Chapter 4
Yūyake, a Demon?

Yūyake turned, and started to jog towards the thunderstruck Aurora, who slowly backed up. "Figures," he snorted, turning towards Neko. "You okay?"

Neko nodded, "Aurora wa, koko kara shutoku suru hitsuyō ga arimasu. Wareware wa, subete yaru."

"No saisho ni, koko kara deru koto o shinpai shimashou . Hōhō no shōsai ga arimasu. Watashi ga shitte iru hōhō wa, chōdo akumadearu koto no fukōna tokuten no hitotsudearu," said Yūyake, nodding. "Let's move."

Aurora chose just then to speak up, "What are you, Yūyake?"

"Oni, a demon," answered Yūyake.

"What did you mean when you said, 'Figures?'" Aurora asked, only to yelp as Yūyake tossed her over his shoulder, and he told Neko, "Get on."

"Mew," Neko nodded and swung up on his shoulder. Aurora was startled to realize that he was much taller than she had thought, nearly seven feet, and was covered in the kind of muscle that saw heavy use. Yūyake immediately started running down the corridor as Neko pulled Aurora over his shoulder, so that she could hold on the same way she was. He pointed one hand forward, and with a chank, one of his Desert Eagles shot into his hand, and he started shooting at a wall, several loud bangs echoed through the corridor as the wall collapsed. He jumped over the rubble, only to get joined by Jinsei. Yūyake gave him a flat stare, then looked away, pointing the Desert Eagle at him, and with three shots, pegged him in both kneecaps, then face. "Bastard," he muttered. "Fucking irritating asshole." Neko scratched him slightly and asked, "What the hell was that for?"

"Idiots piss me off," was his response. "He was an idiot. To answer your previous question, Aurora, I said figures because you are also a kitsune, albeit one that hasn't come into their inheritance yet. So, you've got a bodyguard. Where's Link?" He started looking around. Link came flying out of nowhere, and rolled on the ground. Yūyake sighed, heavily, and grabbed her by the back of her collar, not slowing down. He slung her onto his back as well. "I'm getting fragging outnumbered by women here," he muttered. Neko gave him an awkward hug, even though he didn't need it. Suddenly, Yūyake cursed, and dodged a familiar black hand-and-a-half sword. "Fuck me! I'd forgotten about that damn blade!" He grabbed the hilt as he passed, and it started to morph. "The fuck?" he asked, looking at the morphing sword. It expanded, but the whole thing turned into a staff. "Um..."

Neko chuckled, "I think it's telling you that you're starting to get old. Mew"

"Already knew that, kitsune. I'm a couple of millennia old," said Yūyake. "That's not the reason, though." He started examining the blade-turned-staff, and recognized the carvings. "Unexpected, but altogether welcome," he remarked, a shit-eating grin on his face. "Hold on tight!" He slammed the thing into a wall, and they completely vanished as the whole cavern started to crumble. "I fucking love shadow travel!" he shouted.

From the dark cavern and into a dimmed room, the group popped up and stood there before slipping off of Yūyake. Neko, being the hyper one after shadow travel, jumped up and looked around, then squeaked quietly, "Ohmygodohmygod, ohmygod! No fucking way!"

"Yes, Neko, I brought us to the Grangers. We're in their living room, by the looks of things," said Yūyake, shaking his head with a heavy sigh, before looking around. There was a noise from the stairway and a fuzzy head poked around the corner. "Nanite koto!" Neko bounced up and down, rushing over to her and pulling the puffy haired girl into a hug. Neko's friend's parents came downstairs next, the man with a phone in their hand. "Hey," said Yūyake, grinning at them. "I hope you don't mind, but we need a place to lie low for a while. Mind if we stay here?" By then Neko had rushed towards them, "Oh please John, please Kelly?" she begged.

"You had to pull out your cute eyes, didn't you?" sighed Yūyake. Neko shot him a glare that had him pretend recoil. He grinned. "Nonetheless, I think I prefer you how you are." By the end of the sentence, he had a smile playing at the corners of his mouth. Neko gave him a look that said fuck off then turned back to John and Kelly, pleading with her big green eyes, "Please?"

John sighed, but nodded. "Stay as long as you need."

"Thanks," said Yūyake, nodding back. "We'll be here for about a year or so, by which time we should have something figured out." Neko was bouncing happily as she grabbed the girl's hand, "Yay! It's been forever since we last talked, Hermione!"

Hermione was startled by the exuberant Neko, but the calm Yūyake gave her chills, because he was examining her, and suddenly threw his hands up in the air. "Why me?" he demanded. "What is it with me and finding fragging kitsunes fragging everywhere?" Neko stopped and looked at him wide-eyed, "WHAT!?"

"I don't get it," muttered Yūyake. "First Neko, then Aurora, then Hermione. Seikō wa koredeari? Kore wa kuso shigeki o ete imasu!"

"Anata no chōshi o miru!" Hermione snapped.

"Sukunakutomo watashi wa nihongo de sensei shite imasu!" he retorted. Everyone's eyes kept bouncing back and forth between Hermione and Yūyake. Yūyake paused. "How did you even know Japanese?" he asked, raising an eyebrow at her.

Hermione glared at him, "Anata wa chikau baai, watashi wa chodo watashitachi ni onshirazu no ton o ataete inai, kinishinai."

Yūyake actually looked surprised. "Mochiron tame ni odoroku hodo ryūchōda. Anata wa nani o kakarimashita ka?"

Hermione sighed, "Four."

"Finally!" said Yūyake, grinning. "Someone else I can have a conversation with!" Hermione smiled back. "Part of my problem with people is that they can't hold an intelligible conversation with me in my natural language," he explained. "Sorry about earlier."

Hermione nodded, "I was smartest in all of my classes, so I know somewhat of what you mean."

"Good to know," said Yūyake. He fidgeted. "I want an oath from you, because I want to tell you something. Something that may or may not drive you away. It will directly affect the decision to become nakama, if that is what you want."

"You're a Oni?" Hermione guessed. "I could smell it on you when you got here."

"You had to say that in English, didn't you?" sighed Yūyake, but he nodded. "I am. I am an onida, one of the oni." At her confused look, he elaborated. "Oni is collective. Onida is singular. My orders are to protect the kitsune because of my status as an onida." Hermione shrugged, "Okay, I already knew about your status, but whatever. Welcome to my home, all of you."

"Arigatō, Hermione," said Yūyake, bowing. She bowed back, then turned to John and Kelly, who were staring at them in shock, "Mum, do you think they could use the spare bedrooms and the basement?" Looking at the group, she added, "They also might need the attic."

"I'll camp outside," said Yūyake. "I doubt you'd want someone like me in the house, when a nightmare could burn it down." He looked thoughtful. "It'll also allow me to see what I'll be working with beforehand. I'm thinking of an extension for training and such. If that's alright with you, John, Kelly?" Meanwhile, Neko had crashed and burned on the couch, falling asleep almost immediately. The two adults nodded, looking shocked. "Wards," he muttered, looking around. "Wait." He started scanning the area. "Where's Aurora?"

"We don't know," said Hermione's parents.

"Dumbledore," snarled Yūyake. "The manipulative bastard. I need to go to Gringotts, I'll be right back. Stay here." With that, he left; a powerful barrier springing up around the Granger's house, and Yūyake shadow traveled to Gringotts. "I need to speak with the manager," he said to the nearest teller.

"Demon, your kind isn't allowed here," said the goblin.

"I'm under orders to protect kitsunes, and one of my charges vanished on me. I need to find her, otherwise there's going to be a lot of death and destruction. I also need to set a date to talk with your Master Craftsman."

"Name of the charge?" asked the goblin.

"Aurora Potter," he replied.

"Take this, and hurry," the goblin ordered, handing him a cylinder.

"Many thanks, teller," said Yūyake, bowing to the goblin then yanking on the cylinder, and was Portkeyed to the one house that he never wanted to see Aurora. She was unconscious in the second floor bedroom. A primal growl escaped Yūyake's throat. He could clearly see what had happened, and it pissed him off more than anything else. The sinful aura in that room was all but visible to the onida. He growled, and sprinted into the house, his guns landing in his hands. He shot the door off it's hinges, and grabbed the fat man known as Vernon Dursley as soon as one of his hands was free. He pitched Vernon down the hallway, and shot him chock full of bullets, then did the same to the boy who attempted to save his father, Dudley. Petunia attempted to sprint out of the house, but caught several bullets with her face, then Yūyake moved rapidly up the stairs, only to have an Avada Kedavra hit him in the back. He didn't even turn, he shot the remaining gun at the caster, and ripped the door off it's hinges. He stepped into the room, and picked up Aurora, and shattered all the blocks on her magic that the meddling old man had set.

He turned to the nearest shadow, only to have it dispelled with a light spell. He growled, and it was immediately dispersed. "You don't know what I am, old man. Leave us," he snarled. He stepped into the shadows, and came out in the Granger's living room again. Neko startled awake and saw the bruises and cuts on Aurora, "WHO THE FUCK DID THIS?" she screeched, her voice screaming bloody murder.

Yūyake had news for her. "The aura of sin in that room was massive, I could all but see it. It wasn't just physical and emotional. The people who did it to her are dead. I had to forcefully reign myself in so I didn't go berserk. Albus Dumbledore," he spat the name like a curse, "will die and go to Hell, so I swear it on my blood, body, nature, and honor!" The flame of Satan coursed over his body, and the tattoos that marked an onida as on a revenge track covered his body, specifically his hands, and his guns were engraved with the same markings.

"Oohh shit," Neko gasped and examined the tattoos, "Put Aurora on the couch, I'll tend to her. You go take a deep breath outside. Try and calm down." Yūyake gave a sharp nod, and placed Aurora on the couch gently, then shadow traveled a distance, where he gave his inner demon free reign. The roars of fury could be heard at the Granger household. Oddly enough, when Aurora heard them, she relaxed. An onida should never be crossed, as they gain their own 'blessing' from Satan, and he had gained that blessing without any trouble. Not even Satan will stand for the acts that occurred in that room. Hermione stepped outside and watched from a safe distance as Yūyake tore apart the surrounding area, but it wasn't occupied by anything. No one wanted to get in the way of an angry Yūyake, as the steadily lowering mountain attested. It was lowering with surprising speed, as well, so when a massive crater started to get pounded into the earth, it slowed down. Yūyake finally came back, breathing heavily, but his eyes didn't glint with bloodlust anymore.

"Kega wanai ka?" Hermione asked quietly.

"Watashi wa yoi yo. Aurora wa, ippōde wanai. Dumbledore wa, imamade watashi o ōdan kōkai suru," said Yūyake. "That was unforgivable. The list of sins I saw in that room..." he shook his head. "No one should have had to go through that. Rape, beatings, abuse, et cetera. They had better be glad that I was the one who ended them, and not the inner onida. I would have enjoyably tortured them to death, but I was still acting on my orders; protect the kitsune, and Aurora is one of them." He turned, and said, "Hermione, I would like to have you be my nakama."

"Sore wa watashi no meiyo ni narimasu." Hermione smiled and bowed.

"Arigatō, Hermione," said Yūyake, bowing back. "It's good to have a friend for once. I've been alone for too long." Unexpectedly, Hermione hugged him tightly. Neko came out of the house and said, "Aurora's awake, she wants to see you guys." before she went back inside she took another glance at the two of them. "We're coming." Together the two of them walked inside, and saw Aurora sitting on the couch. "Hey," said Yūyake softly. "How are you feeling?" He walked over, behind her, and started to massage her neck, carefully sending his energy into her through the massage, healing what he could by carefully monitoring the flow of energy from him to her.

"Like I was just beaten and raped," was her flat reply.

Yūyake sighed. "I know, I know," he said. "I was the one to get you."

Hermione knelt beside Aurora, "Do you remember what happened?"

Aurora glared at Hermione then replied, "Yes, I remember all of it." Tears began streaming down her face. Hermione wrapped her arms around the weeping girl and held her tightly. "The real world sucks, I know. Life is awful, why would they do that to you? People in the world don't know what real love is, so they fantasize it and make it their own. They don't know it's wrong, but at the same time they do. Aurora, Do you believe in God?"

Aurora sobbed, "I used to, but I don't know anymore." Hermione nodded and continued.

"Some people say that God is good, and that he will protect you. How could he let this happen to you? Sometimes, God isn't a good creature. Sometimes He is cruel, and enjoys seeing the world in pain. My dear, It's not just you who has suffered. I've gone through it too. It wasn't as bad as what happened to you, but I thought that I was alone in feeling pain for the longest time. You're feeling the same way. You're scared that it's going to happen again, and even though so many promises will be made that it won't, you're still frightened. I know exactly how you feel. And I will do whatever it takes, to make sure you are safe and protected from any other harm that may or may not come your way. But you have to promise me something," Aurora looked up at Hermione, "Please, please please, do your very best, and you will have help, try not to let this ruin the rest of your life. I did, and I'm glad, I didn't let it ruin my life."

"I'm not technically supposed to tell you this," said Yūyake, rubbing the back of his head. "But there's another Being who is willing to listen. If you need, and God seems to unapproachable, speak to Satan. He is willing to listen, and if he wants to respond, He'll do so through me."

Hermione nodded, "We are all here for you. We all care about you." She knelt on the floor again, took Aurora's hands, and said, "And I swear, on my heart, soul, and blood, that nothing like that, will EVER, happen to you again." A strange light flashed, and the oath was made.

"I swear on my honor, under no circumstances will that happen to you again, and if it does, I will kill the perpetrator. No one should abuse, let alone rape a child. I swear on your parents' memory, it will not happen again to you." Yūyake was dead serious. "The oni and Satan would mobilize en mass to keep it from happening."