In the darkness, Mokkun's crimson eyes glinted with sharp light as he gazed upon Masahiro's sleeping form. The boy had fallen into an exhausted slumber hours ago, his bruised pale face stripped of the tempered edge of determination that he held in battle, looking as every bit his young age.
Mokkun.... why did you choose to take the form of a mononoke? (Trans-note: The word he uses for "mononoke" here can also mean "monster".)
Masahiro had posed this question to him shortly after their first meeting. Before the rampaging demon, Guren had taken his true form amidst a furious flames. But he had chosen to return to his beast form, a small diminutive creature with silky white fur, small scrabbling claws and long trailing ears . A flower like pattern adorned his forehead, red in white fur like blossoms upon fresh snow. His eyes were as crimson and sharp as the spines that adorned his neck, burning with an inner flame, as though he had taken within himself a ray of the setting sun.
No matter what happened... the child could always see him, even if he lost sight of himself.
He took this form so that the innocence of the child cold remain untouched.......so that he could avoid accidentally injuring the child with his large claws and searing flames..... so that the child would like him.
And so he had suppressed his aura, dampened his powers, and locked away his boundless fury.... all for the child.
Yet no matter how he tried to scour away the roughened edges, his eyes remained a bloody, murderous red, drops of cooling blood, settling into pristine snow. Red... the color of his sins.... for he was Touda, the bloodstained shinshou, and cursed to forever see the world through eyes of blood, the lasting mark of the tragedies he inflicted.
That was the truth, the reality that he understood. Yet the child had giggled and told him that his eyes reminded him of the twilight, and had laughed at his bewildered surprise, asking him how he had manage to capture a piece of the sky.
(Trans-note: There a note from a previous translator here... it says "awwww.. kids are so innocent...".)
Masahiro had told him that the ruddy hues of the twilight carried the love and compassion of the sun who lingered longingly at the edge of the horizon each day reluctant to leave her children to the cold darkness of the night.
Over time Touda had come to internalize Masahiro's thoughts, living in the illusion that though marked eternally, his sins had been forgiven.
Please be my eyes
His sins weighed heavy on his heart, a bleeding festering wound that lent agony to every thought and action. The shinshou were supposed to be pure. He shouldn't be among humans, soiled as he was.
But.......... if you wish, I will remain by your side......if it would bring you even a wisp of happiness. Even if I were ever to commit another sin, you would be the light that illuminates my darkness. This is my belief...... and my plea......
_________________________________________________
Torch in hand, Narachika slowly made his way to the village. Though the monster had been dispatched by Touda, there was no telling that the villagers would be released from it's lingering spell. He feared that the monster had shattered the hearts of those he afflicted.
How would he explain this to Mizu and Musoru? There was nothing but tragedy ahead, the inconsolable grief of broken families and pained suffering, of that he was certain.
For once, Narachika felt disgusted by his own powerlessness. No matter what the victories, the successful exorcisms, demons slain without a hitch, it was always the tragedy of the victims that touched him the most. Despite his best efforts, things always seemd to complicate themselves rather fast. With a sigh he walked on, slowly making his way to the ramshackle house at the edge of the village where the children lived. The small falling down structure appeared in the distance, creeping ever closer with every step until the firelight shown through the gaps in the walls. Narachika paused at the threshold, his reluctance interrupted by sounds of joyous conversation.
Eh?
The children wasted no time in spotting the torchlight of the visitor and peeked out the door at the visitor, their faces lighting up in recognition.
"Ah! Mister! it's you! "
"Where is the other mister? " (Masahiro)
Bewildered, Narachika could only nod numbly, as slender woman appeared behind the children in the doorway.
"What is it?"
"Mommy! Mommy!, This mister is from the capital! He's reeeeeeaally famous there! "
"Mother, this man and his companion were the ones that vanquished the monster so that you could return to us."
The children milled around their mother with excitement, both vying to be the first to introduce the visitor.
"Ah, I see..I owe you my deepest gratitude." The mother nodded.
"Oh, no...no.. it's nothing." Narachika looked away. He politely declined the family's offer of dinner and excused himself to visit the other afflicted families in the village. He made his way to each and every dwelling, surprisingly it seems that all of the afflicted villagers have made a full recovery, as though nothing had ever happened at all.
Word had traveled fast, and everyone seemed to know that Narachika was an Onmyouji from the capital. At every door, he was greeted with gratitude, admiration, offerings of food and drink, as well as humble gifts that he politely declined. Last but not least, he made his way to the home of Hoshu Yudai, the young girl that had opened the shrine so many horrifying months ago. Yudai still lay on the bed, still frail from her ordeal, but greeted Narachika with a smile as he entered.
After so many months as a lifeless doll, her smile seemed to light up the entire room.
"It's supposed to be a secret, but I wanted you to know that the goddess visited me." Yudai whispered into Narachika's ear as he leaned in close, careful to keep her parents from overhearing.
"The goddess told me to not tell anyone, but you saved me, so I guess it's okay."
Yudai told Narachika that the goddess had appeared before her as she regained consciousness, and had touched her face.
"She said she will heal me..... she has forgiven me." Yudai gave him a calm smile.
His task complete, Narachika made his way back to the Yutari manor, relived but troubled.
"What on earth happened?"
____________________________________________
At the manor, the shinshou had gathered on the roof of the main house, eager to pass the time while awaiting further instructions. Despite the relaxed atmosphere, none had the nerve to enter the house. It wasn't quite appropriate to walk in on Touda's time with Masahiro. It was best to tread carefully around the ever volatile Touda.
"You know, I dont think there's anything to fear from Touda right now." Taiin piped up unexpectedly after a long silence.
Genbu looked at her in surprise as his expression turned thoughtful. After a moment, he nodded in agreement.
"I feel the same."
"There's something different about him... I think....I wonder why....."
Kouchin looked over at Taiin and Genbu, her lips curving into a gentle smile after a moment's hesitation. Her face and body were covered with bruises and lacerations. It would take quite a while for them to heal.
But she considered herself lucky.... to have escaped with mere bruises and wounds from Touda's flames was fortune in and of itself.
Rikugou sat nearby, looking off into the distance, silent and stoic as always. Kouchin scanned him for injuries, though he looked no worse for wear. Kouchin's gaze settled with interest on the red hooked-shaped jade necklace at his throat, and she squinted to get a better look in the darkness.
Odd.... she didn't remember him having that when he fought with the Youkai earlier that day.
"I guess he had that tucked under his shirt all this time...." Kouchin muttered to herself.
Rikugou seemed to detect that he was being watched, fidgeting uncomfortable as he looked over, but said nothing.
Nothing happened for a while as Kouchin and Rikugou stared off into the distance. Taiin and Genbu chattered, animatedly exchanging their opinions on the events of the day before Taiin came to a sudden silence.
"Taiin ?"
Genbu looked puzzled as she deftly placed a finger on her lips, gesturing for his silence as she tilted her head to listen to something that only she seemed to hear. (Trans-note: Taiin can send and receive messages from Byako by listening to and sending gales.)
A moment passed as she listened. Then she nodded and turned to Rikugou.
"Rikugou, Seimei has a message."
Rikugou merely nodded, prompting her to continue without looking up.
"He wants you to relay a message to the Michiha District. The specific message will be delivered to you via Genbu's water mirror."
Wordlessly Rikugou stood and gestured to Genbu, leaving the others to find a secluded spot in which the message could be relayed.
Kouchin and Taiin remained on the roof, looking after the two figures retreating into the darkness before sitting down again. It seems like this has been the first night that the star have been visible in a long time. Kouchin stared at the stars for a while, taking in the sight of the sky strewn with hundreds of points of light before turning to Taiin.
"Do you wish to know why Touda has lost his intimidating aura?"
Taiin's eyes grew wide as she turned to Kouchin. She nodded vigorously.
"Well...It's just a theory...."
"Theories are fine too... "
Kouchin nodded slightly, and paused to squint off into the distance, as if recalling some distant memory.
She paused a little to gather her thoughts before beginning.
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