Kasen "HAAAAAAAAAA!"

Yuuka "Ha... Hmph!"

THWACK!

A shockwave spread through the air as their fists met. The surrounding sunflowers swayed from the force.

Kasen "Hai! Hai! Hai!"

Kasen slid smoothly into a series of kicks, spinning as she struck low and high.

Yuuka "Sei!"

Yuuka dodged each of them, dipping low and rushing forward to close the gap. She grabbed hold of Kasen's collar and used a shoulder throw to send her to the ground.

Kasen "Kuh!"

But Kasen moved with the throw instead of resisting, using the added momentum to turn in midair and land on her feet.

Kasen "Uwa!"

But Yuuka didn't miss a beat. Before Kasen could regain her balance, Yuuka swept one of her legs out from under her, sending her toppling to the ground.

Yuuka "That's my win."

Kasen "Haa, haa... You got me."

They were in a cleared section of the Garden of the Sun. They were sparring without the use of any spell cards or weapons.

When her pregnancy ended Kasen found herself feeling much weaker, so she had asked Yuuka to train with her. Yuuka hadn't liked the idea of training through sparring at first. Normally she would have been happy enough to go along with Kasen's request, but now Kasen was a mother. What would happen if she were injured during their sparring? It would leave a bad taste in her mouth to do such a thing.

But no matter how she protested Kasen would not yield. In the end Yuuka gave in and agreed to spar with her. The baby was sleeping inside where it wouldn't see them.

Now that they had sparred together Yuuka could safely say that Kasen showed no sign of having weakened during her pregnancy. She had speed and agility, and Yuuka's hand still hurt from where she had blocked one of Kasen's punches.

Kasen "I really have grown soft."

Kasen seemed to take her loss as evidence of having lost her edge, but Yuuka didn't think that was the case. Yuuka had wanted to avoid striking the other woman so as not to harm her - instead focusing on throws and grapples - but it had been pointless. Instead it had just handicapped Yuuka.

When it came to physical combat they were evenly matched. Yuuka likely had a disadvantage because she couldn't use any pure attacks or Master Spark, but thanks to Kasen's tendency to always attack head-on she had been able to win. If Yuuka had been fighting someone else - such as Ran - the fight would not have gone this way. It would likely have been Yuuka who lost. Even if Yuuka had more power, Ran was so tricky that it would be difficult to take her down. They had previously fought here with the use of weapons and Master Spark allowed, and in the end Yuuka had been the one on the ground despite the favorable conditions.

Kasen "One more time, please, Yuuka."

Unaware of what Yuuka had gone through, Kasen stood up once more and asked for another round of sparring.

Yuuka "No. That's all for now."

Yuuka refused her simply.

Kasen "Why?"

Yuuka "You can't hear?"

She pointed towards the house. Kasen looked at the house and focused her hearing. After a couple seconds she tuned out the other noises and began to hear the faint sound of distant crying.

Kasen "Oh no! It's almost time for milk!"

She rushed towards the house. Yuuka slowly followed behind her.

Inside she found the baby wrapped in a blanket and crying. When Kasen entered the room the baby began to wiggle about as it tried to get to her.

Kasen "There, there. I'm sorry to leave you all alone. I'll give you your milk now."

Not even paying attention to the dirt still clinging to her, she picked up the baby and moved over to a chair. Once she had settled into place with the baby cuddled against her chest she slid one of her breasts out. Though babies have fairly poor vision it knew immediately what the smell of its mother meant. As soon as her breast was bared the baby was hungrily searching for the nipple that would provide it with milk.

Once it found her nipple it latched on and began to suck eagerly.

Kasen "It's okay, it's not going to disappear."

At first Kasen had found the sensation of suckling to be a mix of tickling and pain, plus her embarrassment at baring her breast, but now she was completely accustomed to the act.

Yuuka "That massive chest of yours finally has a purpose."

She entered the room.

Kasen "I guess so. I'd always hated how much my chest got in the way, but it seems to make it easier for my little one to drink. I guess they're just the right size."

Yuuka "...Can I ask you something?"

She sat down across from Kasen.

Kasen "What's that?"

Yuuka "Having a baby suck on your breast... what does it feel like? Does it tickle?"

Kasen "What does it feel like?"

She looked up at the ceiling as if pondering the question.

Kasen "I guess I can't really explain it?"

Yuuka "You can't?"

Kasen "I mean I really can't. At first it tickled and hurt, but now it doesn't. It feels completely different."

Yuuka "Like what?"

Kasen "I can't really explain it with words. You'd have to feel it to understand."

Yuuka "But I'm not pregnant, so even if I wanted to I couldn't. Plus I don't have breasts like yours."

She motioned at her own chest while looking enviously as Kasen's.

Kasen "You're plenty big. Your breasts would be just fine."

Yuuka "That's easy for you to say."

Yuuka sighed and leaned back in her chair, her face turning towards the ceiling as she let her head rest on the top of the chair back. At that same time the baby finished drinking and stopped sucking at Kasen's breast.

Kasen "Oh, looks like we're all done. Now let's get you burped. There you go."

Kasen leaned the baby against her shoulder as she gently patted its back. After a few moments it burped softly.

Kasen "There you go, that's it. Good job."

She smiled at her baby as she gently stroked its head. Her smile was different now, somehow looking more motherly.

Yuuka "You really look like a mother now."

Kasen "Do I? I feel just the same as always."

Yuuka "It's hard to believe you're one of the Big Four of the Mountain."

The Big Four of the Mountain.

The beings whose power was so great that they had dominance over all other oni. Tengu hold a high position in Gensoukyou, but before the oni they were just another youkai. The oni were so frighteningly powerful that even now, after they have, kappa and tengu still feel fear when they see the mountain. Even the carefree Shameimaru would be on her absolute best behavior when it came to oni.

Even though the oni were thought to be gone from Gensoukyou, the people still strived to avoid doing anything that would anger them. That's how different oni were from other youkai. The Big Four of the Mountain were the most powerful of the oni, and Ibaraki Kasen was one of those four. However, since Kasen hadn't acted as openly as Suika or Yuugi, very few knew that she had been one of the Big Four. Kasen's horns were also quite small compared to the others, so she was able to conceal them beneath her buns. Most people had no idea that Kasen was an oni.

Kasen had become one of the Big Four due to her power, but with Suika and Yuugi around most of the youkai had already been put into their place, so Kasen had only ever given stern lectures to those who skipped out on work or were lazy. Kasen and the other oni of the Big Four had also cleaned up after Suika and Yuugi's messes - in fact this may have been their main duty.

That same Kasen was now married to Rinnosuke and holding a baby. The club she used to carry had been replaced by a baby's rattle and pacifier.

Kasen "Hm? Oh, the diaper needs changing."

The baby had begun crying again. Apparently this time it was because of its diaper. The diaper did look a bit swollen, and there was a slight stench in the air.

Kasen "Yuuka, hold the baby for a second."

Yuuka "Yeah, yeah."

She passed the baby to Yuuka and pulled a new diaper out of her bag. She had used cloth diapers at first, but she wasn't as deft at putting them on as Rinnosuke and they would always end up falling off or getting tied into a horrible knot. Ran had taken pity on her and asked Yukari to get some diapers from the outside world.

She'd chosen slip-ons instead of ones bound by tape. The elastic bits fit snugly against the legs and waist.

Kasen "Ah, huh? Why are you still crying?"

Even after being changed into a clean diaper the baby continued to cry. Perhaps it was still upset at having been wearing a dirty diaper. Babies tended to cry even if nothing was wrong at the moment.

Kasen "Come on~ Stop crying~"

More accustomed to scolding, Kasen had a hard time comforting her baby. Her attempts to distract the baby with toys or play with it only made the crying worse.

Yuuka "Haa... hand it over."

Yuuka finally decided to step in and help.

Kasen "Hand it over? This is my baby, not a thing."

Yuuka "I know, I know."

Kasen passed the crying baby to Yuuka.

Yuuka held the baby in bother arms, then stood and moved over towards the window. She took a seat in a rocking chair, not minding that the baby continued to cry.

Once settled in her seat she began to gently rock.

Yuuka "~ ~~ "

She began to sing a lullaby. As she did so the baby slowly grew quieter as it stopped crying.

Kasen had never heard Yuuka sing before. Unlike her usual personality - lovely like a rose, but also sharp with hidden thorns - her song was pure and warm. It was calming. Yuuka's expression seemed more peaceful than usual as well.

Yuuka was one of the most powerful beings in Gensoukyou. She far outpaced the power of the other youkai. Her only weakness was that she lacked in speed, but she made up for it in power. Putting aside the outliers like Reimu, Yuuka could take on several of the other youkai at one time. And suiting her name as Flower Master, her control of plants gave her a diverse variety of attacks with which she had defeated many a foe.

Yuuka had a bit of a mean-streak in her, which meant she tended to play tricks and tease youkai like Wriggle. Unfortunately because of her power what she intended as a simple trick could end up hurting the others quite seriously. Because of this many of the weaker youkai feared Yuuka and thought her a sadist. Her personality might be part of the problem, but it was also likely that the rumors had grown quite embellished over time.

Those that understood who Yuuka really was were increasing in number, but it was unlikely that the bad rumors about her would ever truly disappear.

Still, Kasen had no idea that Yuuka could sing a gentle lullaby like this. She was surprised to discover a new side to a friend that she had had for so long.

As she continued to sing and gently pat the baby's back, the baby's breathing slowed and it fell asleep. It was hard to believe it had been crying only minutes earlier. It had completely yielded itself to Yuuka as it slumbered against her.

Yuuka "That's a good baby. Have a nice nap."

Kasen "Haa..."

Kasen couldn't help but feel impressed by what her friend had done. She took her baby back and lay it down to sleep once more in the bed.

Kasen "Since when could you sing lullabies?"

Yuuka "It's not like I went out of my way to learn how. I just ended up picking it up while hanging out with Wriggle, Cirno, and the other little brats. Ran taught it to me."

Kasen "Aaah, that makes sense."

Not necessarily the lullaby part, but the part about dealing with Cirno and the others made sense. Especially Cirno, who seemed to lack the brains to control herself, likely ended up upset from teasing and needing a lullaby quite often. With kids like that around it made sense that Kasen would end up learning the skill.

Kasen "I was just thinking..."

Yuuka "Hm?"

Kasen "You might be a good kindergarten teacher."

Yuuka "Kindergarten?"

Kasen "It's a school for children smaller than the ones Keine teaches. To put it simply, it's a place where children like Cirno and Rumia would go."

Yuuka "Eeeh? No way. Just dealing with one of them is annoying enough, I couldn't handle a whole group. I'd never want to do that as a job."

Kasen "I think you'd be pretty good at it."

Yuuka "I think you'd be better suited for teaching, since you love lecturing so much."

Kasen "I don't lecture because I enjoy it!"

Yuuka "Oh come on, you love it."

Kasen "There's just a lot of people that would get Reimu or Marisa riled up, it's not because I enjoy lecturing them!"

She slapped the table and her voice grew louder.

Yuuka "Don't make so much noise after I finally got the baby to sleep."

Yuuka placed a finger against Kasen's lips to quiet her. Kasen sat back down in sulky silence, drinking a mouthful of the tea that Yuuka had prepared.

Yuuka "Putting aside what work we would be good at, aren't we both already working?"

Kasen "What work is that?"

Yuuka sighed and rested her chin on her hand as Kasen tilted her head in confusion.

Yuuka "Come on, you know."

The silver ring on her hand glittered.

Kasen "Aah, yeah, that's right."

Kasen had a matching silver ring on her finger. They were both made by the same person and looked identical, but a small engraving on each ring made them easy to distinguish from each other. All sixteen of the rings that had been made were like this. Yuuka's symbol was a sunflower and Kasen's was food.

Yuuka "I would never have guessed I would end up in this kind of relationship with Rinnosuke. He's surprisingly not a bad partner."

Kasen "He seemed like a boring man with little to talk about, but now that we've grown closer I've come to realize how much more there is to him that I never noticed before."

Yuuka "He looks so frail and flimsy, but he's skilled at creating things and deft with his hands. He's strong when he needs to be. Though I'd only place him above Youmu in terms of raw power."

Kasen "And there's the way that he's so capable with some things, but with others - like cleaning and cooking - he's completely hopeless. He's also as stubbon as a child at times. It really makes me want to mother him."

Yuuka "Well, I guess to sum it up..."

Kasen "You and I both..."

They spoke together.

Yuuka & Kasen ""Love Rinnosuke.""