so here is the new chapter hope you like it please review and tell me what you think
We were roaming through the streets of Kyoto. It was a marvelous jostle of people of all possible classes. Rich salesmen were strolling down the alleys in search for the newest trends and latest gossip, to jolly the royal customers along. Poor merchants from the rural regions were selling their goods loudly and agitated. People were tossing fish and vegetables from person to person and exchanged money afterwards. From time to time some street artist displayed his skills. A poet recited his haikus; a popular wood carver sold his prints.
Razor-eaters, jugglers and pick pockets, they were all united here. At this very moment a royal was carried by in a litter. All you could see trough the heavy curtains was a very pale hand in an expensive kimono.
The city guard that patrolled the market to make sure things rested in order shot angry glances at me from time to time and some had their hands lingering over their weapons ready to draw them any minute. But they were not dumb enough to try to stop us. Even though my slit, red eyes all but screamed Oni and the people did make way for us awestruck, the sight of a demon at dawn was more common than one would think.
"You're shoes are going to kill me." Rachel moaned as she buckled painfully once more. Not if I'm faster. "Rachel, dear, you don't know what you want, don't you? At first you complain about having to pull off your shoes and now about keeping them on. You should settle on one." "I wanted to keep on my old shoes." She clinged to me in order not to fall and I enjoyed how much she depended on me. "I am sorry, this option is not available, please choose anew."
"Oh, forget it!" she spat out and tried to look as proud and independent as possible which was hard considering that she barely could stand on her own. The people that passed us by all twisted their heads while starring at Rachel admirably. A young man that boldly gazed at Rachel did not look where he was going. He ran into a carriage full of cabbage heads on, spilling the vegetables all over the street. I snickered: "Well at least now we know for sure that we can be seen. There is no doubt with all these people starring at you."
"Why is that, you think?" Rachel said ironically, "oh yes I know! Maybe it is because of the demon to whose arm I am clinging." "Maybe it is because you are such a dazzling beauty." I counterattacked. Rachel pretended not to hear me and kept on going with her theories. "Maybe it is the fact that I am the only ginger far and wide." "Maybe it is because you are such a dazzling beauty" I repeated placid. "Nay. I'm pretty sure it is the red hair." I was shaking my head at her stubbornness.
"Where are we going anyway?" Rachel wanted to know. She eyed her surroundings like a little kid at some fair. "To the palace" I replied and pulled her to the left at the next corner. The street got more and more empty and the merchants packed their things and closed their little booths. I knew the way and as we approached the huge palace complex it was Rachel who held me back to admire the view for a moment. Behind the wonderful gardens with their cherry trees, Koi ponds and rockeries, lay the wide residence. It was lit by a multiciply of lights and the mansard-roofs rose behind the trees like mountains with too many peaks. The ancient dragon-Kami at the gate were guarding and protecting spirits. Age-old stone giants that were said to come alive if the tenno should be in danger. I, for my part, had not been eaten by one when I had pulled his wife into the ever after. But then again, I guessed, woman were replaceable were they not?
As there you could not always rely on the spirits- thanks to Pierce I could tell you a thing or two about unreliable ghosts- there also was an army of well trained soldiers who protected the emperor with their lives.
We approached the gate and immediately a soldier got in our way. Rachel backed up frightened but I held her back on her arm and pulled her forwards again. "You shall not pass." said the warrior who looked like a come-to-live terracotta-soldier. His Japanese was dripping with dialect. He was from a rural region. Okinawa maybe?
"We have to talk to the royal consulter" I replied in flawless Japanese and got ready to pass the hulk. He held me back on my shoulder "The time for audiences is over. Return tomorrow." Thank God I had a VIP-ticket. "I don't need an audience." I stated and positioned myself in a way my eyes would flash up red in the light of the small lantern. As the guard recognized who he had accosted his eyes grew wide. He sank to his knees and bowed. "Please forgive me, Oni. I have not recognized you." "Should I tell you a little secret?" I leaned down to him and whispered into his ear, "Today is your lucky day. Maybe I will let you live." The warrior nodded obediently but he seemed relieved. Coward. I went past him. To spread fear and terror: done for today.
When I noticed that Rachel was not following me anymore I turned around and reached out my arm expectantly. "Are you coming love?" I had to concentrate hard to fall back into English. Rachel looked from the warrior to me and from me back again to the warrior. She nodded appreciative. "Arigato" she said with a thick accent. Then she followed me.
"I didn't know that you are speaking Japanese" I looked at Rachel with a growing curiosity while she tried not to get stuck with her shoes in the wooden bridge. In fact there is quite a lot I don't know about my student. The fact made me want to know all about her. I wanted to strip her of each of her secrets until there was nothing more than the inner core: The true Rachel. A bit like unwrapping a present. Who ever had said secrets made woman irresistible had been darn well right. There were many pretty women in kimonos and if I were honest I could have them all. This would be where Rachel would make a comment about me and my boundless modesty. I, however, had chosen her. Possibly out of a sole reason: namely that she always stood up to me. I found it very exciting that I first had to fight to get my dominance.
"I can do loads of stuff. Don't you think I'm not upgrading my education?" She looked pleased with herself. "So you watch Anime" I said matter of factly. It just had been a guess but the "Dammit" was written all over her face. "Are we really going to the royal consultant?" she asked and I decided that I could no longer watch her desperate attempts to climb the bridge. I helped her up even though she had made it very clear that I could stuff my help where the sun never shines.
"If you believe it or not" I left the bridge before her and helped the witch with stepping over the little gap between bridge and ground. "The consultant of the emperor is a fabulous sorcerer and a good friend of mine." Rachel laughed and blew a strain of hair out of her face. " You have got friends?" she snorted. I was offended. "Of course I've got friends and contrary to yours none of mine has ever tried to blackmail, use or kill me." Alright the last bit had been a lie. In fact my friends tried to kill me all the time. But what the eye does not see – or in this case what the ear does not hear…
"My friendships may not be perfect but at least I have a heart." I reached for my chest and pretended to be deeply hurt. "You are so cold to me, Rachel Marianna Morgan."
"You'll get over it" she stated. A bit angered that she had not taken up on my drama I got back to serious. "We have to go that way" I pointed at a little summer pavilion in the middle of the garden. I opened the entrance and indicated to Rachel that she should walk through the door first. She hesitated and looked at me suspiciously. She did not like the idea of me standing behind her back where she could not see me. I had saved her life at least a thousand times now and she still treated me like a foe. The fact that I had once tried to enslave her against her will, would most possibly stand between us for eternity. Rachel always nit-picked.
I sighed in resignation and then entered before her. The room was relatively small. It was a bed/living room combination. On the low desk there lay a pile of scrolls as well as a bottle of ink and a whole collection of calligraphy brushes. On top of these things there was a can of tee and next to it a little matching cup. I looked around but far and low there was no sign of my old friend "Tetsuya Watanabe?" I called for him but no one answered. The only sound was the wind chime that quietly played outside. Something was definitely wrong here. I glanced over at Rachel. She had kicked off her unhandy shoes and had stroke a fighting pose. She seemed unhappy about wearing a kimono that did not allow her enough free moving space while fighting.
Rachel was just unbelievable. Like a wild cat she seemed to smell danger approaching and all her sensors went on defense automatically. That was how she had managed to survive this long. Her instincts just were faster than her mind and also sharper. She shot me a look that told me that she had noticed as well that something was not as it should be. Without a word I changed her clothes into a plain, black kimono, in which she should have enough space to lambaste every possible threat. I made my sword appear at my side,
Even though I was sure that I could beat my enemies without steel. It just felt comforting to hold on to something.
Rachel looked at me and I looked at her. I understood what she wanted to tell me and pressed my back against the doorway to the next room. The library I reminded myself. Rachel took place on the opposite side of the door. She made eye contact. Then we started a non-verbal communication. She looked down at her.
"Don't you think it's a little short? Reproachful glance.
Seriously? That's what you want to argue about now?
Just saying, for all that matters you could have dressed me in nothing on flat.
I'll keep it in mind for the next time. Mad headshake from Rachel.
Short nod from Rachel. You go first. Short nod from me. Alright.
Tense exhaling on Rachel's account. I have your back.
Our conversation ended and I knew that I could rely on Rachel. Even though normally we trusted each other like a lamb trusts a tiger, I knew that in these situations I could trust Rachel a hundred percent. And even if she would never admit it she trusted me as well. I drew in some air and gathered all my energy. I did not know what to expect behind the door but I was preparing for the worst. 1,2,3…eyes wide I'm coming. I tried to bolster myself up with self-irony. Then I was not thinking anymore and just crashed the door.
I did not really know what I had been expecting but certainly not a half empty room. I had to take back all the energy I had built up in a whim and the fading adrenalin rush left me feeling empty. The room was almost as I had remembered it, what was not really surprising as this was my memory. But what I certainly would have remembered were the blood stains on the priceless books. I lowered my gaze to the floor. Tetsuya was lying in a puddle of his own blood and I could not hear his heart beating. I certainly would have remembered that.
Rachel had entered after me but she evidentially had built up so much fighting spirit that she could not take it back in time. She pumped into my back with a lot of get-up-and-go. "Blast it Rachel" I swore and picked her from my backside. "Look where you're going" "How am I supposed to know that you are standing here like glued on the spot?" she hissed. Then she saw the man lying on the floor "Is that..?" she started but I interrupted her "Tetsuya? Yes, that's him" She kneeled down and when she had reassured herself that he really was dead she pulled back the ley line magic she had built up. Her face twisted in pain. "I had pictured him, well… a bit more alive." She said. "God, Rachel, normally you are always so ethically correct and now you are joking about the dead?" I spat at her and pushed her away from the body.
She studied my expression. God know what she had found there but anyways she stated "To the turn and back. I'm sorry. You really did like him, didn't you?" "Don't be ridiculous, Rachel" I replied. I was only worried because someone or something was messing around in my memory. At least that was what I was telling myself. Rachel had turned away to study the books in the shelves. As if she could decipher the Japanese characters. I was leaning down to the old man on the floor. I closed his eyes. Farewell, old friend.
Suddenly I saw a movement in the shadow between two shelves. Alarmed I was standing up and my muscles complained about the swift fall and rise of my adrenalin level. I pulled Rachel away from the shelve where I had seen the movement. "Get away from there" I sizzled and Rachel was for once too perplex to protest.
I brought as much room as possible between the two of us and the shadow. "Come out. I have seen you" I demanded and time passed and nothing happened. I almost thought I had just imagined it but I never was imagining things. A few more seconds passed and my theory was proven right. "Alright, you got me." I knew that voice from somewhere but I could not tell yet whom she belonged to. I risked a short glance at Rachel and noticed that she was afraid and her eyes showed recognition as well. I was mad because she had figured it out faster than me but in a few seconds that would not matter anyway.
The figure was emerging from the shadows. It was a small person with a bald head and an androgen, childish face. Hate and fear arose in me alike.
"Newt!" I spat out disdainful.
