Chapter 13

Everything goes wrong.

Tou-Kou was spinning in a dark dimension, and was thrown roughly back to her own world. She was almost in the exact spot that she left in. She was in a small garden, behind her old house. She timidly walked inside the small dwelling. The bricks were covered with ivy long dead. The interior was a bit shabby, but very clean. She walked around and entered the living room. Her father sat in a wing back chair with his hands laced together, staring at the floor with a worried expression on his face. He was an old man, old enough to be her grandfather. His hair still had a few black streaks in it, and his features did not resemble hers at all. One would guess she was not related at all.

He looked up at her, a smile spread across his face, a smile that was a little too sweet. "Dearest daughter! You have returned at long last!" he stood up to embrace her. She froze: her father never hugged her. She backed away. He teased her, "What? Have you forgotten your own father already? Shame on you Gabriel!" he wagged his finger as he spoke her name.

"I do not think you are not my father, but I do believe you are not your self." She chose her words very carefully.

"Nonsense, come here child, I have missed you." He gestured for her to come. She stepped toward him slowly. His eyes were darker than before, sinister. "Where have you been, Gabriel? And where did you get that ridiculous dress?" he laughed at her precious green tunic; the one Youko had given her.

"I've been…away. I got this from a…an old friend of mine." She sighed remembering Youko. She shook her head to clear her thoughts. "I brought you a gift in case you were angry that I left." She gestured to the necklace. The old man's eyes sparkled greedily, "let's have a look at it." He held out his hand. She removed the necklace, but as soon as she did, her reiki shot up. She was not aware of this, but her father was.

"Ah-ah! Perhaps you had better keep it, it-it suits you nicely." He lied quickly. When she replaced it. Her reiki went down again. The diamond was actually a reiki dampener that would compress energy so it could not be used or sensed. He made an evil smile and clapped his hands as if to summon someone.

"Well, now that introductions are over with, I guess it's time to get started. Come on out boys, let the bidding begin!!" out of temporary portals all around the house, at least a dozen different demons appeared. They moved in a professional business-like sort of way. These were demons of trade. Gabriel looked around, "What's going on, father. Who are these people?" she said panicking. Suddenly, a pair of hands grabbed her arms and a very large demon lifted her up. The old man stood in the center of the room and looked back at his 'daughter.'

"I'm really very sorry, dear. You have reached a ripe stage in your life, and now I have to sell you before you change back."

"Sell me? Change back? What the hell are you talking about, father?" she became angry. He chuckled, "I thought you would have become smarter when you somehow escaped to the spirit world. I was afraid the Lord of spirit world would have found you when you used an illegal portal. You see, now that you have come back, I must sell you now, instead of later, like I had planned, when you filled out properly." He gave a perverted grin.

"Why are you going to sell me at all, father? I don't understand!" her eyes filled up with tears. One of the demons stood up, "Because you are a vixen, you stupid broad! Can't you tell your own race?" he laughed at her. She wanted to sock him right in the gonads, but she was being held by her arms and could not move.

Her 'father' took over from there. "Now, now, Mr. Slade, no need for names unless you own her, then you can abuse her. After all, she has been kept in the dark all these years." He turned back to Gabriel. "You see dear, you are a spirit fox, a youko. You lived with other youkos, your mother and father. They were both tragically killed and so you were brought into my care. When you were small, you were changed into a human for a certain period of time, in order to change you back into a full fox, one must donate a considerable amount of life energy to you before a certain time or you will turn into a were-fox, so to speak and only become a youko during a full moon. I was to make sure you never received that energy, as a were-fox, you would never become as powerful as a full youko. As a youko, you would be much too powerful to handle or domesticate."

"Domesticate? What?"

"You are a house pet, so to speak. And because you are the child of a golden youko, which is more rare than a silver one mind you, you are worth quite a bit of money."

"You're selling me as a whore?! What kind of a father are you?" she shrieked. He slapped her across the face. "Silence! You will become what I want you to be! Now, the bidding for this lovely young vixen will start at 500,000,000." He turned away from her and started the auction. Another demon started to bid, "600,000,000." The others joined in.

"700,000,000."

"800,000,000."

"1 billion."

"Going once, going twice-"

"1,500,000,000."

"1,600,000,000."

"2 billion." The room went quiet. "2 billion? Oh, come on! I'm worth more than that?" she said indignantly.

"Oh, all right!" the demon bidding grumbled. "2 billion and 500 thousand. Happy? That's my final offer." The other demons started to complain. "Raden, you show off!"

"Going once, going twice, sold!"

A few days had passed since Tou-Kou had left Reikai. Youko had tried to forget her, but failed miserably. He would not speak with his friend or come out in the light of day. He spent nearly every hour of his time growing his flowers with reiki. His excuse was practicing his powers, but Koronue knew better. His roses were the same color and softness of her lips; his daffodils were as golden and bright as her jungle-like hair, and his ivy glowed the unnatural green of her eyes. He laid the flowers around her folded cloak and pendant. When he finally left the room, Koronue had had enough.

"Youko, stop this moping, I've seen this too many times before."

 "I am not moping. If I were moping I would be sad but I am not."

"You're lying, I know you too well. You can't keep going on like this!"

"Why won't you ever just mind your own business?!" he raked his claws across Koronue's chest. Koronue shook his head, "You are my companion, and my only friend. I don't wish to see you suffer."

The fox scoffed and crossed his arms, "I only suffer because you will not let her memory die in me."

"I have a bad feeling about this,"

"There you go again with me-"

"No! Its not coming from you, it's coming from the ningen!" his voice was suddenly panicked, " Feel for it you'll know what I mean!"

The fox opened his mind to any outside force trying to reach him. He felt a stab in his chest; staggering back, he saw an image flash in his head. Tou-Kou was in chains on a stone table, blood was seeping from a wound on her face. He could see her eyes, the light in them was weak, and her arm was held out to him as if he was really there. Then it was gone. Youko leaned against the wall, rubbing the spot on his chest. "She's in trouble. She needs our help." He said softly.

"Then you must go to her." Koronue replied.

"No, I can't go alone, I may need your help."

"It is not my affair-"

"Koronue, don't let me lose her like you lost your wife. I don't know how to do this!" for the first time in his life, the fox was pained and confused, asking for help from another. "Please, show me what you would have done if you could have saved your love." He was begging Koronue.

"Stand proud, fox, for starters. You have to find her and who has taken her, and then study the enemy before you barrel in there-" Youko was already out the door. "You baka! Listen to me, you asked me for help!"

Gabriel was bound at the wrists and ankles. Her 'owner' held her on his lap, tracing her face playfully while they were riding through the demon world in a limo. Raden, as he was called, was a tall, strong man, taller than even Koronue. He looked like any normal human, with out horns or bizarre claws like many demons she saw at the auction. Though she considered him evil, he was tan and brutally handsome…for a jerk. His onyx eyes trailed across her frame excitedly.

"Are you as eager as I am for the next full moon, my pet?" his deep timbered voice made her want to wretch.

"I am no one's 'pet!' I wouldn't give a damn weather or not it was a full moon." She turned away from him hotly. His strong hand forced her view back toward him, unmercifully crushing on her already bruised cheek. "You ought to be very concerned with the next full moon."

"Elaborate." She said carefully.

"Well, my pet, for starters, the next full moon will seal you inside your human body permanently." His hands began to wander were they shouldn't. She dug her nails into his arm and pried his hands off her body, shoving him away. He wiped the blood off of his arm calmly, and then seized her head by the hair, his expression suddenly dangerous. "Never shove me away, I can make your life a living hell." He released her head, suddenly friendly again, "and the other thing you should worry about is I am a were wolf. Come the next full moon, I will reach the peak of my power, while yours will drop permanently, so that night will be much more fun."

Gabriel turned away from him, closing her eyes, trying to lock out the images of her violation. He began to paw her again, "Three weeks, my pet, three weeks."