Awaking the day after meeting the owl beast for the first time, you don't find yourself gazing upon the (rapidly becoming familiar) ceiling of your room within the Owl House. Instead, you stare upon a much more familiar sight of the sewer that is your mindscape. That is when you finally notice that you're currently submerged within two- maybe three inches of sewer water. With a loud groan, you push yourself up to stand upon the still water. With a flare of your fire chakra, you mostly get rid of the foul water, all that remains is the faint scent.
As usual you find yourself in a corridor with pipes lining where the crown molding would usually be, some pipes are either red or blue. With one look toward one of the red pipes, you follow it 'upstream' as it were until you come upon your one true companion, Kuruma. Otherwise known as Kyubi no Kitsune, or the Nine-Tailed Fox. No longer are they locked behind the cage/bars that your birth father had locked them behind. Now they lounged without a care in the middle of the room, one tail flicking here or there in apparent boredom.
Kuruma had once been the being you were the unwilling jailer for, but now you mostly saw them as either an annoying roommate or older sibling depending on the day. They were the only being 'alive' to know about your past lives, the only one who knew about the horrors you had faced in your past lives, the only one who knew how you had died previously. They were the only reason why you could fight without worry, without breaking down crying some nights. Somewhere along the way they had become the one you bounced ideas off of, the one who kept you from going off the deep end, the one who kept you alive despite everyone's best efforts of the opposite.
Being well used to this by now you slowly stroll over to them, before settling in the crook of their elbow, similar to a patient and their psychologist on that stereotypical lounge chair. For a moment everything is quiet before the deep, masculine voice of your Biju echos through the room. "Kit good to see you again." With a small smile, you say to them, "Kuruma its barely been a week since we last talked, but considering that you're here alone I won't say any more than that." They give a small huff at that and nose you in the side as they roll their eyes.
"Tell me kit what has been going on out there, I've felt nothing but fluctuating emotions coming off you, it's starting to become... annoying." Your smile becomes a frown as you think over the last few days. "Tell me Kuruma, have you ever heard of the Boiling Isles?" When you see them look at you with confusion you tell them more, "The best I can figure, the human realm is connected to not only the summoning realm but also the so-called 'Demonic Realm'. I will be the first to admit that the beings here are neither human nor animal but they also don't fit into the demonic stereotype that most humans believe either."
When Kuruma asks for a description of the so-called demons you describe Hooty in detail, which slightly disturbs them, and then you describe ratworms to them which makes their nose scrunch up in distaste. You grow quiet as you remember the owl beast that Eda was cursed as, which catches Kuruma's attention, though they don't initially push you to tell them what's wrong. You think for several moments trying to figure out the best way to tell them about the beast, but you ultimately decide to rip the bandage off.
"Yesterday I found out that my mentor, and maybe parental figure, was 'cursed' to transform into something called an owl beast, which I can only describe as a bear with the face of an owl with wings, and no it is not an Owlbear." Kuruma huffs slightly at your remark, they enjoy looking at your (slightly murky) memories of your past lives, and your memories of D&D and the campaigns that you took part in interest them the most. (Sometimes you wonder if you should figure out a way to run a campaign with them but you have no idea how to even go about that.)
You sigh as you continue, "Honestly Kuruma, they remind me of our initial meeting a few years ago, and the horror stories the Biju told me before they went off across the Elemental Nations." You hear them take in a deep breath that they release causing your hair to go flying in all directions, making you give them a look that they readily ignore. Behind you, their tails flick as they think about your words for just a moment before speaking, "And this makes you... upset? mad? no this feels like it worries you more than anything."
"Yeah, I can't help but wonder about what-ifs and whatnot. I know that I shouldn't, but I can't help it... this is one of the reasons why my first death was so messy, but I don't have to explain that again to you now, do I?" After a shake of their head, you continue, "I want to help my mentor, I really do but in order to commiserate with her I need to give her the background needed otherwise she'll just downplay what I tell her...not that I would blame her."
You let out a sigh as you realize that in order to help Eda you're gonna have to rip off the metaphorical bandage and tell her about your past... or you're going to explain about your current past and not your previous lives as you gaze upon five picture frames. One of them is almost completely empty, except for a small splash of crimson red in the bottom right corner the canvas is a dull cream color. The other four canvases each have a painting in them that hurts to look at.
The first is done in monochrome colors. The second is filled with muted natural colors, browns greens, grays... you get the picture. The third has mostly monochrome colors with a splash of blue, green, red, or yellow filling the corners. The fourth and final canvas is filled with vibrant reds and greens with accents of yellow and black across it. You can't do more than take in the colors as the grief and the hurt that waft off these canvases, these memories, is almost too much to handle, much less take in the actual scene depicted on them.
You tear your eyes from them and back to Kuruma with a fake smile on your lips that they can tell is fake, but they thankfully don't call you out on it. The world around briefly blurs before your eyes, and then before you know it you're staring up at the ceiling of your room. You stay there for longer than you mean to, listening to the sounds around you as you try to figure out how to bring up the subject without causing Eda to freak out.
Eventually, you decide to stop wallowing and carefully pick yourself out of your sleeping bag when your back protests. You make a mental note to either make yourself a softer mattress or inquire to Eda about where to acquire one, possibly stealing it if being sold by a zealot. With King still asleep on the sleeping bag and Yoru still on guard, you make your way downstairs to start on breakfast. Today the menu is good ole pancakes, with demon realm fruits.
As the last of the batter cooks you separate the larger stack into three smaller ones, and find that the one currently cooking is the odd man out so to speak. You decide to toss it to Hooty when you get the chance, after all, he deserves the small treat after the mess that was last night. He starts to gobble it down as you hear the sounds of King making his way down the stairs and just faintly hear Eda moving around in her room. You sweep your gaze around the living room and find nothing out of place... if you discount the fact that the room no longer has a coffee table.
Said Coffee table is now safely hidden away in a sealing scroll awaiting either a bonfire or a repair job... your money is on the bonfire though. You should ask Eda if there are any trees to avoid chopping down... or any that need to be chopped down. It might have been a lifetime since you worked on a woodworking project but you're sure that it's like riding a bike right?
You scoop up King the moment he comes down the stairs carrying him over to his chair and let him settle in before getting both his plate and yours, alongside the bowl of fruit. As you enjoy breakfast you quiz him on the various fruits that you found. Crab Apples, apples in the shape of crabs that also act like them, and their cousin the Blood Apple, the prominent apple used to make Apple Blood, taste eerily similar to the human realm equivalent, though the Blood Apple is much more tart and oozes juice. Booberrys, blueberries that are either white or light sky blue, taste like crisp blueberries with a frozen consistency to them. Ember Peaches, peaches with small growths similar to dragon fruit rinds, are sweet yet spicy. And Sorrow Cherries, blue cherries that are twice the size of the human realm version, are insanely sour making you cough, not expecting to be hit in the tastebuds with a load of natural citrus acid.
By this point Eda is making her way down the stairs, so you gather up her portion alongside a cup of Apple Blood. You stare off into space as you try to figure out the best way to tackle this situation so much so that you don't realize that Eda has been trying to catch your attention for a while now based on her waving her hand repeatedly in front of your face. When you finally focus your eyes on her, she has an eyebrow raised in a silent question. You swallow with a bit of difficulty before asking if you could talk to her about something as you look at your hands.
For a moment nothing is said before you hear her let out a soft sigh. You hear her get up and for just a split second you think that is the end of that before you feel her hand on your upper arm before you're pulled to your feet. She gently leads you into the living room and lightly pushes you to sit on the couch. Once you're sat she sits beside you leaving a few inches of room as King scrambles to sit in her lap. "Alright Kid, whats going on in that head of yours?"
You take a moment to gather your thoughts as your mouth becomes dry, but you push on past that, "While you were explaining things last night I couldn't help but think that what you were talking about sounded familiar to me. I didn't want to believe it at first but after sleeping on it I can safely say that what you described, the whole 'something taking over my body and ruining my life' thing is something that I have felt before." You can feel the shock roll of the two demon realm natives so you continue before they can butt in, "In the human realm, we don't have curses but we do have something that can mimic what you described." You take a deep body-shaking breath as you feel Eda rest a hand on your shoulder and King rests a paw on your thigh.
"The human realm has something called Bijū, or loosely translated Tailed Beasts. These 'Beasts' have any number of tails from one to ten, several stories tall, and each tail represents how powerful they are... rumor has it the nine tails have the ability to completely level a mountain range with a casual flick of their tail." Here you can see King's eyes widen in apparent wonder, as Eda's eyebrows furrow as she tries to figure out why you're telling her about this. "What you need to realize is that the Bijū are essentially immortal, completely made out of chakra or life energy, they have no mortal/physical form to fight against. Because of this most humans refer to these beings as Demons."
You can tell that Eda is slowly putting the pieces together as King starts to ask a string of questions that you can barely understand. "Because humans see them as Demons they treat them like them, with scorn and hostility. Most of the Bijū saw themselves as protectors and peacekeepers through the actions of their sire, The Sage. However humanity has never been good with playing nice with those they see as a danger to them, and so they started to devise a way to trap the Bijū away forever."
"It wasn't until almost a little less than a hundred years ago did they came up with a way to do so. Mito Uzumaki, yes my distant great aunt/cousin, figured out a way to seal the Bijū away, but there was a flaw, the Bijū could only be sealed inside a living being. Some of them could be temporarily sealed inside a non-living object, but the more tails that they had the more likely they would break free. So Mito sealed away the strongest of the Bijū away inside her, The Kyūbi no Kitsune, or the Nine-tailed Fox. She and her husband, the first leader of the village I had been born in, later 'gifted' the remaining Bijū to the other great villages hoping to keep the peace between them, however, it wasn't long before the other villages turned to war and bloodshed to acquire more power. "
You close your eyes as you remember the unaltered History lesson that Kuruma had given you a few months back as a full-body shiver goes through you. "Throughout the years the Bijū have become synonymous with danger, power, and hatred further tainting the human's world view of them. Roughly thirty-odd years ago Mito passed the 'torch' as it was containing the Nine-tailed Fox to the next generation, the newest barer was Kushina Uzumaki... my birth mother." You're pulled into a side hug as your words echo through the room, King curls into your lap like a cat would do as you faintly hear the front door open and see out of the corner of your eye Hooty carefully slithering his way to the couch, to perch himself on your shoulder.
"Kushina kept the Fox sealed for almost fifteen years before she ran into a problem. What many do not know is that females with Bijū sealed within them will have problems with the seal itself during childbirth." You take a deep breath as you pull King into your arms, "My birth parents knew this, and took precautions, leading them to bunker down in a faraway cave with only a small handful knowing where they were. My birth was apparently quite normal, and it wasn't until a few moments later that was shattered. An enemy shinobi snuck his way into the cave and killed the guards stationed there alongside the midwife who was holding me at the time. My father was forced to choose between his newborn daughter and his wife, and therefore containing the seal, in the end, he chose to save me, whisking me away from the battlefield before I could also be killed in the crossfire... sometimes I wonder what would have happened if he had chosen the other way around."
That it seems is what breaks Eda. One moment you're sitting on the couch, the next you're in her lap curled into her, King still in your arms. You let out a light sob, this is the first time you have talked about your past to someone else, most either know the basics or know what happened that night. It takes you a few moments to continue, but as you do Eda starts to stroke your hair in calm repetitive motion. "That night that man released the Kyūbi from the seal, and 'convinced' them to attack the village. That battle barely lasted a half-hour, a sixth of the shinobi population was killed, almost seven thousand lost their lives that night Eda, shinobi or civilian, child or elder, it did not matter. But after my father appeared and whisked the Kyūbi away from the battlefield using his signature technique, The Flying Thunder God. Using this he reappeared with them close behind to where I and my mother were waiting. My Mother held them down using her own ability as my father went through the motions to seal the beast away... into the only available host, Me."
Eda's grip tightens on you as King lets out a small whine alongside Hooty's low hoot in your ear. " My parents sealed the Bijū into me making me into what humans call a Jinchūriki, or as it translates Power of Human Sacrifice. And that term is quite literal, I was forced to sacrifice many things to continue to live. On top of that, I was never treated with anything resembling good intentions. For most of my childhood, I was beaten to an inch of my life by various members of the village. My life there was a living hell. The older generation also would plant the idea of me being a demon amongst others my age and younger. I grew up alone without anyone around, no friends, no family, nothing zilch zero."
"As I grew older the stronger these internal feelings would become. Sometimes I would feel a flash of anger before blacking out for a moment only to come to later after doing some grievous to someone else. It took months, nay years to figure out how to contain these flashes before I was able to live my life mostly in piece. Then I found out about the Bijū sealed within me, causing a whole boatload of trouble. Years later I have found through a series of meditation and conversing with them I can now live a mostly normal life alongside them." Finally, the tears start to subside and you wipe your eyes before looking Eda in the eyes. "I would never tell someone how to live their life Eda, but have you ever tried to commune with your inner beast? It wasn't until I reached an accord with mine that I was truly able to live."
She slowly strokes your hair, getting her nails caught here and there on a knot before continuing on. "Kid... I don't know what to say. You've lived a tough life, one that I wouldn't wish on any of the chumps around here. But I will tell you that things aren't that simple around here. I have lived with this curse for thirty years, I doubt that anything will improve things now."
"Eda I'm not asking you to move a mountain for this, I'm asking if you'd be willing to attempt what worked for me... The Kyūbi is the only reason why I'm currently alive and if I have learned anything over the years having a trick up your sleeves will only help you in the long run." As you talk you fiddle slightly with your sleeve before pulling down the sleeve of your right arm. For the first time, your right arm is revealed to the others and you can tell when they notice the scars. A Lichtenberg scar is the most prominent on this arm, but the further along the arm the more scars show up. Small, fading dots are scattered across the arm, two decent-sized circle puncture wounds lay side by side with two smaller circle puncture wounds parallel opposite them, and finally a large, barely faded cut runs along the side of your arm, right along your ulna in fact.
Eda and King look at your arm with horror in their eyes while Hooty gazes upon it with a sense of curiosity. You point at the small faded dots and tell them if the Kyūbi wasn't in you you would have been knocked out through pressure points leading to a very easy death. Pointing at the Lichtenberg scar you say that the lightning had caused your heart to stop beating for almost half a minute, but the Kyūbi had jumpstarted it when they realized that it wasn't going to do that on its own. The puncture wounds were from a giant, venomous snake, and thanks to the Kyūbi you lasted long enough to receive the antivenom, and even then that was just a precaution. And then you point to the almost foot-long gash and point out that you had almost bled out with this wound the Kyūbi had been kind enough to heal it just enough, mid-battle, so there was no chance of it reopening. Everything but the pressure points all happened within the same battle, almost within the same hour even.
Eda stares at your wounds with apparent shock as she takes in what you are saying while King looks the scars over with a hint of curiosity. You raise your other hand to lightly pet Hooty with slow deliberate strokes of your thumb as you cup his head. For a moment all is silent in the Owl House, you've always hated the silence, and here and now the silence is nearly killing you because the once vibrant house is quieter than a mouse. Finally, Eda just nods her head seemingly willing to go along with your scheme, though you're sure that she is just humoring you and doesn't believe that what you are going on about could really help her, which is fair.
For the next few hours you sit with the others and just... talk about your life before meeting them. Eda seems to hate the fact that you were forced into being a child soldier, King on the other hand seems quite interested in any battle you describe, the bloodier the better in his mind. Eda eventually allows you to slide off her lap, which sends you mixed feelings, you're not a child and haven't been for five lifetimes now, but you could safely say that you have never, not once, had a relatively decent parental figure.
Your first set was decent until they disowned you at nineteen after you came out to them, your second set was killed when you were fourteen, the third set was killed when you were fifteen months old, fourth set disowned you at fourteen for coming out as trans (you had been born in a masc. body in that life), and your fifth set had died the day you were born. Even if Eda was a criminal, and even then you have yet to see any chaotic evil acts... she was a firm chaotic neutral which meshed well with your chaotic good leaning neutral self.
After the chaotic, and not the good kind, morning you've all had you all decide on getting takeout again. While going through the mound of takeout menus you find one for a place called Hexby's, which makes you raise an eyebrow. After making sure that the 'hex' is just a play on words and not an actual thing you have to look out for, you scrutinize the menu and find that it is a Cockatrice restaurant, for the most part after you find their sides, salads, and desserts. You double-check some of their sauce options, not wanting to potentially burn your face off, and order a Fried Cockatrice Sandwich with a 'ghost' pepper sauce, which isn't made from human realm ghost peppers thankfully, according to Eda Demon Realm Ghost Peppers are more tangy spicy than packed full of heat like the human realm version.
That night you go to bed with a small smile on your face happy that this family that you are making for yourself seems to be accepting all of you and not just the parts you let them see.