Master and Yokai
I remembered that I forgot to mention in the last chapter. I didn't pair Rikuo with anyone for a reason, not that it mattered for the draw cause he wasn't selected for one of those roles for some reason. RikuoxTsurara or RikuoxKana, I'm not even gonna say anything. Also, the reason why Night Rikuo looks more like Nurarihyon is probably just because they both have two shades of color in their hair; top has a lighter shade and the bottom has a blackish undertone. Be aware that this chapter will include some very messed up scenes while loosely following the plot. AND, I forgot the magic mirror... That'll be Rinko because it's short than "student a".
Reviews:
SkyGem: I'm questionable to add Shouei into the school. He's close in age with Rikuo and younger than Tsurara and Kubinashi. The thing is that he's really tall, then again I knew someone in back kinder and he was a super giant to us... Him meeting the teacher before doesn't really matter, and I'm not that concerned about that part. Sure, Hihi will be in this one just for fun. Heh heh heh. Yeah the ending doesn't make that much sense probably cause I was tired. I'll try to clarify: Got home, Rikuo talked to Night Rikuo who knocked him out somehow and took over then talked to Rihan. That's it. Rihan could have been kidding about mistaking his kid but that's not the case, bad dad.
FeuWitch: Yeah it should be the other way around: Rihan mature, Rikuo immature. But it's funny how that works, haha. Plays... Rewriting it to a very strange version, BEWARE! Maybe... But it starts off kinda normal. I think I could only fit the first half of it in this chapter though.
Disclaimer once again: I don't own anything. Characters and series belong to their respective owners. The only thing I probably own is Seishin cause I made it up, but I would still not claim complete ownership of it.
...
Chapter 5 Cue Madness and Action!
Rikuo dashed off to school with his attendants following far and closely behind; some were slower. He wanted to get out of there before Night Rikuo somehow takes over. Even though it's day, his domain, he can't just shove away the possibilities if his yokai counterpart can knock him out. At school, he felt more relieved with it being a human domain. While walking to class, "Waka... Why are you in such a hurry?" Tsurara huffed.
"I don't want to take the risk... He might take over..." Rikuo replied not even turning back.
"Risk? He?"
"Night."
"Night... OH! But why?"
"He's more of a jerk than I thought he was..." the Third said with a dark aura and irritated face that disappeared as he opened the door to the room. His human friends beat him there that day and heard part of the conversation, not that they understood it.
"Yo, Rikuo! What were you just talking about?" Kiyotsugu was intrigued for some odd reason.
"Urk! Umm, nothing you need to worry about," he responded with an assuring expression that disappointed him.
"If it's anything related to yokai, I want to know!" Good to know that he'll be there for his friends...
'Part yokai... Does that qualify? Or just WHOLE yokai?' Loop hole. "Not really."
"Aw... Okay! We'll have another yokai search this weekend! The teacher has been making me look over many things for the play, and as student council president, I have many obligations (paperwork)."
"Okay." The yokai party sat in their seats. Class soon began and the rest of the students sat down. Yokotani-sensei entered the class.
"Morning class. You know the plan for the day. Please move the desks to the walls." As the class was rearranging furniture, putting their bags to the side, and holding their scripts, the teacher wrote the schedule on the board. Yokotani supervises the students making the props in another room due to lack of space while the actors would be with Kiyotsugu practicing scenes. We're going to be focusing on the latter because we don't care about the others.
"Okay, let's start with the first scene. The Queen and Magic Mirror!" Tsurara and Rinko stepped forward, but Tsurara didn't like her role. "I hope you know your lines." Nope, they never even touched a page. The two actress faced each other.
"Mirror, mirror on the wall," Tsurara started, slow and powerful. "Who is the fairest of them all?" she continued with a flip of her hair.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Stop! The beginning was good, but no hair flipping. Start over."
"... Mirror, mirror on the wall. Who is the fairest of them all?" She held a fierce glaze at Rinko.
"Y-you-" Rinko stuttered.
"STOP!" Kiyotsugu interrupted. "Speak with confidence! PASSION!" Dude, the mirror is passionless... "Oikawa-san is going to hurt you. She doesn't have it in her." You wanna bet? "Try again!"
"You are indeed fair," Tsurara gave a proud and satisfied expression. "But, another is fairer than you." In the background, Mezu turned slightly green.
"Who? I demand to know!"
"Skin as white as snow, lips as red as apple." Huh. Apple?
"Stop. Blood, not apple."
(In the background... "My skin's not like snow... My lips are red either..." Mezu critized.
"Not yet anyways. They'll make it happen," Gozu informed.
"Eh? I'm not going to wear make up!"
"You say that as if you had a choice..."
"EH? I hate school..." Sob.)
"I-I'm sorry..."
"It's fine! Try again!"
"Skin as white as snow, lips as red as blood, hair as black as night-" Rikuo twitched when he heard 'night', making him think about his counterpart.
"Not night, ebony."
"What's ebony?"
"Wood, shiny black. Just go with it!" Someone's going to have to dye his/her hair, or wig.
Rinko took a deep breath. "Skin as white as snow, lips as red as blood, hair as black as ebony-"
"GASPS! Snow-White!"
"Tsurara, good but you actually gasps, don't say it." Is Kiyotsugu actually less energetic?
"Oops."
"None of you read it, huh?" They shook their heads, guiltily.
"We spent too long for this bit. Let's just keep going! Oh you, know you can look a your scripts right?" Now he tells them? "Next! Snow-White, imaginary birds, prince! We'll use this for the well and this for birds." He pulls up a desk and draws some birds on the board. Not that they could tell that they were birds. The 'birds' were just badly drawn circles causing them to just stare at it. "Go!"
"I'm not singing."
"... WORK WITH ME!"
"No."
"Come on!"
"No."
"Please?"
"Nuh uh."
"You have to! NOW GO!"
"... Hey birds! Wanna know something?" Kiyotsugu just went with it. "This ugly well here tells me that that guy can't draw." Completely off.
"STOP! What are you doing?"
"Criticizing."
"Stop and follow the script!"
"... This well is a magical wishing well," he said in a monotone voice.
"The faster you work with me, the faster this is over..."
"Then deal with my changes!"
"Fine, just act with emotion and make it close to the script!"
"This is a magical wishing well, watch." He pokes the desk. "I wish for someone to show up." Close enough right? Just no song. Kiyotsugu is so annoyed with him that he doesn't care anymore. Gozu walked up to the well.
"Yo," Gozu leaned against the desk.
"See birds, someone came," Mezu looked at the 'birds'. "Bye, stranger." He walked out of the scene.
"Fine, bye."
"Good enough..." the assistant director sighed. "Next. Queen, Hunter! Give me some hope back!" They moved the desk, and Tsurara and Shiranami stepped up.
"Hunter, kill Snow-White," Tsurara gave off an evil aura causing Kubinashi, and others, to back up.
"B-but your majesty! The princess-" Shiranami stuttered. Yuki Onna is really good at this.
"No buts! Kill her and bring her heart back to me in this box as evidence!" She handed the script packet to him as substitute. He sighed and went.
"GOOD JOB! Tsurara, you are my best actress! You deviated a little but that's okay! Shiranami was it? Good job too! You had a good reaction to the demand!" He is the only one in that group not to feel the aura. "Next! Hunter, princess! And this time work with me..." He scribbled 'flowers' on the board. Let's just say, he should not be an artist. Mezu stood facing the board, trying to figure out how it can be flowers. Shiranami walked behind him holding a pencil. Mezu turned around.
"Ahh..." he merely said.
"Scream!"
"Make me..." Just then, in the background he could have swore he saw a ghost. "AHHHHHH!" he fell backwards.
"Good!" Shiranami walked closer shaking then drop the pencil.
"I-I can't... Run far away into the forest and never return." Kubinashi held on strong, he didn't want to redo his part.
"Why?"
"The Queen! She's jealous of you and wants to kill you!"
"I can't imagine that..." Rikuo stopped Kiyotsugu from interrupting, assuring him that it'll work out.
"Well it's true, now run!" Mezu stood up and ran to the door but tripped.
"Okay, good enough. Just don't trip." They ended up skipping the forest part because it was too much work and limited space. "Now go clean up the house!"
"What's there to clean?" The props weren't ready yet.
"Oh right. Dwarfs!" The dwarfs scattered out a bit and pretended to mine, but they sang the song at different tempos. "Whoa! Same time!" Those seven just looked at each other and tried again only to be somehow worse. "Count to three!" Even then, it was off. "Follow my cue!" He moved his hand, but he didn't tell them what the cue was. "Okay... One. Two. Three!" NOW it's on time.
"We're done for the day!" Yura called to the others. They gave up on the song because for some reason unison is too hard for them. The actors lined up and started marching out the door but before they even reach there, their knees began to hurt.
"Ow ow ow!" they had to stop and get up.
"What's wrong? You were doing fine, even if you changed it" Kiyotsugu asked only to receive 'what do you think' looks.
"Walking on knees hurt!"
"Don't worry, you'll be wearing something!"
"BUT WE'RE NOT WEARING THEM RIGHT NOW!" The day's still early and some of them already want to kill him.
"Then stand up! Continue!"
"..." The dwarfs continued walking out the door and re-entered.
"Okay, now pretend this is your home and everything's been cleaned!"
"Whoa! Everything's... clean!" Rikuo shouted moving his head around and about. Natsumi just wondered in the back looking around with a dumb look.
"The dust has been wiped!" Saori awed then faked a sneeze.
"The webs are gone..." Kana said with a yawn.
"The dishes are cleaned and placed into the cabinets!" Aoi attempted with a grump attitude... Attempted...
"Stop! You got to sound grumpier! Surely you've been grumpy before."
'Have I...?' After a long period of thought, he shook his head.
"Can you act grumpy?" He just shrugged. "... Well since this play has already been changed, you're not Grumpy but... Mellow!" Mellow...
"I have a question," Shima inserted. "I'm playing Bashful right? How am I going to turn red on cue?" Good question.
"Shima, walk with me." Kiyotsugu led him out of the room whispering something. Now why did he have to tell him away from the others? (Their conversation: "Shima, when it's time, just think of Oikawa-san. I know you like her." With that, he blushed into three shades of red.) The two returned after a moment. "Resume!"
"The dishes are cleaned and placed into the cabinets," Aoi said calmly.
"Hey look! There's food!" Shima pointed to table. Yes, a table is delicious huh? He was about to touch the table until Yura slapped his hand. "Ow!"
"Don't touch it! You don't know you- who ate- made it! Someone must be in here... Be it human or human- monster." They looked to the side where there would be a curtain because there won't be an upper level. Mezu was made to lay on the tables throughout their scenes. He has an annoyed face thinking, 'It hurts. It hurts. It hurts.' repeatedly.
"Dopey, go look!" Yura pushed Natsumi there. She looked, and Mezu moved a bit. She came back out panicking gesturing all sorts of nonsense. "A monster?" They all creeped in careful to see. Mezu sat up, but upon instinct, Yura threw a charm onto him.
"AHH! WHAT THE?" He panicked. Rikuo removed the charm.
"YURA! She's not a yokai!" Kiyotsugu shouted. Sure, she's not...
"Sorry, it was upon instinct. I was raised believing monsters are yokai..." Yura apologized.
"But humans don't have instinct," Shima pointed out. She glared at him.
"You know what I mean..."
"Well, let's take a five minute break..." Kiyotsugu put his head down, tired. Apparently only a few of them aren't good actors. Rikuo sat with his yokai companions. Then he could have sworn he saw a ghost. He was stunned, wide eyed, wouldn't budge.
"Rikuo?" Tsurara poked him. He snapped back into sense.
"Sorry, I thought I saw a ghost."
"I saw one earlier, but I thought it was imagination," Mezu added.
"What did he ghost look like?"
"Big."
"... Anything else?"
"It was only a glimpse."
"Okay, I thought I saw Hihi..."
"Hihi? He's still lurking around? Why here?" Shiranami asked. He wanted to join in on the fun at school maybe?
"I don't know. It might just be me. Don't tell Shouei yet." They nodded.
"ALRIGHT! BREAK'S OVER!" Kiyosugu announced with burning energy.
"WHAT? It hasn't even been three minutes! You liar!" Maki complained.
"I know, but I realized we have more to do. So let's continue that scene! And Yura, don't throw anything." They got into position again.
"Oh, it's... little people?"
"STOP! It's suppose to be, 'Oh, it's little men!'"
"But some of them are men."
"Just go with the script! It's not that hard!"
"Then you do play the part!"
"I'm the director!"
"Assistant."
"Assistant director! The roles have already been selected and aren't going to change! GO!"
"..."
"Kiyotsugu, just go with the changes..." Rikuo gave in.
"Fine, why must girls be so difficult..." he exasperated. But he's not a girl.
"Oh, it's little people," Mezu looked. He still didn't go with the script!
"It's a girl? That's no monster!" Kana declared, although those words are very ironic for Mezu.
"Excuse me, ma'm. What are you- who are you and what are you doing there- here?" Yura asked.
"Well, I ran away from a hunter who was trying to kill me because the queen order it. Something about jealous... That sort of thing. It's normal I guess. Oh, I'm Snow-White." What part of that is normal? In the distance they could hear muffled sounds outside and some growling.
"The princess?" they exclaimed.
"Yes."
"Uhh... So you ran into here?"
"Yep."
"Was the messing- cleaning and booking- cooking you're doing?"
"Yep. You people are messy little... people."
"What makes you think you could stay here?" Aoi asked.
"Well if you let me stay, I'll do the house work for you."
"Will you really?"
"I did it just know, didn't I?"
"Aw, let her stay. Cleaning and cooking will be one thing less to worry about," Shima said. They agreed to that. "But where will you sleep?"
"Not here..."
"But the princess should have the beds."
"NO! I'll find somewhere to sleep and something else to sleep on!" But the desks make a lovely and comfortable bed.
"We insist!" And before he could argue back they left the area. I guess they didn't want the 'beds' either. What's wrong with them? The dwarfs looked around for a comfortable spot and fought for it, eventually resting. That scene was particularly hard without the props.
"Okay. Next! Queen! Mirror!" Tsurara and Rinko stepped forward as everyone else cleared out.
"Mirror, mirror on the wall. Now who's the fairest of them all?" She held a vain glaze.
"Queen, you are of beauty rare, but Snow-White living in the glen with seven little men is a thousand times more fair," Rinko responded successfully. Note this bit is from the Grimm's version but with two words changed.
"WHAT! She is dead! Behold her heart lies in this box! How could a dead woman be more beautiful in her decaying state?" Furious, she held the 'box' towards Rinko.
"You are mistaken, that is a pig's heart you hold. Didn't I also say that she is living?"
"WHAT?" Tsurara growled an stomped off.
"Good! Slightly different, but good. Rinko come here and Tsurara continue!" Kiyotsugu directed. She paced around.
"If I want something done right, I have to do it myself... Then, I'll need a disguise! Disguise... As what? An old lady? Nah, that's too weird..."
"Uh, Tsurara?"
"I know! I'll use make up and ugly clothes to make it seem like I'm a peasant girl taking a stroll!"
"Tsurara?"
"Now how to kill her..." Tsurara, ignoring Kiyotsugu, flipped open a book. "Ah! The sleeping spel-AHHHHHH!" Tsurara fell backwards looking forward.
"Tsurara?" They rushed to her. "What's wrong?"
"Sorry, I thought I saw a ghost..."
"Ghost? A yokai? Where?" Now he's back into his fanatic mode.
"It's probably just nothing. Come on! Let's continue!"
"Whoa, five minute break!" He already started hunting for the ghost.
"Tsurara," Rikuo called. "Who did it look like?"
"It's as you said. It looked like Lord Hihi..."
"Hmm... I'll ask around when we get home." Kiyotsugu soon came back after finding nothing.
"Okay, let's continue-" The bell rings. "Tomorrow..."
"Wait, tomorrow?"
"Yeah."
"Don't you mean 'lunch'?"
"No. We actually practiced through lunch." They didn't even lunch calls, but that would explain the growls and sounds.
"..." They got their stuff and went home. At the Nura mansion, some screams could be heard about. Rikuo and company rushed in at the screams. "What's going on?"
"G-ghost!" Natto boy told them.
"It's here too? Grandpa!" He ran and found the Supreme Commander calming sitting with Gyuuki drinking tea as the commotion continued.
"Oh, Rikuo."
"Grandpa! Did you see a ghost?"
"Is that what the commotion is?" That's a no... "Thought it was a party or something." How could screaming in terror be a party? Well, they are yokai, and they do inflict fear...
"Can... Can yokai become ghosts?"
"Never heard that before. Why?"
"The ghost looks like Hihi." They coughed and then he looked at his grandson.
"Are you sure?" Then the ghost entered the room through the door. "H-Hihi?" he sputtered nearly doing a spit take. The ghost looked at him and went towards them.
"Ah, Supreme Commander. How are you? Oh hi Gyuuki!" Hihi asked.
"How am I? How are you still around? I thought you died!"
"You say that as if you're not happy I'm still here!"
"It's not that but-"
"Long story short, my clan and I were attacked but I didn't die, though I was close. Instead, I was in a death like state and a passerby noticed and rescued me. The passerby happened to be a yokai doctor. Luckily it was the same for some of my clan but not all... We spent all this time in recovery." I'll explain this further, later.
"So... You're still alive?"
"As far as I'm concerned."
"Not a ghost?"
"I went through the door, not the wall didn't I?"
"Why were you at school?" Rikuo asked.
"Oh, young master! I wanted to pay a visit."
"Grandpa? Should we tell the others?"
"You do it," Nurarihyon said. Rikuo went to tell the others. Soon it quieted down a little but still noisy.
"Still as lively as ever, huh?"
"Yep. Before us, who else knew that you were alive?"
"The person who saved us."
"Besides that person."
"Hmm... No one."
"Your son doesn't even know?"
"Not yet. I'm not sure how to say it."
"Well, good luck with that." Rikuo came back into the room and let out a sigh. "Rikuo, how was school?"
"..."
"Practice coming along?" He and his classmates said nothing. "Where's Ao?"
"Uhhh..." He was still at school practicing when they left. He got the lead! Kejoro wasn't at school that day because it was her turn to be on patrol. Aotobo came back.
"How was school?"
"I got the lead role!" Ao announced. "Waka, want role did you get?"
"A minor one, but it hurts..."
"Hurts? WHY?"
"I was walking on my knees..." Rikuo and Kappa's knees were red. It was clear what roles they got.
"Why didn't waka-sama get the lead?"
"I don't want a female role!" That was rather inconsiderate towards Mezumaru. "Oh, sorry..." Now they know what he got too.
"Oh, they're doing a play? That's why they were acting..." Hihi solved. Ao turned to that familiar voice.
"HIHI?" he exclaimed.
"Hi~" he waved. They explained to him the story. "So it was Mezumaru as the princess, Tsurara the queen, Rinko the magic mirror, Gozumaru the prince, Kubinashi the hunter, and Rikuo and Kappa as two of the dwarfs."
"Mezumaru and Gozumaru as princess and prince..." They all looked green at that.
"We didn't pick our roles!" they argued. "I bet the drawing was rigged..." No it wasn't... Then the noise got louder.
"What's going on now?" Gyuuki wondered. He stood up to find out. He soon returned and looked at Hihi. "I hope you know how to explain now."
"Eh?" he merely responded.
"He's here." In the other rooms...
"Shouei! Go to the room two doors on the right!" Karasu Tengu ordered him."
"Why?" He finds it odd and slightly suspicious that they're all telling him that.
"Just go, you'll see soon enough!"
"Fine, but it this is a prank-"
"Rest assure it's not!" He left the crazy room and opened the door with everyone else but one is not in sight.
"I wonder if they're all okay in the front..."
"They're just jumpy. They probably had some sake," Rikuo concluded.
"Why am I told to come here?"
"I think I know why," said a familiar voice but none of their mouths moved. He quickly turn the right where the voice was only to back up a little from the sudden sight of an seemingly large mask in front of his face. "It's probably both masters are here!" Everyone else were like, 'are you serious?'.
"D-d-d-d.." Shouei couldn't even say a three little word.
"What? Is something on my face?" Yes. He's now petrified. He might need a gold needle. Then some growls could be heard. Remember, they missed lunch and attention turned to the embarrassed kids. They killed the moment not that it was really a heartfelt reunion.
"Heh heh. Sorry, we didn't eat. We'll take our leave."
A good several hours later... Rikuo was in his room, looking through the script changing whatever was changed.
'Yo!'
'Not now...'
'Oh come on, you're still mad about yesterday?'Rikuo didn't reply. 'Hey, we're the same person. Night time is my domain. I wanted to move around.'
'You didn't have to knock me out... That hurt...'
'You wouldn't let me take over...'
'Get over it.'
'You're the one who needs to get over it.'
'Just for what you did yesterday, you don't have control today.'
'OH WHAT? Fine then... Then beware of tomorrow!'
'What are you up to...?'
'I'm not telling!' (sticks his tongue out) Rikuo just shooed him away. The image of his counterpart disappeared in front of him and it was quiet again. "I wonder how much things could change in the second half tomorrow..." He slid open the door leading outside and drew a line.
"You summoned?" Seishin asked.
"Would you bring out dad?" Seishin summoned him, but in place of him was a piece of paper that says, 'out to lunch'. "EH? Out to lunch?"
"Yeah, you won't believe what the afterlife is like."
"Do you know when he'll be back from... lunch?"
"About now." Seishin resummoned Rihan.
"Dad..."
"Oh hey Rikuo!"
"You have a lunch break?"
"Yeah. You won't believe what the afterlife is like."
'That's the second time I heard those exact words. I'm not sure what it means but I have a good feeling what it could be...' "Okay, dad. Don't you think everything would be a lot easier if humans and yokai and coexist?"
"Yeah but that's difficult. Yokai sometimes need Fear to survive. Humans are easily scared of yokai and find them as a threat. One day, it'll happen though."
"I hope so. I really want to tell my friends, it would make things a lot easier but it's also risky..."
"Who says you can't tell them? If you trust your friends, then it should be fine."
"Yeah... I'll think about it. Say, you're actually acting mature today."
"Hey, hey, hey! What's that suppose to mean?" They just laughed. "Okay kiddo, go to sleep. It's late."
"What's your definition of 'late'? It's only eight!"
"Kids gotta sleep early."
"But I'm not a kid anymore."
"So you're thirteen? Adult age for yokai?"
"Yes." I would assume so especially at this point of the series' timeline.
"Well you're mostly human so that doesn't count!"
"WHAT? Then how does that work for you being half and half?"
"It doesn't matter since I'm over three hundred years old. Besides, to parents, their kids will always be kids."
"Is that why you're immature?"
"Okay kiddo, seriously go to sleep. One day I will return, don't make return unhappy."
"Return? How?"
"I'll find a way! Bye." He disappeared. Rikuo, being a good boy, followed his father's order to sleep. Besides, tomorrow will be a long day.
...
Okay I know what you all are thinking: Why did you bring Hihi back and not Rihan? Well, simply put, it was poorly thought out. I wanted to make them feel like they were delusional so he was wondering about. I don't know if yokai can become ghosts because humans can become yokai. Also Seishin can't move so that kind of cancels that possibility. But if you really want Rihan back alive I think I can make some adjustments, see ambiguous ending for this chapter hinting his return.
The other think you may be thinking is, the play is not that hectic. Well, some of them are following plot and others are deviating. So it's generally following very loosely but not completely unrecognizable. Most of the major changes are in the second half that's not in this chapter because I felt it was becoming too long and I wanted to add the parts after rehearsal.
Well it's still odd with a not-elegant but stubborn princess, casual-like prince (though with only two lines), seven tall young dwarfs (not their fault) that don't know unison, and a stuttering mirror. The queen and hunter were portrayed well, though Tsurara's going to change some things.
R&R please