The first thing everybody did was to rush past Shizue and get to Rikuo. Tsurara propped him up gently.
"Rikuo-sama? Rikuo-sama!" She cried as she shook her master, who still didn't awaken. With a jolt, she realized that Rikuo wasn't breathing. Either that, or he was having trouble breathing. Quickly, she did the only thing that popped into her mind. She gave Rikuo mouth-to-mouth. Everyone stared at the scene. Setsura had a look of shock and excitement rolled into one, while most of the others had plain shock written all over their faces. Though the "kiss" lasted less than 5 seconds, it felt like an eternity for everyone (except Tsurara; the kiss was more like 5 nanoseconds to her). Tsurara frantically went back to shaking Rikuo.
"Rikuo-sama! Rikuo-sama!" She repeated over and over again, oblivious to the other youkais' reactions.
"Um, Tsurara-chan?" Kishi tapped said youkai's shoulder. Tsurara looked up at Kishi.
"Huh?"
"Erm, how do I put this? Rikuo-chan isn't going to be breathing for about...a day?" Kishi turned back to Shizue, asking for confirmation. Shizue held up two fingers, and Kishi turned back to the ice maiden.
"Okay, so he won't be breathing for about two days."
"What?! Why not?" The other youkai asked simultaneously, finally snapping out of their earlier shock.
"Rikuo-chan's spirit is still re-adjusting to his body, so not all of his bodily functions will be functional at first. Usually it takes about a month or so for the spirit and body to be back in full working order. Rihan-chan took a month and a half~" Kishi smiled brightly.
"Can you stop it with the -chans?" Rihan huffed irritably.
"Why not~? You're younger than me by a lot anyway~" Kishi stated.
Exactly how much is a lot? Everyone sweatdropped, remembering one of her earlier statements. "That is, if you count 200-300 years ago as 'ages ago'. I know for certain that I think-"
"Anyway, the point is that he won't be able to fight or do pretty much anything for a month." Shizue butted in. "And Rihan's no use with that shoulder of his." Rihan grumbled like a little kid, which added onto the Weird-actions-Rihan has-had since-he-came-back list. Normally, the Second wouldn't waste his time on such comments. And he would never act this childish in front of a woman.
Shizue reached into her sleeves and produced a vial and a pot filled with some sort of medicinal paste. "Catch." She said as she tossed the two items towards Rihan. "The vial is the antidote, which should get rid of the poison in the internal organs. The paste is for the wound. It should completely get rid of the poison and Fear, if you use it with the antidote."
"Wait, did you just say it gets rid of Fear?" Nurarihyon wasn't sure he heard correctly. Rihan also had the same puzzled expression on his face. Shizue rolled her eyes.
"Why do you think you've had that wound for a month? The youkai you were fighting at that time lodged a piece of his Fear inside your shoulder. If you don't get rid of the Fear, that wound," Shizue pointed to Rihan's wounded shoulder. "Will keep getting poisoned. The Fear that youkai left in you will keep producing poison, each one more powerful than the last. It won't matter how much antidotes you use, because it'll keep coming back. Eventually, you'll die of either the poison, or of an overdose of medicine."
Many of the youkai in the room were speechless. They've never heard of such a youkai. Heck, they didn't even know that it was possible to stick your own Fear into someone else's body, and have it torture the victim for ages. Moreover, the Second had managed to survive this long and fight in his condition?
"Okay…." Rihan said while gently cradling his shoulder, being careful not to touch the actual wound part. "But what about my Fear?"
"It'll probably diminish a bit, but your Fear will be fine. As if I would give you something that would get rid of your Fear. After all, I'm still in that contract with you." Nurarihyon whipped around to face Shizue.
"You and Rihan made a contract?" Nurarihyon asked, before turning to his son for confirmation.
"Yes, we did, Oyaji." Rihan deadpanned. Nurarihyon sighed in exasperation.
"...All right, fine. First you come back from the dead, don't tell us about it and then tell us that Rikuo's dead. Then you have her barge in here, and now you're telling me that you have a contract with one of the people I hate most in the world. Just perfect. So what's the contract about?" Nurarihyon looked at Rihan, deliberately trying to avoid Shizue.
"Well, you see-"
"Long story short, I make sure the Nura Gumi continues on, and I get Rihan's soul in return when Rikuo dies. I'll also be taking some of your money and artifacts." Shizue interrupted. "That reminds me, I need to go get that mirror." She said as she went out of the room.
"Oi!" Nurarihyon exclaimed as he went after her. Rihan followed, along with half of the youkai in the room. The other half stayed and tended to Rikuo.
"Where are you going?" Nurarihyon asked once he caught up with Shizue.
"To the room full of Buddha statues." Was her nonchalant reply. Shizue opened the door to said room. There were statues of all different sizes, and of all different kinds of materials. Some were golden, while others were carved from stone, and still others were made from different types of wood.
"That's it? You just want a statue in this room for Rikuo's life? Something's not right here." Nurarihyon glared accusingly at Shizue.
"Like I said before, I'm looking for a MIRROR. M-I-R-R-O-R." Shizue enunciated as if talking to a five-year old.
"And what's so important about that mirror that it's worth Rikuo's life?" Nurarihyon countered as he raised an eyebrow. Shizue snorted.
"As if I'd tell you that." She said as she walked into the room. Nurarihyon and Rihan stared at her. Both thought that she was going to go for one of the bigger statues, or the ones that were made out of some precious metal. Instead, Shizue walked past rows of statues, and stopped in front of a small, rundown, wooden one. There was nothing special about it; the wood had aged long ago, and cracks had formed around the entirety of the statue. Moreover, the staff if was supposedly holding had broken since who-knows-when. It definitely wasn't a majestic statue that most people would've wanted.
"? Where's the mirror?" Rihan inquired, seeing as how the statue had no mirror on it whatsoever. Shizue merely smirked in response.
"Watch." Was her only reply. She reached over and grabbed the statue. Slowly, she dragged her fingers across the wooden surface, as if looking for something. Her fingers slid across a tiny crevice, and Shizue dug her nail into it. She grunted as her Fear coated her finger, and pulled hard. The statue opened, and it's content dropped to the floor. It was a mirror, wrapped in a piece of cloth. Shizue picked the mirror up, and examined it.
"Yup, it's the real thing, alright." She said as she turned the mirror over and over.
The mirror itself didn't seem too impressive; there wasn't a fancy border, and it looked a bit scratched and tarnished, probably due to it's time in the wooden statue.
"You asked me why this mirror is so important, right?" She directed the question to the two Nurarihyons without taking her eyes off of the old mirror.
"Surely, you've heard of the legendary mirror, Yata no Kagami, haven't you?" Nurarihyon and Rihan widened their eyes in realization.
"...Don't tell me that's the Yata no Kagami. The one...that was used to lure Amaterasu out?" Nurarihyon whispered.
"Ah. It's the very one." Shizue confirmed.
"But I thought that was lost a long time ago!" Rihan exclaimed.
"It was. The Imperial House at the time, in order to protect their sacred relics, hid them in various objects. Of course, the containers decayed over time, and the items were 'misplaced'. Many humans and youkai alike have handled this mirror, not knowing it's true identity, but most were able to feel the Fear that flows through the mirror." Nurarihyon and Rihan looked at the mirror again. This time, they were able to feel the Fear that Shizue talked about. The mirror gave off a calming aura. At the same time, it seemed to give an aura of superiority; it was as if the item itself knew that it was more important than them.
"That's why people pass it down, and the reason they try to keep the mirror; they unconsciously feel the power emitting from it. The Fear also influences people to come closer. It's probably the reason why you bought it in the first place." Shizue said to Nurarihyon.
"Anyway, this thing is payment enough for Rikuo's revival. I'll be taking my leave now." Shizue announced as she walked outside and prepared to leave. She paused and turned around to face Rihan.
"By the way, Rihan," Rihan snapped his head up.
"...Take a month off. I can't have you dying on me anytime soon. Especially with that shoulder." Shizue said as she looked at his shoulder again. "Kishi!" She yelled. Her sister appeared at her side.
"Yes?"
"You're in charge of Rihan's and Rikuo's conditions. But I still expect you to practice using your Fear. That goes the same for Rihan."
"Yes….." Rihan said dejectedly.
"Hey, aren't you going to do anything for Rikuo?" Nurarihyon asked. The other youkai had gathered around them,also wondering the same thing.
"Right now, there really isn't much I can do. The faster Rikuo's soul gets used to his body the faster he'll recover and be able to use Fear. I can't help him speed up this process; he's going to have to do that himself." Shizue waved her hand. "I'll be taking my leave now. If you have any questions, ask Kishi." She said as she jumped onto a nearby tree, and then out of the Nura premises. Kishi clapped her hands together.
"All righty then, who needs healing?"
Iyaa... kinda a short filler chapter, I know. There is significance in that mirror. Later. And don't worry about Rikuo. His wounds will be fine.
I might decide to finish this story first before finishing the rest. I've had more feeling for this story lately. :)
Anyway, Plz R&R! ^w^b