Disclaimer: This is a work of fanfiction, I do not claim any rights to any of the characters or
concepts created or owned by Viz Video or Rumiko Takahashi. This is just the work of one fan to the others. The only characters or concepts that i claim are the ones I created or introduced. That said, I bring you:
The Annals of the Heroine Akane, and the Dreaded Demon King. A Tale of the Mirrorverse.
Chapter 10: Doubt is the seed that grows in uncertainty, and yields strange fruit.
Kasumi had to admit that she had been distracted in the days that followed the battle while they repaired the damage and healed the wounded. As she looked at the dead and wounded, her doubts tended to waver. On the one hand, what the demon's had done in the battle had been horrific, one the other she wondered again if the whole war could have been avoided somehow. This train of thought worried her, because the Goddess had ordained that the demons must be destroyed.
Her thoughts tended to drift back to one person, the one who instilled these doubts in her in the first place. The demon Ryouga. It didn't make sense. He should be a fierce, merciless beast, bereft of reason or empathy. Yet, he seemed so very sad about the war. He regretted what he had to do in the battles, He showed regret and empathy. He seemed so very tragic, somehow.
Not at all what she had been trained to expect. By what was written in the churches records and scriptures, she should have been ravaged and eaten. Her fate should have been sealed from the moment he took her. Yet, here she was. She had been returned unharmed once the fighting had ceased and it was safe for her once more.
It was a quandary she was ill prepared to solve, yet there was no one she could talk to. She couldn't bring it to any member of the church, nor her family. They would think she was possessed, or had been bewitched or seduced by the demon. She just couldn't believe that Ryouga would ever be capable of that.
She just couldn't understand how someone so monstrous, so strange and foreign could have so much empathy, so much sadness. Yes, there was resentment and anger lying under the surface, no one who saw him rampaging through a battlefield could think otherwise, but didn't her sister have a similar drive and rage? How many human warriors revelled in the bloodshed and violence?
It made her question who was the monster here.
She could sympathize and empathize with Ryouga, and they could talk. He had seen so much more of the world in his many years of life, and with the curse he bore he had wandered far more of the world than she could even imagine. It seemed that the demon king managed to keep him nearby, something that the eternal wanderer found refreshing and novel.
She could understand that, in her own way.
Kaumi sighed as she returned to the task at hand, and tended to the sick and wounded as she could with the gifts that she had been given. The fact that she could still use her gifts, use the Goddesses blessing, set her mind somewhat at ease. She hadn't been rejected from Her grace, so perhaps her thoughts were not as heretical as she worried they were?
Kasumi shook her head, made sure that her gentle smile was once more in place, and returned to her work.
It was better than letting her thoughts wander where they would.
Akane and Nabiki sat at the tavern and nursed their drinks as they ate their meal. They were both in a mood, it seemed. Akane had been fuming about how close she had come to defeating the demon king. She had scolded and raged at the knight who had ordered the charge, and sent him back to the capital to carry word.
Honestly, Nabiki thought he had gotten off easy. She had not quite completely recovered herself. Yes, her sister had taken care of her wounds, but the fight still ate at her mind. She had never encountered an opponent like that, and she found the idea of facing them again oddly excited her.
It was quite the messy little problem, indeed.
At least the bard playing by the fire was good. The busty little redhead had talent, that was for sure. Easy on the eyes, engaging and outgoing and with a good singing voice.
Add in the fact that even Akane seemed to have relaxed a bit, and you had a definite win marked on the board. What Nabiki couldn't figure out was why the strangely colored cat perched either on her shoulder or sitting in her lap kept glaring at her.
It was kind of cute, if you ignored the 'I'm going to kill you.' feeling the cat gave off. Not that most cats didn't give off that sense at times, but she got the odd feeling that this particular feline was rather confident in her ability to do so.
Nabiki glanced over at Akane, who had her eyes closed and was definitely lost in the soulful sound of the bard's voice. It was rare to see this side of her youngest sister anymore, she was usually so wrapped up in her duties and the destiny she had been given that she almost never just relaxed and let herself be a young girl anymore. Of course, the same could be said of all three of the sisters.
And that brought Nabiki's mind back to the question of her eldest sister, and what was going on with her since the battle. She couldn't quite blame her for being a bit distracted, her real duties begin after a battle with tending to the sick, injured and those left behind to grieve. But lately, she had been more distracted than usual, like there was something that she couldn"t get off her mind. It made Nabiki wonder all anew what happened, and why Kasumi didn't feel like she could talk to them about what was on her mind.
Something to take care of later he supposed.
In the meantime, she figured she could try to do something about her youngest sister, and keep her in a good mood.
"Akane dear? Why don't you go ask the lady bard if she knows any of the songs from where we grew up, unless you have a particular song that you would want to hear?" Nabiki suggested as she took another drink, and exchanged looks with the cat once again.
Akane hesitated for a moment, then took another drink and stood up. "Not that I think she will know any of the songs from our home." She said dismissively.
Nabiki smirked and nodded, used to this side of her sister. She did wish that she would be more honest with herself. Honestly, if she hadn't decided to give her sister a nudge, she would have probably taken a shot herself. The bard was an exceptional beauty, and any woman who appreciated the beauty of the female form at all would take notice of the curvaceous young lady.
Akane walked over towards the redhead with her back straight and her eyes locked forward. She felt awkward for some reason, and that made her irritable. She took a breath, and stopped in front of the bard and cleared her throat.
The bard looked up and smiled warmly. Akane helt her heart skip a beat as they locked eyes, before the bard looked down as she petted her bristling cat. "Greetings, lady hero. How can I be of assistance to you this fine day?" She asked politely.
Akane hesitated for a moment, then asked her question, as she fully expected to be dissapointed. "Do you know the Lament of Liselle, or The Dawn over the Edgewall Mountains? It's okay if you don't, my hometown is small and far away." Akane said.
Akane sighed inwardly in disappointment as the lady bard seemed to pause for a bit, before she nodded. The bard opened her full lips, as she sang the Lament without the use of her instrument, letting her strong soprano carry the doleful notes. Akane stepped back for a moment, then slowly sank into a nearby chair as she listened to a song she did not expect to hear again.
The bard gave the Heroine a saucy little grin as she reached for her lute. "I'm not confident with the other song, but if you have another request, I'd love to sing it for you." The bard said.
I'd like that. My name is Akane, Akane Tendo." Akane said, a warm smile on her face.
The lady bard smiled and nodded. "I know who you are.". She said cheekily, then bowed at her waist as her cat dropped to the floor and stalked over to stare at Nabiki.
"You can call me Robin." The bard said before she started to perform again.
"Robin, is it? Is that your performing name, or your actual one?" Akane asked as she picked up the drink that had been placed by her hand.
"You are a bold one. It's my traveling name. I'm the minstrel Robin." Robin replied before she once more started to play.
"Robin? Well, minstrel Robin, I leave myself in your capable hands." Akane said, then blushed when she got a saucy wink from the lady bard.
Ranko eyed the heroine across from her as she played, once again she had found her persona of 'Robin' useful for getting into human towns, and in this case, near the very person she was going to have to face once again. She did find it hard to believe that the bloodthirsty warrior who had charged headlong at a dragon was this same young woman who sat with her eyes closed as she listened to Ranko play song after song. Something to consider, later.
Meanwhile, Nabiki and Robin's cat were engaged in a staring contest as the cat sat on the table opposite of Nabiki.
"I don't know what I did to you, but I'm sorry?" Nabiki said as she eyed the feline across from her.
The cat just turned up its nose at her then went back to glaring.
Nabiki sighed, as she went back to her drink. It looked like it might be a long night.
Kasumi was tired, but she still had other things she had to attend to. Like gathering herbs for medicines and poultices. She could have left it to the novices, but some of what she needed could only be found in the woods, and it was still too dangerous to send a young novice out. It might be a bit reckless for her to go herself, but she needed the time to think, and there was nothing in the area more dangerous than a few roaming goblins, or so Nabiki had said.
For a bit of quiet and time to think, it was worth the minor risk. Kasumi might not be a fighter, but she could handle a few goblins on her own.
She pushed through the woods as she looked for what she needed, and headed deeper into the forest. The reason she had decided to venture so far was because of meeting Ryouga. Not in any hope of talking to the strange being, no. She'd seen one of the herbs she needed, and thus was sure it grew here.
There was no way that he would be anywhere nearby, since his master had retreated with his army. It was a shame, in a way. She would have liked to talk to him more, even if he was the reason for her uncertainty. Nay, perhaps it was because he was the reason. Perhaps she could find some answers in his words.
She paused as she noticed movement ahead in a small clearing. She gripped her staff tighter as she carefully stepped out of the woods. What she saw confused her. A small camp lay before her, the fire pit was cold, and the small tent was closed. What caused her to pause was the large boar tied to the lone tree in the middle of the open expanse.
It was large, and wild looking if one ignored the fact it was tied with a sturdy rope to the tree, and about it's thick neck was a stipend yellow and black cloth, much like the sash that Ryouga wore.
Kasumi hesitated, then slowly approached. She had always had a way with animals, and since he was tied up, it seemed safe enough. The boar stopped and looked at her with his squinty eyes and held still as she approached.
There was something familiar about the boar, it's presence, or the odd light that seemed to shine in its eyes. She wasn't sure why, but she slowly approached with one hand extended. She lightly touched the still boar, and was surprised by how warm it was.
"You really do remind me of him, my friend. I do wish he was here, I have so much I want to talk to him about, so many questions.". Kasumi sighed and stepped back. She backed up until she was beyond the reach of the rope before she turned her back.
She stopped at the sound of a deep, gentle voice behind her. "And why would you want to talk to me, Priestess Kasumi? Are we not enemies?" Ryouga said as he resumed his humanoid form.
Kasumi turned as she clutched her staff tight in one hand and rested the other on the bag sling over one shoulder. "I don't think we are, Ryouga." She said simply, honestly as she smiled a genuine smile, the first since she had returned to the city.
He just grunted his agreement as he untied himself from the tree, removing the rope from around his waist.
"Why were you tied to the tree?" Kasumi asked as she sat gently in a log by the fire pit.
"Xian Pu does that so I don't get lost." He answered as he started the fire
"You are not alone, then?". She said as she looked about.
"I was, for now. My companions won't be back til the morning, so you can stay a while .. if you wish." He said as he sat across from Kasumi.
"I think I would like that. Thank you for having me." Kasumi said as she relaxed.
He nodded his heavy head, and they sat for a while in silence before they started to talk again.
They spent a good section of that evening talking before Kasumi made her way back home, escorted to the edge of the woods by Ryouga. Her mood was surprisingly good, considering the task that was still laid before her. The fact that Ryouga had helped her find the herbs needed might have something to do with that, but she thought it might have more to do with having someone she could talk to about what was on her mind. Even if he was a demon and someone that should be her enemy.
It seemed that the more she sought answers, the more questions that she found. .
