Call of the Moon
Chapter 4 – Back to the Past
The dusty, stagnant air within the storage warehouse tickled Okami's nose. Every time she breathed, her nose itched more and more, and she resisted the urge to sneeze. She crossed her arms and glanced over her shoulder at the undefined youkai on the other side of the room. Okami narrowed her eyes, folded her arms and pouted. Time passed and not a word was exchanged between the two youkai. Okami got bored and started to count the miniature statues of Bishamonten on the top shelf.
"Say, squirt…" Nue spoke, breaking the silence. Okami's ears perked up, but she didn't turn around. "What's your story?"
"What do you mean?" Okami asked, looking over her shoulder.
"I mean exactly what I said," Nue replied.
Okami wondered why Nue was so interested all of a sudden, but the young youkai obliged. "I suppose I'll start at the beginning," she said. "I was born in the former Okami village, which used to be located at the base of Youkai Mountain. I never knew my mother, because she was sealed a few days after I was born. The village was razed by humans after my mother's sealing, and the villagers scattered. My father carried me out of the village as quickly as he could."
Nue was listening intently, her interest piqued. "So you lived with your father after that?"
Okami nodded, smiling. "My father was the greatest. He was funny, wise, and really strong. He taught me how to fight unarmed and survive," she spoke. Her voice was fond, but there was a slight hint of sadness. "When I was older, my father gave me his sword. It's the blade I carry around with me. He told me that I had to learn about it on my own; he wasn't going to teach me. When I reached 100 years of age, my father left me to fend for myself. Since that day, I've lived as all okami do, escorting travelers. I also tried to find out the secrets of my sword. Doing that brought me here."
Okami was silent after that, blankly staring ahead. Nue sighed and looked down. "Sorry, kiddo," she spoke. "I misjudged you. I thought you were a little kid who was babied by her parents her whole life. Turns out you're not too different from me."
Okami turned to Nue and raised an eyebrow. "I'm not?"
"No, you're not. I apologize for assaulting you, dropping an anchor on your head and insulting you," Nue said, putting a hand on Okami's shoulder.
"I… accept your apology," Okami spoke, surprised. "I'm sorry for calling you old, tackling you, and punching you in the face," she said.
"It's fine, it's fine," Nue said. "You really didn't mean to call me old… I just judged you too early and jumped to conclusions."
The two youkai conversed with each other until the storage warehouse door opened in the evening. Byakuren stood in the doorway and looked in. Okami and Nue were sitting next to each other talking about their methods of stealth, playfully criticizing and commenting on each other's techniques. Byakuren smiled to herself as she made her presence known to the youkai in the storage warehouse.
"It seems you two have made amends," she chimed. "You two can come back out now, it's time for dinner."
Okami and Nue got to their feet and followed Byakuren out of the warehouse and into the main temple building. When the two of them walked into the dining room, talking loudly with each other, Mamizou smiled to herself.
'Nue, it seems you're no longer an outcast,' she thinks to herself.
