Gray flames illuminated the room as the magic circle activated. Ruby stood watch, waiting for the return of the two vampires from their errand in America. As they coalesced she couldn't help but smile at the magical promise the younger showed.
"Brilliant work Tekeshi-kun. I can only be amazed at your grasp of transportation spells. If only someone else would put the work into honing it given some of his activities," she said proudly as the flames dissipated.
"Give me a break Ruby, I have no talent for anything past seals and magic circles. If you want to blame anyone, blame Touhou. He filled my head with so much and left me useless in general magics," the older vampire said meekly.
"You are just blaming someone that can't defend themselves. Regardless, it's done?"
Tekeshi sighed, "Yeah, it's done. No blood was spilled, but only because they had a really small apartment."
"You two looked disturbed, what happened," she questioned seeing their expressions.
"It seems that there is more to Miss Shiraishi than we were aware of, and not in a good way. According to her parents she has some form of psychological instability that sounds an awful lot like an unique form of bipolar disorder. I plan to have Yukari examine her, and see if she can provide any help and insight. Unlike her parents, I want to help her, even if she is reluctant to take the help," Tsukune explained, still angered by the couples words.
Ruby was shocked, "I don't understand, she seems like one of the best adjusted people I have ever met. Though, she has become a little scathing lately, but I was chalking that up to Harumi just being a bitch to her. Do you think it's dangerous."
"Possibly, considering this whole 'Witch of War' situation. I have a feeling that the negative emotions that are a result of whatever this problem is are feeding into the blood lust it causes. Given how strong feelings of borderline abandonment can get, and the arousal she feels from physical confrontation, she might just rape my poor son here if she witnesses him in a desperate enough struggle."
"Dad, I really wish you were just joking. There isn't anyway you could develop a limiter for her, something that can repress the worst part of her powers," the 'poor' son asked.
"Limiters are not that easy to produce," Tsukune explained, "Your ring, for example, is designed to only allow around fifteen percent of your power to come through. That said it is allowing fifteen percent through, even if your power grows. I, at least, cannot produce anything that can compensate to keep up with and decrease the power level as your power grows. It will always allow fifteen percent. I have no clue how to use them to control mental and emotional states, so I wouldn't even have an idea of where to begin."
"Tekeshi-kun, you would also have to remember that Deesseedra's demonic nature is also partly involved in how Utsuki-chan acts. She will always be quite a bit bolder, and become more confident overtime due to her influence. I don't have any knowledge of the 'Witch of War' stuff myself, but I was taught many things about progenitor witches, and how their familiars affected them. None of it was as extreme as Utsuki-chan is going through, but the effects were there."
"That just leaves one thing. How do we talk to her about this? Just go, 'Hey, we went to America and threatened your parents into signing you over to us. By the way, you have some odd mental problem that you seem to be unaware of and had them pissing themselves thinking you were going to kill them in their sleep'. I'm sure that is going to go over well," the sarcasm was strong with Tekeshi that day.
Utsuki was amazed at the size of the mansion. Barring schools and a couple of government buildings she had never been anywhere this big. Honestly she hadn't ever been in a traditional style house. The two story house built around an open courtyard. It was so beautiful she almost couldn't believe she was actually here, and was going to live here.
She just didn't feel like she deserved it. Why would she deserve it though? She wasn't rich, she didn't feel like she was all that pretty, and wasn't really bold enough to reach out for it herself. It was like a fairy tale. If it was, was she the princess, and would that make Tekeshi the prince.
The heat in her face threatened to ignite her hair. Why did a thought like that cross her mind? She was so embarrassed for herself. It was mortifying, especially with what she was doing in the motel bathroom with him just on the other side of the door. True her body wasn't in a condition where it could be denied, but still, she wouldn't be able to live it down if she lived ten thousand years.
"Lovely Mistress, if you keep pacing that fast I'm going to get a crick in my neck. What is troubling you," Deesseedra asked from where she was lying upside down on the bed, clothed for once.
"Nothing. Nothing. Nothing at all. I'm just wanting some... exercise, and I don't want to risk a forced change of clothes. It's too loud," she replied, somewhat aware that the floor under her had become really shiny.
"Lovely Mistress, I know this is still new to you, but as much as I am a familiar, I am also a confidant. I cannot reveal any secrets you tell me, given that there isn't anything that can really threaten me apart from your death. In fact the only thing that has ever caused me pain, is Delicious Bloodsucker's sword. Hmm, could it be that you are thinking about his 'short sword'?"
"DEESSEEDRA! Why would you even say that? You are so cruel. Why do you treat your Lovely Mistress like this?"
"I am a demon. You must remember though, I have been around. I have tasted the pleasures of the flesh more than once. I can recognize desire. However, I have never seen this before. What is this that you have for him? It's almost like lust is impossible for you to feel, but I know that isn't true? I can't quite understand it, but it is very titillating. I want to see more."
Utsuki felt a shiver up her back, "What do you mean?"
"Like I said, when you look at him you don't seem like you want to pull his clothes off and show him to the heights of bliss. I don't know how many masters and mistresses I have been bound to who were simply interested in the carnal. There were even a few who were willing to give themselves to me willingly just for a night of pleasure with a purple skinned temptress. I remember one that was around sometime in the 1880s, had a... very interesting... piercing. It gave such an...," Utsuki tuned the demon out.
"Why couldn't he have been standing in front of me when he divided her horny ass. And she had the gall to call me a slut. The dumb bitch."
After Deesseedra passed out from talking for ten minutes straight about many of her escapades Utsuki took a walk. While she hadn't been lying about fearing for her intended wardrobe choices, she felt the risk was worth it. She needed to be alone, to think. As much as she was starting to like Deesseedra, the demon could really push her buttons.
That wasn't what she needed to think about though. It was what she had said to herself. For some reason it no longer felt out of character to her. If she thought back far enough it seemed like she had been like this for her whole life. It didn't make sense to her, she never remembered being anything but kind to people. Her parents, though, she couldn't remember being kind to them.
Lost in thought she didn't notice where she was wandering. Granted the style of building didn't lend itself to getting lost, which seemed strange to her considering that it was the kind of place a daimyo or shogun would inhabit. It wasn't until she noticed a noise ahead of her she realized that she wasn't in the main part of the house anymore.
"What is that? It sounds like someone yelling and hitting stuff. I want to watch. Wait, why must I be this way!"
Continuing to the sound she found a semi-closed door. Looking inside she was blown away. Inside the walls were lined with racks filled with weaponry. Guns, polearms, maces, axes, and swords. One side of the room contained exercise equipment, and the other tables and work benches. In the center was a giant mat. On that mat Tekeshi was swinging some sort of long pole like weapon that seemed to have a hammer head on it.
"Oh, Utsuki, what are you doing here," she had been so enthralled she hadn't heard Tekeshi's Aunt Akua come up behind her.
With as much confidence as she could muster she replied, "I was walking and I got lost. Before I knew it I heard Tekeshi yelling and wanted to see what was going on."
Curious the older woman looked in the room, "Ah, a bec de corbin. Tekeshi has always loved hammers. He likes hitting things really hard. He especially likes the ones on long handles like that since it makes the strike that much harder. He was really sick as a child, so he never got as strong as he would have otherwise. When his limiter is off he comes in rather average in strength, and with it on like most of the time he barely registers as a vampire. I think that is why he took on such the bad boy vibe, and likes dominating bullies. It makes him seem tougher, and stronger, than he actually is."
"How can he swing it that fast? I almost can't even see it moving. I also think this is the first time I have seen him without a shirt that I haven't been locked into a stare."
"I don't think he has ever been taught to reign in his charm. Right now every part of his being is focused on swinging that hammer. There is nothing else left for anything. If you walked in there naked right this second I doubt he would even notice you. For many of his faults, he is incredible in his discipline. Which is to be expected of a child of the House of Shuzen. No matter what he does in life, he will always have to live up to the expectations of being the son of the head of the house. Honestly, I don't think he is happy when he has to be held to the name. I am glad that you're his friend, its been good for him."
Utsuki was a little confused, "What do you mean, what about his friends in America? He knew them for years, surely they mean more to him."
"The Mongrels. The friendship there is different. They came together because they were all outsiders who didn't have anyone else they fit in with. They are violent, crude, and tribalist. Heavy is a Russian giant who had to face discrimination for what a leader of his home country did in his own madness that the child doesn't even know much of or care about. Lorelei and Dehlia are red headed beauties from Scotland that have attitudes that would even turn an orc off. Akoni was born four hundred years too late for who he is. Chun-hee isn't like the rest of them, she is kind and gentle, but her brother Yeung, who everyone calls Black, would love to watch the world burn down around him just because he was a very distant relative to the Kim dynasty of North Korea when it existed. They are so far separated they would have never had anything to do with the regime. Somehow they all gravitated towards this shy Japanese boy that couldn't stand bullies. Machiko became kind of the mascot because she is so close to him. You though, even if he didn't have to protect you, you don't treat him like a leader, you treat him like a person. You don't like the fact he has to protect you, you wish he didn't have to put himself out on your behalf. You just like talking to him and treating him like another person."
"I see. I think. I hate that I have to be protected. I keep getting worried that Tekeshi will get hurt, and it will be all my fault. And I feel even worse now, because I want to see him fight, to kill even. I am starting to like Deesseedra, and I like always having someone, but I don't want to be one of these Witch of War people. I don't want to find pleasure in bloodshed. I just want everything to be peaceful, the whole world to get along like Tekeshi, Asusa, and me."
Akua suddenly pulled the girl into a hug, "You don't know how happy hearing that makes me. I may have some animosity toward Tsukune for taking up so much of Moka's affection, but he isn't all that bad. He is actually a really good brother, for a brother in law. He made a good choice in you for his experiment. I heard that he also is planning to have you join the family, well at least live with us. Honestly, I hated humans for many years, they caused me a pain that even now hasn't healed. After being on the other side of a war from Tsukune, he helped me change, and he never hated me. I honestly think that the only person that he hates, is the yoko who lost his arms to Tekeshi last night."
"What are two gabbing about out here. Uh, hey Midget, why are you hanging off 'Suki like that. Don't tell you've taken that kind of an interest in her, I'm pretty sure she isn't interested," A shirtless sweat drenched Tekeshi asked from the door way.
"No way, your mom is the only one for me. One day she will realize polygamy isn't just for men, and I will be there to swoop into her bed to cuddle her like a giant violent teddy bear," Akua responded with a giant smile.
Huang Yukari wasn't really known for how serious she could be. However even she knew when to put the jokes, and the smiles to the side. This sit down with Tsukune, Moka, and Utsuki was one of them. She had studied many tomes of witch history, and went over several of her psychological health references. She had some theories, but this meeting would help turn them into explanations and facts.
"From what I can understand, around the time of the Mesopotamian Empire there was a cult that espoused power through dominating and drinking the blood of demons summoned on the day of the new moon. It was mostly made up of men, though there were widows, and survivors of rape and family violence among them. They would summon the demon, and then stab them with what was basically a giant hypodermic style needle that would drain blood into a vessel. As the demon didn't register pain, it wouldn't really notice, and would go after the summoner, who was basically a willing human sacrifice, and the binder would drink the blood and force a slave contract on the demon. What I can theorize is that the blood from the demon, a more raw, carnal, and savage entity, begins to rewrite parts of the binder's body. Especially those parts of the brain that interact with dopamine, norepinephrine, and epinephrine. It seems to increase the desire for activities that cause pleasure, or fight or flight responses. For a human it seems to cause confusion over which is supposed to be which, and basically turns fight or flight into pleasure."
The three others looked at her for several minutes before Utsuki spoke, "In regular Japanese that means, what?"
"Let me say it this way. Sucking the demon blood has made it so that you can't run away, and fighting makes you want to have sex. It isn't so much because you have gained these powers, it is because you have a demon bound to you. Now it does appear that your emotional and mental health can influence it to a degree. High levels of stress can cause higher levels of arousal as a way to force the body to seek endorphin release, so the lower the level of stress on your mind and body, the less you want to hump. Make more sense," the witch asked having forgotten she wasn't at a medical convention for a second.
"Yes, but barely. So you are saying that Miss Shiraishi will have to deal with this problem for the rest of her life. Is there any thing that can be done to help mitigate it at least. I would rather she not be forced into promiscuity because of an accident such as occurred," Tsukune replied to the question.
"Tsukune, you just asked the horniest person that we know, that question. Do really think it is that easy," Moka said, trying to lighten the mood by teasing Yukari.
"Unfortunately, despite you saying that to tease me, it isn't that easy. There isn't some medication that can help without her having to be put on a dosage that could cause any overdose. Part of why Witches of War probably lived short lives was due to them not having long term goals and not having a reason to live. Another part was that search for endorphins that the combat would bring on. Take a martial artist, winning against an opponent releases these chemicals, but beating others at the same skill level begins to become less exciting as tolerance to them increases. The fighter will constantly seek out more difficult opponents in order to satisfy the need, now turn that up to eleven. That is what Miss Shiraishi here is going to have to deal with."
"Damn it all. Why did this happen to me? What the hell have I ever done to deserve this? I just want to live my life, I just wanted friends, I just wanted something more than I had. It always seems like this world just has to find a way to kick me down," vitriol started to stream from Utsuki's mouth unbidden.
"Utsuki," Moka said queitly.
"Miss Shiraishi, are you ok? That is rather self deprecating. Trust me, I know how you feel about the world kicking you in the face, I had to deal with it. Someone that was very precious to me and Mrs. Aono had to deal with it. You can come out ahead of it though, but not if you let yourself fall into the pit it sounds like you are at the edge of. If you need help, someone to stand there and catch you, then all you have to do is say something, and all of us will make sure you never fall," Tsukune wasn't sure if the words would have much effect with how the girl saw him, but he wanted her to know she wasn't going to be alone anymore.
"I'm not even sure what it would mean to fall right now."
