Chapter 15: The Promise
Her mother.
Outwardly, Tora had the composure of a veteran warrior. Her narrowed eyes stared straight across the meadow at her opponent, belaying no emotion. In battle, emotions show weakness and give your opponent the ability to discover in advance your moves. This had been engrained into her by her father, and even now her face exuded the stoic confidence of a samurai. Standing defensively before the daiyōkai, her katana gripped easily in both hands, feet apart, and short hair blowing in the morning breeze, she looked every bit the renowned lady samurai she was.
Inwardly, her mind had erupted into chaos.
This yōkai before her was her mother? This was the mysterious woman who had captured her father's heart and, even after abandoning him with an infant, he continued to love until his last breath? No, this could not be. Not her. Anyone but this hideous creature who enjoyed toying with humans. Her father would never have fallen for this yōkai. Tora had always imagined her mother to be a truly noble woman, soft spoken but knowledgeable, who would have greeted her father with a soft smile. They would have stayed up late into the night, discussing everything together. Her father would have smiled to her and maybe even laughed. No, this was all wrong.
But deep inside of herself, she knew that what the daiyōkai said was true. She could feel it. Had this been his plan all along? To re-unite her with her mother? For what purpose?
Tora swallowed and took a deep breath as she focused on the yōkai before her. Those dark eyes were narrow and a look of utter hatred was written on her flawless face. Then the red lips twitched ever so slightly and the anger lines faded away. She was smiling, but there was nothing soft or gentle about this smile. It was haughty, aggressive, and almost hungry.
"I see, little prince."
The words were cold and sharp, and Tora's heightened senses were so focused that it almost seemed that the yōkai was whispering the words in her ear.
"To be honest, I had forgotten about that brat long ago," Kasumi continued with a burst of her abrasive laughter. "So, girl, are you still going to attack me, your dear mother?"
The lady samurai managed to keep herself from shuddering. This creature may have brought her into this world, but Kasumi was not her mother. A mother loves and nurtures her children, praises them and scolds them, laughs and cries with them, and teaches them how to live. This yōkai was nothing like that. Nothing.
"My, my, my. You still will not put away your little toy sword? What would Asakura Sorin say?"
How dare she even mention his name? In spite of herself, Tora felt anger building inside of her and anger was the worst emotion to have pulsing through you when you are about to fight. Tora fought to regain control. Calm, she must stay calm. She could see right through Kasumi's cruel words of mockery; the yōkai was purposefully trying to anger her. Those blinded by rage lose themselves and are easily defeated.
"So Sesshomaru-sama, you wish to test this hanyō against a true yōkai. Hm, perhaps I will fight her," the yōkai murmured thoughtful. Her long fingers flicked the fan open and moved it to cover her mouth. "It will be amusing to see how long she lasts before I rip out her heart."
Tora let the yōkai's words wash over her and then fade away. She could sense the daiyōkai behind her, his awesome presence as immoveable as a mountain. Is this what he wanted? She turned her head slightly and opened her mouth to ask the daiyōkai for his commands.
"He will not help you now!" Kasumi's fierce growl prevented Tora from speaking. "I am your opponent here, and you will beg me for mercy when I am through with you."
Then the yōkai lunged forward. Tora's entire body tensed and she shifted position as her eyes caught the glimmer of claws in the pale sunlight. She brought her katana up and blocked the attack, but the yōkai simply swung around and swiped at Tora with the open fan. The lady samurai's ears caught the faint whistle of metal in the air. The fan had small blades embedded in the spokes, and Tora leaped sideways. The blades passed mere centimeters from her, close enough that she felt the slight disturbance of the air against her chest.
When she landed, she barely had enough time to block as Kasumi attacked again. Tora forced herself not to panic as she barely managed to escape the sweep of claws. The yōkai was not strong, but she was unbelievably fast. Faster than Tora. Kasumi moved almost effortlessly, hammering her opponent from all different angles without giving them an opportunity to do anything but defend against her vicious claws and fan of blades. Even focusing all of her senses, Tora found herself barely managing to avoid blows. She did not have the time to build her shield nor to find an opening to exploit.
With her eyes closed tightly, she ducked, dodged, side-stepped, blocked, swung, and twisted with all of her might. She used all of her energy to keep out of Kasumi's deadly reach. Stay calm. Focus on the sounds, the smells, the vibrations. Stay calm. With every move, Tora slowly regained control of herself and was able to transition from hasty defensive motions to fluid movements. Stay calm. A rustle of fabric, the huff of breath, the whistle of the fan.
Tora was holding on, but she knew that this battle would end with her own defeat, possibly death. She did not have the strength to break through Kasumi's swift attacks, and already her body had reached its limit. Her muscles burned painfully with every move, but she pushed the pain to a far corner of her mind. She fought on.
Then she slipped.
The tips of the fan blades sliced through the sleeve of her kimono and cut into the flesh of her arm. Tora threw herself backwards in an instant, but the strong scent of fresh blood was already filling the air. Underneath the blood, Tora caught the faint whiff of something else, something she did not recognize. Kasumi's lips pulled back in a triumphant grin as she raced forward and struck at Tora with her claws. The lady samurai blocked the attack with her katana, wincing at the fiery pain that was spreading from her wound.
"You are finished now!" the yōkai gloated. "My poison has already started to spread through your body. Soon you will not be able to move, and I will kill you. Beg me to spare your life, daughter of mine."
Tora was breathing heavily, her narrow eyes glaring at the pale-haired woman before her. The pain in her arm was spreading quite quickly, and she tentatively attempted to flex her hand to no avail. Getting back to her feet, Tora held her katana before her in one hand, her injured limb hanging limply at her side.
"A samurai never begs," Tora replied calmly.
Her voice was low and steady despite the fact that she was beyond exhausted. Her whole arm felt as if it was on fire, burning from the inside out, and it was difficult to resist the intense urge to scratch at her skin with her nails. The inside of her head throbbed from the effort it took to suppress the pain. Though she stood poised in the grass with her weapon at the ready, Tora had no illusions that she could be able to dodge Kasumi's next attack. She needed to strike first, before the poison spread any farther, but she did not have the strength.
Most certainly, she was going to die. She was not afraid of death; she had overcome that fear during her first battle at her father's side. To die in battle was honorable. If she was to die, then she would face it without hesitation and with no regrets. Tora straightened and faced her enemy. Faced death. Kasumi's red lips curled into a hideous smile as she lunged.
"Tora-san."
The voice was not more than a whisper, a child's whisper meant for her ears alone, and Tora looked down at the girl nestled against her. They were lying in the grass underneath a blanket of sparkling stars. The full moon had a faint silver halo around it and the rabbit was clearly visible on the round surface, a pale gray shadow against the gleaming white. She had just finished telling Rin the story. Now the girl's eyes were filled with sorrow, as if she was remembering something, and she was hugging Tora tightly.
"Tora-san, are you going to stay with us? Forever?" the girl asked hesitantly.
The lady samurai was surprised, and she brushed a strand of Rin's hair from the girl's face.
"Do you want me to stay forever?"
"Yes. Yes, I do. I want us to stay like this always. Lord Sesshomaru, Master Jaken, me, and you, Tora-san. You will never leave, and you can grow your hair out very long. It would be so pretty long."
Tora smiled and gently prodded. "Why?"
"Because..." Rin fidgeted slightly as she looked away from the young woman and back up at the moon. "Because... if you had long hair... you would be... you would be like..." The girl paused and glanced at Tora, tears filling her eyes. "You look just like my mother."
Tora did not even breathe as the girl's words filled her mind. The child had experienced in her short life more sorrow and pain than many people did an entire life, and yet she was always cheerful, smiling, and more concerned with those around her than herself. But underneath, she was still a child. A child who was afraid of losing those she saw as her family like she lost her real family. A child terrified of being alone. Tora tightened her arms around the child as if she was afraid to let her go.
"So will you stay?" Rin repeated. Her voice quivered slightly as she rested her head against Tora's shoulder. "Always?"
Rin.
Through the fiery pain of the poison moving down her right side, Tora felt an ache of a different kind pierce her heart. She could not die. Not here and not now. She had given that little girl a promise, a promise that she would do everything in her power to keep. She had to keep it, for Rin's sake.
"I will stay with you, Rin. Always."
The thing that lay deep inside Tora, the awesome and terrifying power, suddenly broke free.
Author's Note: Want more From Deep Within? Now you can by enjoying some FDW artwork. Visit my profile to see a sketch of Sesshomaru-sama, a portrait of Tora-san, and a special full-color illustration of a dynamic scene from Chapter 9. I hope you enjoy!