“Asa, Asa, I can’t find Ryo anywhere.” Aeirin cried as she ran towards the other Demon Lord who seemed to suddenly appear from another world. Deciding that the Twilight Demon Lord had some knowledge of what had happened, Aeirin had set out to find Asa and had just now managed to pick up his energy signature again. Surprised at being lifted up, Aeirin looked back at Asa in surprise.
“Why don’t we go and ask my parents," Asa offered with a light smile on his face. Aeirin found herself suddenly extremely comforted by this and nodded suddenly. However, her answer changed a bit of emotion as it went due to being picked up and realizing that she was being treated so small again.
“Okay.” Aeirin answered back, and Asa began walking out into the main quarters of Light and Darkness.
“Where is Ryoen?” Asa asked as he walked in. Both Noiren and Hiawai turned and stared for a minute in silence. Aeirin blinked confused as to why neither of them had answered.
"Ryoen has proven himself a traitor and has been punished as one," Hiawai answered back crossing her arms in front of her. Noiren said nothing but seemed to be staring down Asa in that minute. Aeirin's eyes grew sharply, and she all but went numb right then and there.
But... But... But... Traitors die..... Aeirin's thoughts were loud in her mind and conflicted with thousands of pained needles in the back of her mind. Why... why... we were going to play a game today... Why did.... Aeirin shook her head a fraction and then squirmed to be released by Asa. Suddenly using the air current to lower herself to the floor, Aeirin looked suddenly and very defiantly at Noiren.
"Why!" she shouted causing the sudden quiet in the room to shatter like glass. "Why! Why! Why! Why! Why! Why!" However, in that instant, a slap across the face caused Aeirin to freeze. Her eye moved a fraction and saw Noiren step back again.
"You know very well the punishment for being traitorous and sharing information with humans that could easily be leaked to the angels," Noiren said darkly.
"He... He wouldn't!" Aeirin shot back shaking her head violently. "Why would he do it! You're a liar!" Another smack to the face caused Aeirin to fall completely sideways and hit the floor. This time, Hiawai had stepped back and was rubbing her knuckles irritatedly.
"Foolish child. Do not question what has been done. Go back to your toys," Hiawai's words stung in the back of Aeirin's mind like shards of broken glass, and all the Air Demon could do was try and force herself up off the floor.
An obscurely dead look had succumbed itself on Aeirin's face then and there. The orange haired girl simply rose again and looked downwards at the floor. "Sorry...." she said quietly.
Asa, who had been watching this, was now shooting dagger glances at Noiren with his eyes. "You planned this for a while, didn't you?" Asa asked staring into the face of the Demon Lord of Darkness. Noiren crossed his arms and said nothing but stared back.
"Leave us to our tea, Asa," Noiren answered back gesturing to the teal set that had been set up by Hiawai a few hours earlier. "Or I will make you wish you had." Asa said nothing but picked up Aeirin again and slowly waked out of the room once more. Aeirin had all but been reduced to a lump of flesh and made no motion what so ever.
"Aeirin?" Asa tried. However, the girl didn't answer and remained as though dead in his arms. For the remainder of the night, Asa put Aeirin to bed as Ryoen would have, yet the girl was neither awake nor asleep and simply stayed in bed and stared at the ceiling as if her will had simply vanished into the inner workings of the demon realm.
~*~
The early day came into the demon realm as it did in the human... for Noiren had made it that way, in that sense. Both Hiawai and Noiren sat in the main hallway, Noiren with a cup of tea, and Hiawai pouring more tea. The change in spiritual pressure caused by heads to turn and find that Ryuu was slowly making his way into the room.
“Your new teacher is Vaporaii.” Noiren said rising to stare down at the slate haired boy.
“Why?” Ryuu asked looking up in confusion.
“Do not question, Ryuu.” Hiawai answered back slowly forcing herself to rise as well. She looked oddly pained right then and there, yet the motion disappeared in an instant after.
Ryuu had looked down at the ground and missed the motion completely which the white haired woman was thankful for if nothing else. “Yes ma’am.” Ryuu continued all but bringing a half smile onto Hiawai's face.
Hiawai looked at Noiren, and vice versa for a split second before both nodded and Noiren walked up to the bended head Ryuu. Taking hold of the silver haired boy's chin, Noiren placed his hand on the face of the grandson that he would have if he were truly human in the sense of the word.
“What are you doing?” Ryuu asked as if suddenly panicking. Noiren made no answer but preformed the action that caused the slate haired boy to recoil in that instant.
“What…is that…” Ryuu asked making a motion to his eye as if trying to cover it a fraction.
“You’ve heard of the term keep your friends close and your enemies closer?” Hiawai asked me weaving her fingers and placing her chin on the back of her fingers as she sat back down and watched again.
“Yes.” Ryuu answered back.
“Well those shards are something that the vessels want and what better to do then to have the shards so close to them they will never know that it’s there.” the white haired woman finished with a smile. "Anyways... Noiren... where is Vaporaii?"
In that instant, the fish woman seemed to appear almost from the floor itself. She crossed her arms in front of her chest and then stared at Ryuu scrutinizingly. So Ryoen is dead.... and I am left to the training.... She stared a a minute longer before suddenly seizing Ryuu's wrist and pulling him into her own part of the demon realm.
Water gushed on the floor as they entered. Vaporaii turned and started towards what could only be described as shelves upon shelves of bottles with different colored liquids in them. "You learned strength form Ryoen. However his lessons were cut short, it seems," the blue haired Udinie sighed outwards starting to go through the bottles and making clanking sounds as she went.
"What.. uh... Why was it cut short?" Ryuu finally asked.
Vaporaii turned her head and stared a moment directly at Ryuu who found solace in looking away as though he had not seen her at all and was staring at something farther away. "He was killed by Noiren," Vaporaii answered back coldly.
"What?" Ryuu almost shouted. Vaporaii turned her head again and stared. However, Ryuu didn't appear to want to back down on the matter. "Why!!" Ryuu finally demanded.
"Why does it matter to you?" Vaporaii asked back before looking through her bottels again. "That is all you need to know.... and don't go trying to ask Noiren yourself. He doesn't play well with brats as it is. Then you'll end up dead, and all Ryoen's hard work will go down the drain." Ryuu was silent for a minute and just appeared to stare in a state of disbelief. "Now then, on to business... I will teach you how to turn your mana....aura..... chii or whatever you want to call it... into liquid and into poison..." she said aloud turning around again and holding a pink vile of clear liquid.
'"This is known as Down Syndrome in human tongue..." she smiled a bit. "I poured it in the water for fun.. all the mothers that drank it were doomed to have children with such the disease..." She grinned a suddenly very toothy grin that caused Ryuu to take a half step back. "This is known as the Black Plague to most of human 'Europe'..." she raised up a blue vile with clear liquid before sitting it back on the shelf. "It has a better effect in my opinion than DS. You see... disease... is a wonderful little thing to cook up..."
"You have... got to be kidding me...." Ryuu said aloud as though completely and utterly confounded. Vaporaii let out a laugh and smiled once more.
~*~
“I know its part of your job but please don’t report this to the shaman council," Aine had said more or less an order than anything. Sho looked back and nodded a bit to himself before turning his head back.
"Some things should not be reported," he answered back reaching into his pocket and pulling on the Unknown card and holding it between two fingers. Aine's eyes moved to it as if wondering what the brown haired man was doing. Sho just continued to stare at the bed. "Including the fact that I plan to at least make peace with the angels in order to finish this war," he sighed outwards moving the card over to Aine and finally handing it to her. "I know the full laws of the Council by heart, and yet... these children need to be able to grow in the world... This war must be settled soon enough."
The pure shock that seemed to come on Aine's face for a minute disappeared. "What do you expect to gain by this?" she finally asked now holding the card in one hand and looking down at it as though she didn't believe it was real.
"The end of the war, and a peace in the human world... not to mention Ohno's inner peace soon enough," Sho answered back with a calm yet non-monotone voice. "Unlike those that would watch another generation of us die... I would prefer to see the rules used for the betterment of the fighting," Sho finished.
"You are very wise...." Aine said after a moment before slipping the card into her own pocket.
"No..." Sho answered back. "I fear I will not live long enough to become 'wise'... But I wish for others to." A silence fell over them as both watched the strange passed out bodies of the children they oversaw.
"You plan to die in this war," Aine sighed outwards.
"Indeed," Sho answered back falling into silence again. "But I do not wish it on anyone else."
~*~
Aiba found himself laying strangely on the ground. Something was brushing up his face, and he batted it away only to find it come back again. Batting it away again, Aiba found that whatever it was, was not going to quit any time soon. Opening one eye, the dark haired boy recoiled suddenly as the Wolf continued to lick his face. Instead of being turned away by Aiba's sudden motion, the Wolf just stepped forwards and continued licking him.
"Hey... hey quit... stop...." Aiba said bringing his hand up to try and get the Wolf to quit licking him. Looking around suddenly confused, Aiba suddenly remembered everything that he had dreamed. His body tensed a fraction, yet for some reason, he didn't feel the fear as before. Looking around, Aiba found the scenery of a forest. Turning his head back to the Wolf, Aiba blinked again.
"Did I summon you?" Aiba asked. The Wolf shook his head and slowly started to move away. Aiba's eyes followed until he found Aisling sitting under a tree. Looking around some more, the dark haired boy found himself strangely at peace despite knowing exactly what had happened to make him tense in the first place. Instead, this anxiety became more of wonder at the area around.
The Wolf, who had finally managed to rouse his master, walked slowly over towards Aisling. Puck, as though frightened that the Wolf would try and eat Aisling, moved forwards as though defensively. The Wolf turned his head to one side and sighed as though irritated with the fairy's attempt to stop him.
I'm not going to eat her. This isn't Little Red Ridinghood now is it? The Wolf did not speak, yet his thoughts echoed in the air easily. Puck seemd to falter a second before finally crossing his arms and looking away. Brushing past Puck, the Wolf placed his head in Aisling's lap and sighed outwards. Thank you for giving him peace... the Wolf sighed outwards again. He may be somewhat dense and too easily enthralled in a fight and inversely too enthralled in his own emotion and fear... but her is my master as always....My name is Ookami.... The Wolf closed his eyes and sighed outwards again.
Aiba stared a moment more before turning his head again and finding the Wolf with his head on Aisling's lap as though he believed himself to be a lap dog. A sudden smile broke on Aiba's face as he forced himself up. "Hey where are we?" Aiba asked waving over towards Aisling.
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@A@ Vaporaii scares me with her potions.... Also, lol Little Red Ridinghood, lol. Anyways, hope this is ok with everyone. I'm going swimming for a bit, but I'll be back soon.
