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A ceramic cup shattered as it hit the floor. Hot tea spilt across the carpet and stung her legs, but Satori didn't react. A book hit the ground not long after, its pages staining beyond repair as the tea soaked in, but still, she didn't react. She just stared ahead with wide eyes.

Something was wrong.

She had just made herself a nice drink and was heading for the study ready to dive into a new book when, without warning, everything got quiet. Things were already quiet as the hall was empty but for a few stray bats asleep in the rafters, but this was a different quiet, one that seemed to reach her very soul.

Something was very, very wrong.

"Miss Satori?"

A black cat with two tails and a red bow came bounding around the corner. Once it got close enough there was a flash of blue light and Orin was standing before her master with a look of concern in her eyes.

"Miss Satori, what happened? Are you okay?"

She inspected her for any injuries but Satori didn't react. She continued to stare, blankly.

"No…" she whispered.

"Miss Satori?"

"Please no…"

Without warning she turned and took off down the hall, ignoring Orin's cry of alarm.

"No no no no no…"

She ran for her sister's room.

…

…

…

"She alright?"

She looks like crap.

"I don't know. She really did a number on herself with that last trick."

Surprised her arm didn't blow itself off.

"What in the hell was that anyways? I've never seen something like that before."

And I hope I never see it again.

"Doesn't she live with that hell raven? You know, the one that went crazy some years ago and nearly blew the whole Underworld to smithereens?"

Hard to forget something like that.

"What, you think she stole her power or something?"

This tiny thing? No way.

"Maybe. Or maybe she learned it. Either way her body could hardly take it."

What a stupid move. You'd think a mind reader would know better.

"Oi! Give the girl some space!"

"Yes Yuugi!"

"Sorry Yuugi!"

"Just get out of here already."

Imbeciles.

…

I know you're awake.

"I know you're awake."

Satori cracked open her eyes and saw Yuugi standing over her, back in her blue kimono from earlier.

"How…?" she asked in a raspy voice. Her throat felt dry and rough, like sandpaper.

"Felt somethin' familiar pokin' at my mind just now. Only one person that could be."

She smirked as Satori furrowed her brows.

"I'm a lot more perspective than people think." She sat on the floor with a mighty thud. "People see me and think 'Look at that big dumb oni.' Only makes the look on their faces better when I catch 'em off guard later."

Her smirk vanished as she looked over Satori, laid out on a futon beside her. The hospitality from earlier quickly vanished, replaced by a hostile suspicion.

"But I'm not the one we should be talking about."

You got some explaining to do.

Their battle from before flashed through Satori's mind. She had many life-threatening encounters in her long life, many of which she felt that she wouldn't be walking away from, but none of them compared to the raw ferocity that Yuugi had displayed. The fervor for battle that had overtaken her near the end of their fight had been overwhelming, as if an entire army had been condensed into a single person.

And now that person was very unhappy with her, and Satori could hardly move, let alone defend herself.

Satori gulped.

"E-Explain what?"

"The damn sun you threw at me, that's what. You said that you could only copy the powers of those nearby."

She leaned in closer, eyes narrowing.

"So, where the hell did that come from?"

Liar.

Satori felt her heart stop as she heard the venomous thought.

"I-I'm not a liar!" she stammered. "Honest!"

"Then where-!" Yuugi cut herself off, taking a deep breath to keep her temper under control. "Then where did that come from? There's only one youkai in the Underworld who can create stars, and word has it that she was seen headin' to the surface recently. There's no way you could have copied her powers."

"No," Satori said. "It's… complicated."

"Well, you best start explainin'."

She leaned back, giving the smaller youkai room to breathe as she collected her thoughts.

"Okuu-, I mean, Utsuho Reiuji is my pet."

What!?

"That bird is your pet!?"

Satori flinched at the outburst.

"Yes, she is my pet. I found her a long time ago when she was just a normal hell raven. She was malnourished and her wings were so dirty she couldn't fly, so I took her in, cleaned her, fed her. When she was healthy again she choose to stay and help manage the Hell of Blazing Fires. She's been with me ever since."

Yuugi said nothing, waiting for her to continue.

"As a satori can't help but read minds, we become intimately familiar with the minds of those we live with. I came to know every facet of her mindscape; all her memories, her feelings, her little quirks and oddities that make her who she is. Like reading the same novel over and over until you know where every word on every page is located, that is how well I know her mind. And when she was tricked into consuming the corpse of a god, Yatagarasu, and became something of a goddess herself, I became familiar with her newfound divine power as well.

I never tried to actively duplicate her powers because I had no reason to."

She paused, listening to Yuugi playing everything over in her head.

"Then what about before? During our duel?"

"Our duel…"

Satori's turned her head away from the oni, gazing listlessly out a nearby window as she reflected on the fight.

"I never had a chance against you," she admitted. "I knew that from the moment I met you that I couldn't hope to match your power, which was only further confirmed when I looked into your past and realized who you were. As we fought, and I managed to dodge your attacks and even fight back, I could sense the thrill of battle overtaking your mind.

"And I…got scared…"

A pause.

"When my attempt to incapacitate you by encasing you in flames failed, and I was barely able to stay standing, let alone fight back, I became afraid. Afraid that your next attack would be the end for me, afraid that I might die before I was able to find them. I thought of my friends, my family, and when I remembered Okuu I saw the only thing that could save me. I acted on instinct and scanned my perfect copy of her mind, saw her powers to create stars and the memories of using it, and… acted."

She turned back to Yuugi.

"Yuugi, I am sorry. I know it must seem like a dirty trick, but please believe me when I say I didn't even know I could do that."

Silence fell between them, save for Satori, who could see the flow of thoughts swirling through Yuugi's mind. The oni didn't speak for several minutes as she processed the story, her expression unreadable, and with each second that ticked by Satori fretted more and more over what her final reaction might be.

Which is why she nearly leapt from the floor when Yuugi placed a hand on her head and… ruffled her hair?

"Okay, okay, I believe you. Now relax already, will ya? You're shakin' like you just took a naked hike on a snowy mountain. And don't you even think about asking how I know what that feels like."

Satori was indeed shaking and proceeded to settled down, relaxing under Yuugi's surprisingly gentle touch as faint images of a winter mountaintop flashed before her eyes. She held her tongue as told, not particularly eager to anger her again, and let out a long sigh now that she was in the clear.

"So," Yuugi began, retracting her hand. "Utsuho Reiuji. You called her Okuu."

"Yes. It's a nickname. She likes it because it matches with Orin."

"And Orin-"

"Is a kasha who I found alongside Okuu. Her real name is Rin Kaenbyou, but she prefers Orin."

"So you have a hell raven and kasha as your pets? That's-"

"Unusual, yes, I know. But although I call them my pets, and they think of themselves as my pets, they are far more than that to be. They are my friends."

She paused as the next words caught in her throat.

"My family…"

Her family. Her dear family that she herself drove away with her neglect. Her family, who she set off to find so she can make amends and maybe, just maybe, get them to come back with her, only to wind up in a duel to the near-death with an oni strong enough to sunder mountains. How long has she been out? How much time has she lost in dealing with Yuugi? How can she possibly hope to find them now-?

"Satori?"

The youkai in question was torn away from the downward spiral of her thoughts as the Yuugi started speaking again.

"Y-Yes?" she replied in a shaky voice.

"When we first met, you were lookin' in at our party like a dog left out in the rain, and when I asked you said that you weren't fine. And going from your face just now, I guess somethin' happened between you and your pets, yes?"

Satori silently cursed herself for slipping up and letting herself crack while under Yuugi's gaze. She said it herself, she's more perspective than people think, so of course she was able to connect the dots between her earlier distress and the gloom that discussing her friends had brought upon her. But, she had no choice but to respond honestly. She could already hear the warnings in Yuugi's head.

With some effort she sat up, gathering the strength to answer her.

"Yes."

Yuggi didn't respond, allowing her to take her time to continue.

"They…" Satori took a steadying breath. "They left. I… I drove them away."

"What happened?"

Satori took another breath, trying desperately to keep her composure as she reopened a very fresh wound.

"I… neglected them. For a long time now all I've done is sit in my study, consumed by my own thoughts. When Orin would make us meals I would barely talk. When Okuu asked to play I would say no. I shut them out, time and time again."

Tears stared welling up in her eyes.

"They tried to help me. They tried over and over to cheer me up, make me smile, do anything they could to make my day better. But I kept turning them away. I guess they finally had enough because when I woke up last, they were gone. They left without a word."

A few tears dripped down, landing on her sleeve. As she hastily wiped her eyes with her arm Yuugi spoke up.

"You said that durin' our fight, you were afraid of dyin' before you could find them. You were-"

"Talking about them, yes. I eventually gathered up the nerve to go after them, so that I might apologize, beg for their forgiveness, plead for them to come home with me. But when I passed by your party, I felt such a strong sense of warmth and peace, that it brought back feelings that I hadn't felt in ages. Something that I fear I might never have again…"

Once more the room became quiet, unbearably so. Yuugi felt awkward, unsure of how to respond to such an outpouring of emotions, and Satori stared with wet, empty eyes at the ground, gripping her third eye close, blackness filling her mind.

Eventually it was Yuugi who broke the silence.

"I'm sorry, Satori. I shouldn't have pried."

"Don't be. You would have hated me for lying or withholding the truth."

As she spoke Satori kept her head hung low too ashamed to look her in the eye. Yuugi didn't like this, and a moment later stood and left the room.

"Looks like I drove off another one," Satori solemnly mused to herself.

No sooner had the words left her mouth that Yuugi returned, much to Satori's surprise, the Hoshiguma Dish in her hands once more. She knelt down beside the smaller youkai and held out the cup.

"Drink," she said.

That's an order.

Seeing no room to refuse Satori did as she was told. The sake was just as divine as before, the soothing sensation spreading throughout her body and giving her no choice but to relax. She took a few more greedy gulps before lowering the dish. She felt… better. Not good by any means, but the dark clouds in her mind had dissipated. A definite improvement.

"Better?"

She jumped at Yuugi's voice. For a moment she had completely forgotten where she was, and now was keenly aware of how the oni was tenderly rubbing her back. She handed back the Hoshiguma Dish, cheeks tinted red.

"Y-Yes. Thank you, Yuugi."

"Don't even mention it. I had to do somethin', I mean I can't just sit back and watch my friends suffer! It was either this or a hug, and we don't know each other that well yet."

Satori blushed harder as thoughts of herself being smothered by Yuugi's rather, ahem, ample breasts went through her mind, not helped by the fact she couldn't tell if they were Yuugi's thoughts or her own.

"Um, yes, that would not have been the best idea…"

Now sufficiently more embarrassed than depressed Satori rose to her feet, pausing a moment to steady herself. She turned to address Yuugi, titling her head back as she too got up.

"Yuugi. Thank you again. If I hadn't run into you then I might be closer to finding my friends, but I would not be in as good a place mentally as I need to be in order to venture on the surface."

"Like I said, I'm here for my friends!"

Satori tilted her head.

"Are we… friends?"

She never had friends who weren't animals, that just wasn't how things went with satori. The idea that she could be friends with any youkai, let alone an oni, seemed almost fantastical to her. Yuugi again surprised her with a burst of laughter.

"Course we are! Anybody who can give me a good fight is my friend, and our fight was somethin' to behold!"

"Normally I'm not that good…" Satori said bashfully.

Yuugi Hoshiguma is her friend. The thought seemed odd to Satori, but it made her smile nonetheless.

"I should be going. I've imposed on you long enough, and the longer I'm here the farther Orin and Okuu can be."

"Want me to come with ya?"

"No. This… this is something I must do on my own."

Yuugi nodded.

"I understand. Just promise you'll come visit me once you come back."

Satori smiled.

"I will."

"Oh, and one other thing."

Satori had already turned and retrieved her cloak from a nearby chair when Yuugi called out to her. The taller youkai got down on one knee, lowering herself until she could look her in the eyes.

"Let me give you some advice before you go." She took a deep breath. "Take it from someone who has lived a very long, very eventful life. Time will always press ever onwards, and there are some things that, once gone, can never be recaptured. Sometimes, all you can do is learn to enjoy things as they are, rather than how they once were.

Now go. Find your friends. Tell them how you feel. But as you do so, remember these words."

Satori looked deep into Yuugi's unwavering eyes, and she looked back into hers. Neither said anything, and Yuugi's mind was clear. After another beat Satori nodded.

"I will."

"Good." She straightened herself and took a sip from her dish. "Now go on, don't keep 'em waitin'!"

"Right."

Satori turned and left the room, throwing up the hood of her cloak as she entered back into the streets of the Underworld and set off to find her friends.

"Orin. Okuu. Please wait for me. I'm on my way."

And so exits Yuugi. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. As always, feel free to leave a review, otherwise thank you for reading and stay turned for more!

Update: Hi there! I just wanted to inform everyone following that this week's upload is gonna be delayed. At the start I said I can't guarantee a consistent upload schedule, and while I've managed a steady bi-weekly schedule since, this past week I did a lot of traveling and wasn't able to put in as much work as I normally do. With some luck I can get the next chapter done by next week and go back to bi-weekly uploads, I'll do my best to make it so. Until then, stay safe and take care!