Disclaimer: I do not own anything within this story. Except Kuro, I own her, she's my muse. So back off!
KuroTora
Prologue
The rain fell silently yet forcefully, drowning the ground and landscape. Freezing winds blew the rain, the makings of a storm. This all went unnoticed to a young woman, around 19 by appearance. She stood on the muddy earth, soaked to the bone, staring at an elderly looking woman crouched under a large leaf. The young woman knew better than to judge the other woman by her appearance alone, she was far younger than she let on. The young woman grasped the hilt of her long sword tightly, not knowing what the other woman was about to do. The young woman did not trust the human before her, like she trusted no one. Frozen black eyes stared at the elderly woman, piercing into her soul. After a moment, the woman cleared her throat and began speaking.
"You must be wondering why I have asked you to meet me, hmm?"
The young woman said nothing in reply.
"Well, as you know I am a dark priestess. I am called Tsubaki. I harbor demons within my body to have eternal youth and limitless power. I am only harboring the strongest demons."
Silence lingered, only disturbed by the rain.
"Is that why you asked me here, to harbor me as well?"
The low, emotionless tone of the young woman's voice stunned the dark priestess.
"Yes, that is why I asked you here. You are the most powerful demon known at this time. Harboring you would give me true limitless power."
The young woman stepped forward, grasped the priestess's neck and griped tightly.
"I am no one's power toy. You best learn that human wench lest you want to walk headless."
"You truly amaze me, but I'm afraid that any demon that denies me suffers from a terrible curse."
The young woman's eyes widened as a dark sutra found its way to her forehead, stinging upon contact. Sparks began to fly from the paper to her form, sparks black in color. Her eyes widened as sparks flew over the span of her body. She dropped the priestess as the sparks bore into her white flesh. Deep throated roars erupted from her throat as her body began to mutate. Strangled sounds left her as she felt her bones dislodge themselves, mutate and pop into place, the pain from it was unbearable. Her pale flesh began to expand, contract and lengthen, black fur growing during the process. Her muscles soon began to stretch, expand and tone up, detach and reattach in the same moment, the pain causing her to tear up. Her ears moved from the sides of her head to the top as her long hair began to absorb into the flesh of her back, reappearing as fur. Her eyes sealed shut as her skull began to take a new form, her high cheek bones widened and rose higher, her forehead curving out. Her nose turned black and became cold and wet as her jaw began to elongate. Her slit like eyes changed shape as her black eyes changed to ice blue, her pupils turning into slits. Black fur began to grow from the flesh of her now cat like face, a patch of white fur upon her forehead shaped like the symbol of the tiger, the sign of her curse. Whiskers sprouted from her feline like snout, shimmering black in the light. Finally, long, white fangs sprouted from her upper jaw.
"You see now, the fate you have gained by denying me? You will remain in this form, the form of a normal, mortal tiger till the end of time for the curse gives you immortality. You will forever suffer, punishment for your actions. You no longer have your demonic powers, nor do you have your demonic strength, you are an average tiger, with the exception of your total black coat. Not a strip on you is there? I will leave now, it is below me to mingle with wild beasts."
The young woman/demon turned tiger stood, soaked to the bone, staring angrily at the receding form of the cursed priestess. She stood, in the rain, her fur becoming soaked, just staring with her blank icy eyes. She knew it was useless to try and attack the woman, she knew she could not. She hung her head low, staring at the muddy ground beneath her. As she stared, she saw her own footprint. Raising her massive black paw, she placed it upon the foot print. After a moment, she removed her paw, only to see that its imprint had replaced the imprint before it. She let a strangled sound, a fusion of a humph and a sigh, escape her mouth as she turned, head still hung low, and began to walk into the forest.