Chapter Eight: Back on the flip side

"Gone? What do you mean by 'gone'?" Mikkel demanded with her face almost purple with rage.

"Exactly what it sounds like, Fiona," Father Patrick replied. He was sitting in his office chair, hands folded in front of his chin and elbows propped up on his large oak desk. He didn't bother looking Mikkel in the eyes. He could already picture them red and bulging.

"After she left for her little trip, I sent some of my top students," he jerked his head at the foursome standing nervously on the far wall, "To follow her just in case. Want to tell Mikkel-sensei what happened boys?"

"W-well," stammered the bravest of the bunch.

Mikkel glared at him to speak up and the boy swallowed nervously. "We followed Barudo-chan, like Father Patrick told us to, but when we got to the mountain all trace of her just… disappeared."

"We couldn't sense any demonic energy either." A second boy on chimed in.

"Then, when we searched the mountain, we kept running into this weird fog." The first boy continued. "We lost all sense of direction and had to double back, but as we did we instantly found ourselves back at the base of the mountain."

"You think it was them." Mikkel said quietly realizing in an instant what had gone through her colleague's head. Father Patrick didn't answer.

"Gawd dammit, Pat! You don't know that for sure!" She shouted making the students jump. "The last time you went looking for the crow clan you nearly got yourself killed!"

"No, she went back. There's no doubt about that." Father Patrick replied calmly.

"Um, sir? Went back where?" One of the students asked confused. The other boys stared at him in shock at their comrade's stupidity. In this line of work you didn't ask any unnecessary questions.

"It's nothing to worry about boys," Father Patrick replied smiling at them in reassurance. "Thank you for your reports. You did a good job and probably need to take a break." He dismissed them hastily not wanting them to hear what was surely coming next.

"How can you be so sure?" Mikkel demanded slamming both her hands on the table. "We don't even know if the girl ever even knew about them. She can't even see demons for crying out loud!"

"You're right," Father Patrick replied. "Demons just look like normal humans to her or she can't see them at all. Deaf and blind to the spirit world, she doesn't know the dangers of it." The priest sighed. "I taught her to tell the distinction between humans and demons without using spirit awareness, but to her there really isn't any difference."

"But that still doesn't explain-" A knock on the door interrupted what Mikkel was going to say. Maya Kitajima walked in looking very upset.

"Is it true? What they said about Amaya-chan?" She asked timidly. "I heard some of the boys talking just now and they said that they…that she…" Maya stopped when she saw the looks on the adults' faces. "It is true. Amaya-chan is gone and nobody can find her. If it was my fault I…I mean I knew she's been gone a few days, but I-I-I thought…. Oh, I don't know what to do."

"It's not anyone's fault, Kitajima." Father Patrick told her kindly. "I gave Amaya a special assignment and I should have been paying better attention. I think she's taken matters into her own hands and the best thing we can do now is just wait and see what happens."

"I'm sorry," Maya said sadly. "If I had more of a sixth sense then maybe I could find her, but I'm just so useless."

"That's not it at all, Kitajima-chan." Mikkel grasped the young lady by the shoulders. "When Amaya first came here she didn't have a friend in the world, but you came right up and offered to take care of her. I doubt such a display of humanity will be easily forgotten."

Maya laughed slightly. "When I told her I was going to get married she looked at me and said, 'Nobody should marry before the age of 30' and when I told her it doesn't matter what age you are if it's true love," Maya sighed. "Amaya just gave me that smug grin of hers and said, 'If it's so true then why are you still mooning over another guy, hmm?' I swear sometimes that girl has better eyes then any of us."

"Kitajima," Father Patrick said quietly after a moment. "I think it's about time I told you the truth behind Amaya's adoption."


"I just can't stand all this waiting!" Koenma practically screamed. He tapped his fingers against his desk impatiently as the earthly events were unfolding on the monitor. "Fea's army has tanked out at about five hundred individuals, but still nothing appears to be happening!"

"Kid, I've had more end-of-humanity-close-calls then I can count." Don told him smoothly. "Whining about it won't solve the problem any faster." Don was seated comfortably in a chair next to Koenma's and enjoyed the simple pleasure of sipping on a cup of white tea with his face completely serene.

"How can you be so sure this'll work out?" Koenma demanded with a glare. He was annoyed that Don could be so calm about the situation.

Don looked at him intently for a moment before replying, "That's the way the universe works." Don explained, "The universe is almost like a living force to itself. It can grow and heal naturally without needing any help from us kami-types at all. Humans were born because they play a role. Youkai are no different." Don's words flowed out like a mantra. "The kami, too, serve a purpose and Fea knows this. Macha knows this. They will not be so quick to destroy the balance if there is a chance that they can still go on living within it."

"You said yourself that there was no way for them to survive otherwise." Koenma pointed out.

"Nonsense, there is always a way to live if someone believes in you." Don replied nonchalantly. "Sometimes a single action, a single belief, can move mountains." He pointed to the image of Amaya as she tried to stand up despite being completely exhausted and cover in sweat. "I have faith in our girl. For now that is enough."

"I hope you're right, Don." Koenma replied. "I really do hope you're right."


"Thank you for coming Shuuichi-kun." Maya smiled at him in gratitude as she dried her eyes with a handkerchief. "I didn't know who else I could talk to."

Despite Father Patrick's reassurances she still felt partly responsible for Amaya's disappearance and needed to confide in someone. Perhaps it was because she had only just reacquainted herself with him that Maya felt she could confide in Kurama or perhaps it was just as Amaya had suspected all along.

"It's alright, Maya." Kurama told her. He had left the tengu's mountain the same day Amaya began her intensive training under Sojobo. A few days after that Maya had called him up sounding very upset and had asked to see him at the coffee shop where they had met up before.

Maya didn't talk about the supernatural and mainly focused the conversation on being worried about her roommate. She rambled about things that she thought might have contributed to Amaya leaving. Each time, however, Kurama calmly disputed her claims without revealing what he knew, but whether or not Amaya would live to see even next week was still a tossup.

One thing was true though, the girl had shown resilience. Before departing Kurama had stood and watched the training process briefly. He winced every time Sojobo had sent his eager young student flying back twenty feet. Each time she fell Amaya would always leap right back up and charge at the tengu king at full force only to be sent flying yet again. Sojobo was convinced that real combat would be the only way to prepare Amaya for the upcoming battle and so he had a whole mass of tengu volunteers lined up to spar with the girl once she was done with her flying lessons. Chiyoko merely looked on and chuckled as he reminisced of when Sojobo would send Amaya soaring fifty feet during training.

"Shuuchi-kun?" Maya said when she noticed he was spacing out.

"I'm sure Amaya-chan is just fine, Maya." Kurama replied while thinking of how "fine" might not be the correct term to use. He could only imagine how upset Maya would be if she learned what her cute "little sister" was really doing.

Then again, it wasn't like Kurama could go and rescue the wayward girl even if he wanted to. Just as Chiyoko had warned Kurama could roughly guess the whereabouts of the tengu's nest, but the exact location had been wiped clean from his mind the moment the use of his youki had returned. Even if he did remember the location the nest, chances were that the tengu would be leveling up their defenses after two people managed to slip though.

"Your sensei knows her better than anyone and would tell you if there was reason to worry, yes?" Kurama asked while wondering just what kind of man employed young girls as demon slayers.

"Thanks, Shuuichi-kun." Maya smiled in relief. "Hearing you say makes me want to believe it." There was a moment of awkward pause as Maya began feeling guilty for another reason. "I guess I better be going now." She stood up and swayed a bit when she did so. Maya grabbed the table for support so she wouldn't fall over and rubbed her suddenly aching forehead.

"Are you alright?" Kurama asked in alarm.

"Oh, I'm just feeling a little lightheaded all of a sudden." Maya replied as she waved off his concern feeling even guiltier at the extra attention. "I keep hearing this droning sound. Maybe it's just that I've been under a lot of stress lately," She reasoned. "With planning the wedding and studying for exams and now the thing with Amaya-chan and all."

"I better walk you home just in case." Kurama insisted.

A few blocks away from the coffee shop Kurama began to feel something was off. The day was bright and sunny, but it felt like an unseen shadow was beginning to swallow the city whole. A group of people caught his eye. They weren't walking together so they shouldn't have drawn any attention, but the group appeared to be all heading the same direction and each individual had an unearthly feel to them.

"You see them too, don't you?" Maya asked when she saw where he was looking. "I'm getting a really weird feeling from those people." Maya paused a moment before saying, "I think we better check it out."

"What?" Kurama asked startled by her sudden enthusiasm. It seemed whatever had zapped Maya's energy in the shop had passed without warning because she was suddenly walking forward very quickly.

"Wait, Maya!" But before he could stop her Maya was already trailing after the strange humans.


Maya and Kurama followed the eerie crowd to a large construction site and as the duo crept closer the droning Maya sensed heard became definite and went from a hum to a solid wall of chanting voices. A large mass of people was gathered in wide construction bowl and in the center of the mass was a single pure white platform housing a bright green flame. The mob was singing a haunting melody in a language Kurama didn't recognize. The tune was so unnerving Maya began to tremble and Kurama could feel each of the hairs on the back of his neck standing on end.

"Other people aren't paying attention to this," Maya whispered as she glanced at the streets surrounding the construction zone. Such a mass of unusual behavior should have drawn a quite the curious crowd, but as Maya observed that was not the case at all. She suddenly realized what the problem was.

"Normal can't even see this!" She glanced at Kurama excitedly. "But you can! You are in tune to the spirit world! Why didn't you ever tell me?" Kurama wasn't sure how to answer that question safely, but he was saved the trouble when a shadow came at them from behind.

"Watch out!" Kurama pulled Maya out of the way of a large pile of pipes as it came down right where she had been kneeling. Somebody clicked in irritation as the trap failed and three figures stepped out into the open.

"Who dares interrupt the ceremony of her eminence?" demanded a man. He looked like he was a former CEO of a company, but was now down on his luck. His suit would have been very nice if it wasn't covered in grease stains and his face indicated the gentleman hadn't bothered to shave in several days, but in spite of that his posture and words were ones of someone who was used to a position of power.

"Looks like a couple of nobodies to me," purred a beautiful woman in a skinny red dress who appeared to be of "questionable" employment.

The third individual, a young street punk, remained quiet as he watched the two interlopers uneasily from under his hoody. His clothes had old blood stains on them and parts of his hands were covered in bruises. The three humans had the same discoloration shared by all of Fea's brainwashed army, but unlike the ones Amaya had run into in the alleyway these people were completely awake and alert to their actions.

"Tell me," Kurama asked buying time as he plotted their escape. "Why are you trying to revive the kami?"

"Well, well, this one is quite informed." The woman's eyes narrowed. "We were promised anything we wanted if we revived the goddess and helped locate her sister."

"Unlike humans and demons," The other two agreed. "Gods are required to keep their promises."

"The goddess promised that she would take us to a special island where you never grow old and are treated like the guests of kings." The former CEO replied with a dark smile, "A paradise that doesn't require a clean ticket to get in."

"She said she'd payback good to anyone we wanted." The punk finally spoke up. "If you want in, it's not too late."

"Don't bother." The woman interjected with a sneer. "I know their type. All goody-goody, but they don't give a damn about the troubles of the hard working folks who can barely even afford a decent meal."

Kurama started to reach up to his hair and grab the weapon hidden there, but a single glance at Maya made him hesitate. Seeing the opening the street punk lunged at Maya with a piece of sharpened metal. Kurama moved just in time so that the crude weapon missed Maya and grazed him instead. It cut down from his right shoulder to the top his left hip. To Kurama's surprise weapon's tip began to glow red hot in the boy's hand. He hadn't counted on divine intervention aiding the punk in hitting the mark.

"Shuuichi-kun!" Maya cried in panic as blood started to soak through Kurama's clothes.

"Quiet girl!" The woman snapped irritably. "It will take more than that to kill a youkai." She pointed her own weapon at Kurama. "This is your last chance to change to the winning side!" the woman warned and a sweet tone she added, "Your powers will be greatly appreciated."

"Y-y-youkai?" Maya whispered.

Not wasting any more time, Kurama seized Maya's hand and utilized a Makai plant to create a smokescreen for them. With Kurama in the lead, the duo quickly navigated away from the ceremony. They stopped only when Kurama was certain that they were out of immediate danger.

By what possibly was the grace of some other gods, Fea's minions chose not to follow. Something else required their attention more meaning Kurama and Maya could escape without further incident. Although, Kurama still needed to at least tend to his wound so they wouldn't draw the unnecessary attention of normal civilians.

They stopped to catch their breath on a busy sidewalk and moved off to the side so they wouldn't disrupt the flow of people. Kurama took a moment to cover his wound with a plant derivative to stop the bleeding and speed the healing process. The cut was shallow, but long, so it looked a lot worse than it really was. Maya used her body to block the view of on lookers, but the unease on her face was impossible to miss. The only mystery was if the source of the awkwardness was from seeing her "friend" get wounded because of her or if it was because she just found out that her junior high crush was a in fact a youkai.

"So, that's how she does it." Kurama mused aloud as Maya lent him her sweater to hide his bloody clothes. It looked funny, but it would have to do. "Fea gains followers filled with hate and then feeds off their negative energy." Maya was still staring at him in shock.

"You know what's going on?" She asked still in the middle of processing the recent events.

"Yes, somewhat," Kurama replied. "But I'm at a loss on how to stop it."

"This isn't good," Maya mused. "Father Patrick should be told about this. He might know what to do. I didn't think a youkai could have that much power. I-I mean, to make so many people think it's a god…"

"It's not youkai that are doing it." Kurama corrected automatically.

"I guess you would say that." Maya said quietly. "You're a youkai too, right? Now that I think about it I don't sense any reiki coming off you."

"Is that a problem?" Kurama inquired. He was still focusing his energy on healing and wasn't looking directly at her.

"I don't know." Maya replied honestly. "You're a good kind right? Mikkel-sensei calls Father Patrick's thinking over-the-top and doesn't agree that all youkai are demons." Kurama motioned that they should move on before they attract anymore unwanted.

"I think she's right." Maya confessed halfheartedly and Kurama hoped that it was Mikkel that she was referring to. "I better go home now anyway."

Maya distanced herself from him. She wanted a chance to think about things. Things she had learned and other things that she didn't know. Maya turned sharply and ended up tripping on her own feet. She clutched the wall for support as the ground began to spin.

"Maya, are you alright?" Kurama asked. He worried that she might have been injured without his knowing.

"I'm fine. I'm just a little dizzy-" But before she could finish saying it, Maya fainted.

"Maya!" Kurama caught her just before she hit the ground. He winced as his own wound reopened. Maya's temperature was climbing to a deadly rang and her aura faded to barely a glimmer.

A number of psychics were hospitalized in the past few months because their powers were drained. Amaya's words rang through his ears. Fea was using human reiki to fuel her revival and Maya had now just become another victim in the kami's crusade.