Chapter 3 - Cat got your tongue
Akane's eyes fluttered open to the pale, gray sky. Her body ached as if she'd run a marathon in her sleep. The air smelled faintly of smoke and charred wood, and as she slowly sat up, her surroundings came into focus. What had once been Nagi Hospital was now a field of rubble and ash. The building's skeletal remains jutted out from the ground like twisted fingers clawing at the sky.
"What… happened?" Akane whispered, her voice hoarse. She brushed debris off her tattered pants, her hands trembling as fragmented memories of the previous night flooded her mind: the cat yokai, the moon that wasn't a moon, the strange vibrations, and then… darkness.
Her heart raced as she scrambled to her feet, surveying the devastation. "Momo!" she shouted, her voice echoing in the eerie silence. She dug through the ruins, her right hand scraping against jagged concrete and metal, ignoring the sting of fresh cuts as her left arm hung limply on her side.
Near what looked like the scorched remains of a desk, she found a small, charred object. Akane's heart sank as she picked it up and turned it over. It was Momo's ID card, blackened around the edges but still readable. Next to it lay what appeared to be a phone, its screen cracked and the plastic melted beyond recognition.
"No, no, no," Akane muttered, clutching the ID to her chest. Her breathing quickened, each inhalation sharper than the last. She felt the sting of tears welling in her eyes, her chest tightening painfully. "Not again. Not again…"
Her mind spiraled with worst-case scenarios. Momo and grandma had been her anchors, what remained after she'd lost everything. The thought of losing her cousin too, of failing to protect her, was unbearable. She staggered back, her legs threatening to give out beneath her.
The shrill ring of her phone pierced the eerie silence, but Akane didn't react at first. She was too focused, digging through the rubble with desperate hands, her nails scraping against jagged concrete as she searched for any sign of Momo.
She pushed doors, boulders, and crumbled walls, her mind singularly focused on finding any trace of Momo. Her hands moved on instinct, brushing against jagged edges and lifting debris with strength born of desperation. She barely registered the pain in her shoulder. The faint scent of ash and charred wood lingered, but she didn't notice the unusual sharpness of the smell. Her phone continued to ring in her pocket, its incessant noise grating against her frayed nerves, but she ignored it, her determination overriding the annoyance.
As she sifted through a particularly large pile of rubble, her fingers brushed against fabric. Pulling it free, she realized it was a tattered piece of Momo's skirt, scorched and torn. Akane's heart sank further, her breathing quickening as she whispered, "What the hell happened here?"
The ringing in her pocket grew louder in her ears, a sharp counterpoint to the eerie silence of the ruins. She clenched her jaw, and finallysnatched it from her pocket, her shaking fingers fumbling with the device before she managed to answer. Seeing her grandmother's name on the screen, she pressed it to her ear, her voice trembling with a mix of frustration and fear. "Grandma! Momo is…!""Grandma! Momo is…!" Akane's voice cracked, her words tumbling out in a rush.
"Calm down, Akane," Seiko's voice came through the line, calm and steady as always. "Momo's fine. She got herself in some trouble, but I got there in time. She's resting in her room."
Akane's knees buckled, and she sank to the ground, relief washing over her in waves. "Is she really okay?" She held the tattered skirt in her hand, her eyes closed, imagining the worst of the worst.
"I wouldn't lie about something like that," Seiko said, a faint hint of amusement in her voice. "But you'd better hurry home. I don't generally give you girls a curfew, but I also don't want you to sleep in some asshole's good for nothing bed."
"I-I'd never!" Akane snapped, her tone sharper than she intended. But before she could launch into a full argument, Seiko's snort cut through the tension. Akane froze for a beat, realizing her grandmother had been joking.
"Yeah, okay," Akane muttered, rubbing the back of her neck, her grip on the phone loosening slightly. "Thanks, Grandma. I'll be home soon."
Ending the call, Akane sat in the ruins for a moment longer, her hands trembling as she pocketed Momo's ID. Not knowing what to do with the torn skirt, put it in her backpack. She took a deep breath, forcing herself to her feet. Her legs felt weak, but she willed them to move, one step at a time, as she began her trek back to the Ayase home.
As she walked, Akane became uncomfortably aware of something... off. The faintest noises seemed unnaturally sharp in her ears: the distant hum of cicadas, the rustling of leaves, even the breathing of birds that were flying miles away. She caught herself tilting her head toward sounds like a cat on alert, her ears almost twitching as though trying to pinpoint their source. Her strides, too, felt strange, unnervingly smooth, as if her body moved on instinct, gliding rather than walking.
When the clatter of a can echoed from an alleyway, Akane dropped to a crouch without thinking, her body coiling as though ready to pounce. Her right hand hit the ground lightly, and she froze, staring down at it. Her nails, sharper than she remembered, glinted faintly in the dim light. Her breaths came in shallow bursts as she whispered, "What… is this?"
She froze, staring down at her nails, sharper than she remembered. "What… is this?" she whispered, flexing her fingers. They responded normally, but she couldn't shake the feeling that they were somehow… wrong.
A stray cat darted across her path, its tail high and its eyes gleaming in the dim light. Akane's gaze followed it instinctively, and before she knew it, she'd taken a step toward it. Shaking her head, she forced herself to focus.
"Get it together, Akane," she muttered under her breath, giving her cheek a sharp slap to snap herself out of it. She straightened up and took a steady breath, forcing herself to focus on the road ahead. But no matter how hard she tried, the strange sensations clung to her leaving her with an unshakable sense of unease.
By the time she reached the Ayase home, the sky had darkened further, and her nerves were frayed. As she stepped into the house, the faint light from the kitchen spilled into the hallway. Akane could hear the clink of a glass being set down and soft murmurs. She walked toward the kitchen, her body aching and her shoulder throbbing with every step.
Inside, Momo was rummaging through the fridge, her glasses slightly askew as she carefully filled a glass of water. When she noticed Akane standing silently by the doorway, she jumped, nearly dropping the glass as water splashed onto her hand.
"Gah! Don't scare me like that!" Momo shrieked, adjusting her glasses hastily. Her wide-eyed gaze darted to Akane's disheveled appearance. "We should put a bell on you or something!"
Akane blinked. "Bell?" She said and had the inexplicable urge to lick the palm of her hand. Did that dumb cat yokai do something to her?
Momo froze, her eyes widening as she took in Akane's disheveled appearance. "What happened to you?"
Seiko, sitting at the kitchen table with a cigarette between her fingers, turned her head slowly. Her gaze settled on Akane, and her eyes narrowed. "Well, doesn't this day just keep getting better," she muttered dryly. She gestured with her cigarette. "Get over here, kiddo. Let me look at you."
Akane stepped into the kitchen, her movements sluggish. Her left arm hung at her side in a makeshift sling, her shoulder bleeding through her sports jacket. Bruises dotted her arms and face, a testament to the rough night she'd endured. She raised her right hand, sliding it through her unevenly cut hair, grimacing as the memory of the cat yokai slicing through it flashed in her mind. "It must look like a total mess," she said bitterly, her fingers catching on jagged strands.
Momo set the glass down with a clatter and rushed to her side. "What the hell happened?" she demanded, her voice rising. "You look like you went through a meat grinder!"
Akane forced a weak smile, her lips twitching as she tried to lighten the mood. "It's nothing. Just a scratch. Tis but a flesh wound," she quipped, holding her left arm gingerly as though to emphasize the joke. The attempt at humor earned a deadpan stare from Seiko and a frustrated sigh from Momo, who clearly wasn't buying it.
Seiko stood; her movements deliberate as she walked in circles around Akane. She flicked her cigarette into the ashtray and crossed her arms. "Nothing, huh?" she said, her tone dripping with skepticism. "Your shoulder's bleeding, your hair's a mess, you smell like rotten tuna, and you've got more bruises than a fallen fruit cart. Care to elaborate on how this qualifies as 'nothing'?"
Akane winced under Seiko's piercing gaze. "There was… an incident after my match," she admitted reluctantly. "But really, it's just a scratch! I was barely grazed with a lucky shot from a cheater who cheated! Blood splattered everywhere, and..." She paused, seeing the disbelief in her grandma's eyes. "The other guy got disqualified. Total overreaction if you ask me."
"Lucky shot?" Momo echoed, her voice dripping with disbelief. "Looks like he tried to take your arm off!"
Seiko's brow furrowed as she inspected the hastily wrapped bandages. "Some boy managed to draw blood from you. And you didn't think to mention that earlier?" She exhaled a stream of smoke, clearly irritated. She poked at the bandage, making Akane yelp and pull away. "Did you forget how to block, or are you just that careless?"
Akane glared at her, her cheeks flushing with embarrassment. "It wasn't my fault! He used some technique to cut through the air. A bamboo sword is not very good at blocking something like that,so nicked me. The referee disqualified him, so it's not like I lost."
Momo sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "And then you decided to walk home like this, instead of getting properly patched up? Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant."
Seiko growled and turned to Momo. "Get the first aid kit. We're going to need it."
Momo hesitated, her gaze flickering between Akane and Seiko. "Grandma, shouldn't we take her to a hospital?"
Seiko waved her hand dismissively. "No time for that, I got her covered." She motioned for Akane to sit down. "Now, spill. What else happened? You don't end up looking like this from one scratch." She massaged the bridge of her nose. "And don't go around telling me some lizard people freed the bakeneko and it's totally not your fault he's roaming the city."
Akane sighed, slumping into a chair. "After the match, I went to pick up that package you told me to get. But something went wrong. The seal broke, and that dumb bakeneko got loose. It… kind of cursed me. I think?" She scratched her ear absentmindedly, her nails grazing her skin in a way that made Momo and Seiko exchange worried glances.
Seiko's eyes narrowed. "And you thought it wasn't worth mentioning until now?" she said, her tone dangerously calm.
Akane winced, her tail between her metaphorical legs. "I was going to tell you, but… other stuff kept happening."
"Cursed?" Momo repeated, her voice rising an octave. "What do you mean, cursed? Is everyone getting cursed in this house, or what?"
Akane brought Momo's glass to her mouth and drank all the water in one gulp. "Huh? Who else got cursed?"
"Oh, right, hey! That was for Okarun!"
"Who the hell is Okarun?"
"What's the exact nature of your curse?" Seiko asked, snapping her fingers in front of Akane.
"Uh, the Bakeneko said I had nine days, that I either marry him or else." Akane frowned. "But I, huh, can't quite remember his exact words." She scratched her ear with her foot, earning a worried glance from Momo.
"What else? Try to remember"
Akane shrugged. "Something about how it feels to be catty?"
Seiko rubbed her temples, muttering something under her breath that sounded suspiciously like a curse of her own. "Of course. Because why would things ever be simple?" She straightened, fixing Akane with a stern look. "You're lucky you made it back in one piece. Now sit still and let me fix this mess."
As Momo brought the first aid kit, Seiko got to work, her hands moving with unnatural efficiency. Akane winced with every touch but stayed silent, her mind racing.
Momo began to fill another glass of water, and Akane perked her eyes at her cousin. "What's up with you? Who's this Okarun person?".
"Ken Takakura," replied Seiko, her lips quirking into a sly grin as she watched Momo practically collapse, as though gravity had increased tenfold. "He's a friend of your cousin who got himself cursed by Turbo Granny. He'll be staying here until we sort that mess out."
Akane blinked. "Ken Takakura? Wait, I thought you had a crush on the actor?" She said, turning to Momo. "Was it this guy all along?"
"Okarun! His name is Okarun!" Momo said.
"Wait. Turbo Granny? The speedster yokai?" Akane recalled reading something about that Yokai. "She usually causes car accidents and stuff, right? What did she curse Takakura with?"
"Okarun! Call him Okarun!" Momo insisted, and blushed. "She stole his thing."
"His thing?" Akane wondered why Seiko was snickering. "What thing?"
Momo eyed Akane, hesitated for a moment, and then awkwardly gestured toward her crotch, her face reddening. When Akane didn't get it, Momo pantomimed a gun, and when Akane still didn't get it, she started twirling her finger like a maniac.
Seeing Akane's even more confused face, Seiko said. "I think you lost her."
"You know, his... thing." She grimaced at her own choice of words, then added quickly, "It's my fault, so I'm giving him a hand."
Seiko snorted. "Just... don't give him a hand when he gets it back!"
Akane turned to both her cousin and grandma. "What? Why wouldn't she give him a hand? Turbo Granny stole… what now?"
Momo groaned, slapping her forehead with a dramatic flair that sent her glasses slightly askew. "His weenie! Turbo Granny stole his dong! His penis! His reproductive organ! Is that clear enough for you?" she blurted out, her voice rising in frustration as she threw her hands up in exasperation. The glass in her other hand wobbled dangerously, nearly tipping over before she caught it.
Akane forced her mouth shut, her face caught somewhere between a grimace and a suppressed laugh. "Okay, yeah, you didn't need to say it like that."
"Evidently, I did if I wanted to go through your thick skull! How else am I supposed to explain it?" Momo shot back, her cheeks burning as she crossed her arms defensively. "Do you want me to draw you a diagram or something?"
"No thanks, we'll pass." Seiko snorted despite herself. She finished unwrapping Akane's sloppy bandages and began applying some kind of cream on her wound. "So, you really got a thing for him, like, hard."
"That's not at all what I said!"
Akane gave Seiko a conspiratorial smile. "Sounds like she found her Ken Takakura."
"Gah! Don't say that name!" Momo exclaimed, covering her ears. She screamed for a few seconds, and then continued, pretending nothing happened. She took the glass and turned to leave. "I'm going to get this to Okarun before he dies fromdehydration. Hope you stop bullying me tomorrow."
Akane felt sad that she didn't have confetti to help her grandma torment her cousin. At least she could clap. Not that it was such a good idea with the state of her left arm.
She watched her cousin's retreating figure and sighed. "So, this boy seems like he's good? Momo's last boyfriend was..."
"Dealt with" Seiko said cryptically.
"Oh, you beat him up, too?"
"What do you mean, 'too'?" Seiko asked and winked at Akane."Good girl, I'll get you extra servings of uni."
Akane could almost purr imagining the food. Seiko's eyebrow almost shot up to the sky.
Akane slumped. "I really thought she had died. Or worse."
Seiko ran her fingers through Akane's messed up hair. "She's fine. You're fine."
"Can you help me with the hair?"
"Later, after I'm done playing nurse, we'll see what we can do about that cat curse, your hair can wait." Seiko said, sounding more annoyed than worried.
"What's the deal with Turbo Granny? Is she really bad news?"
"Worse. I'm helping Momo and Takakura deal with Turbo Granny because she's a real pain in the cat yokai is mostly just a moron, an ancient trickster sort, but still a moron who's not too dangerous."
"He was a bit of a weakling." Akane agreed.
"And when you're done healing, you'll capture it, so we can send that bell to a friend of mine who collects cursed objects. He promised to pay me well for that thing." After saying that, Seiko blinked seemingly realizing something. "Oh, I got a quick patch for your cat problem."
"Don't tell me it's catnip or something."
"Nah." Seiko left the kitchen and returned a moment later with a small object. She handed it to Akane who examined it and realized it was a smaller version of Maomolin's bell. "If you wear that like a necklace, it will keep your cat persona in check. It doesn't stop the curse though, so you better not lose it or you'll feel it change you in a second instead of gradually."
Akane examined the bell and groaned. "I'll look like some sort of pervert otaku cosplayer wearing this." She complained but put it on before her grandma could give her another speech.
Seiko was about to say something when the sound of the front door creaking open echoed through the house. In an instant, her casual air evaporated. She flicked her cigarette away with a precise motion, grabbed her trusty baseball bat from its resting place by the wall. Her movements were sharp and deliberate, her posture straightening like a seasoned warrior preparing for battle. With one hand gripping the bat and the other subtly pushing ordering Akane stay on her chair, she fixed her eyes on the doorway.
"Whoever you are," Seiko called out, her voice low and edged with menace, "if you're thinking about causing trouble, let me inform you that I can paint these walls with your brains before you can even blink."
"I thought spirits couldn't just waltz in here?" Akane stood up and eyed the doorway from behind her grandmother's shoulder.
"Either that's not a spirit, or it's a devil incarnate," Seiko muttered, her grip tightening on the bat. Her eyes narrowed with a mix of annoyance and worry, though her tone carried a veneer of confidence. "Not that it matters. Whatever it is, I'll knock it into next week if it tries anything."
She positioned herself in front of Akane with practiced ease, her bat resting lightly on her shoulder as she sized up the shadowy figure. "Stay back, kiddo," she added in a tone that was more reassuring than commanding. "This might get messy, but it's nothing I can't handle."
The figure at the threshold moved closer, its silhouette bending and twisting unnaturally with each step. The dim light seemed to flicker around it, as though the figure bent reality itself. Or was it just invisible half of the time? Did ghosts always do that? Akane tensed, her chest tightening as her eyes tried to track its erratic movements. Her nails became claws that reflexively dug into her palm, leaving faint crescent marks on her skin.
Seiko's stance remained firm, her sharp eyes narrowing further as she adjusted her grip on the bat, the only thing standing between them and whatever malevolence approached.
As the figure stepped fully into the light, it solidified into the form of a petite pink-haired girl dressed in a tattered white gi. A massive backpack, easily ten times her size, hung off her shoulders.
The girl's face was pale, and her movements were unsteady, as though she hadn't eaten in weeks. Her body was covered in nasty bruises, and her breaths came in short, labored gasps. Her short pigtail wagging like some lost dog's tail.
"Santa… Zarbon…" the girl wheezed; her voice barely audible as she struggled to stay upright. Her breaths were ragged, each one a shallow gasp that sounded like it scraped against her lungs. Her trembling hands clutched at the straps of her oversized backpack; her fingers white-knuckled as if the weight of it anchored her to the ground. "I… need… to save… the last Tendo…"
Her legs gave out, and she crumpled to the ground, unconscious. The massive backpack slid off her shoulders with a dull thud, kicking up a small cloud of dust.
Akane blinked, her tension giving way to confusion. "Santa Zarbon? Isn't that from…?" her voice trailed off, looking at Seiko. She seemed to realize the connection. "I told you Santa Dodoria was a dumb stage name!"
Seiko sighed, rubbing her temple. "Great. A battered girl shows up spouting nonsense and collapses on my property. Because clearly, we didn't have enough problems already."
Akane blinked, realizing what the girl had just said. "Wait, what did she say about saving the last Tendo?"