

"My name is No," she breathed, their lips mere inches apart. "And I think we both stand to benefit from a partnership."

A soft chuckle, and a "Perhaps we do," was all that Nobunaga was able to say in response. No kissed the Dragon warrior before another word could leave his mouth, slowly at first, reluctant to separate their lips once they had met. Then a hunger like nothing she had ever known before overtook her, and when No kissed him again, it was as though the world was ending and Nobunaga was the last sight she would ever see.

Her soul had stepped into a bonfire after an eternity frozen in ice. As Nobunaga pulled her body against his, No wondered if he could feel the shockwaves that rippled through her muscles at the brush of his fingers through the fabric of her disguise. Even the thin silk was too much of a barrier between them, and besides, it was ruined anyhow.

Breaking their mouths apart with a gasp, No rolled her shoulders back, feeling the fabric slip down around her skin. Nobunaga's hands ran up her waist, pulling at her sash as they went with a deftness that suggested the Dragon warrior knew what he was doing.

No began to pull them towards the bed just as his hand reached the ink flowers tattooed into her skin, and she groaned into the next meeting of their lips. Nobunaga clearly caught on, pressing his fingers deeper into the muscles of No's exposed shoulder, and No couldn't have fought the shudder that ran up her body even if she had wanted to.

Her fingers tightened around Nobunaga's jaw as she felt the sash of her disguise come loose. No faintly registered the brush of the dusky purple fabric falling to the floor, and then Nobunaga's other hand was reaching past the slit of her skirt, fingers lightly running up her thigh like he couldn't entirely believe she was real. No smirked, dragging her palm down the well-muscled panes of the Dragon warrior's stomach until she reached the hem of his shirt.

She pulled at the dark fabric just as she felt the silk of her disguise fall around her waist. The night breeze kissed her exposed skin as it crept in through the window, but No was beyond the cold's grasp now.

No drew back, a silver figurehead in the moonlight as Nobunaga's dark eyes hungrily drank in the curve of her hips, the fullness of her breasts, the arch of her neck. Slowly reaching upwards, she unpinned her violet hair in a single motion and let her hairpin join her sash on the floor.

Was it her imagination, or could she see Nobunaga's pulse frantically beating beneath the ever-so-thin flesh of his throat? Just as the fantasy of this moment had sunk its way into her thoughts, No wanted to claw open his chest, to sink her nails into his beating heart.

They crashed onto the bed together, No's hands pulling the Dragon warrior's shirt over his head (oh, the view was even better up close) as he rid her of what remained of her skirt. No gave a pleasured sigh as he kissed at the hollow of her neck, but the shape of Nobunaga's body above hers in the shadowed room called to mind another memory - one that sent No's blood rushing with a different kind of lust. Her mind was murderous, her hands dyed black by that brief glimpse into hell that they had torn open two years earlier, and how she wanted to feel it again, but how to find it?

"Roll over," she whispered into Nobunaga's ear.

Nobunaga paused for a moment, only a moment, but No needed him now. She latched onto his arm, fingernails sinking into the black ink on the Dragon warrior's bicep. "Roll. Over," she ordered through her teeth. Nobunaga smiled slowly as he realized what No wanted, and all of No's desire broke over her at once, a truly unstoppable force.

She shoved the Dragon warrior downwards onto the bed, feeling his hands begin to run along her breasts as she climbed on top of him. That was good. This would hardly be interesting if he turned out to be the submissive sort the moment a woman was straddling him. No tore at the last of the clothing between them, eyes on Nobunaga's as she felt the phantom flames creeping over every inch of her skin. "Say my name," she breathed, never breaking his gaze.

It was more than foreplay. She wanted to hear four years worth of truth from his lips, enough to tear away every lie that she had woven for herself. Her name moaned as she took him inside of her. Her name in the blood that she could taste on her tongue as their kisses grew more and more frenzied. Her name filling the air as their bodies found a rapid-paced rhythm, Nobunaga's hands grasping at the dark tendrils of her hair like a drowning man to a tether.

Her head arched back as the release hit her, and the world turned red. This was what No had been seeking, and so much more. Her blood sang with the destruction of who she had been, the final traces of the castle handmaiden exhaled on her sigh as she rode the pleasure out.

She had returned to her divine hell at last, and she had no intention of leaving.