Hide Away - A Kamisama Kiss Fan-Fic (Book 1)

15

The last night was meant for fireworks of all kinds. The night was to go on until the dawn of the next morning and, sometimes, continue on until the next night. Almost everyone slept through the day so that they could stay up the whole night.

The only three who were still lively and awake were the shikigami and the demon. Sitting on the roof under a small tent, the three talked.

Mamoru was a man of silence. He reclined back on a few cushions, a pipe in his hand and curls of smoke rising from it. He exhaled through his nose the smoke he inhaled and stared down the demon, watching him skeptically. The shikigami, his hair long and beautiful and tied back, was well raised in his egg. He hatched a gorgeous young man with fire in his eyes and robes of beautiful purple and gold about his body. He was given a weapon to use to secure his master's safety.

Kea, on the other hand, was wrapped in silver and white. She was a caregiver and a protector in a gentler aspect. Her hair, white as her robes, and her eyes, blue as the calmest skies, shined with a fairy-like effervescence and attractiveness. Her hands were gentle, and her movements were precise. She spoke only in soft tones and whispers unlike her husband the guard.

Tomoe looked at the two, leaning back on a cushion and smoking idly. It was speckled with eucalyptus once more. He once again found the taste refreshing and the smell pleasing.

"You want answers," Kea began, her hands folded in her lap. Set before them was a bottle of sacred sake and dishes for drinking. She smiled. "We will provide them. You need only ask."

Tomoe nodded. "Then who exactly are you?" he asked, his eyes narrowing skeptically. "I want full explanations and answers from both of you."

Kea nodded warmly, but her husband scoffed. "You act real high and mighty for a wild fox, demon," he spat, taking another drag. He exhaled through his nose, reminding Tomoe of a dragon. "But if you want to know who we are, then so be it." He sat up, took a long drag and exhaled a large gust of smoke. Within the smoke, figures made of shadows danced across the smokescreen.

"We come from a deity known as Mikage," Kea explained, her hands moving to manipulate the shadows. "Not long after your disappearance, he raised the both of us and gave us names. I was to be a caregiver, so Kea is my name. Mamoru is to protect." She manipulated the shadows once more.

"Then the massacre by Akura-ou and yourself," Mamoru cut in. "Mikage escaped, and a decoy stayed to die in his place."

Tomoe's eyes widened. "A decoy?..." he asked incredulously.

"Yes," Kea said softly, her eyes saddened but her smile genuine. "A young woman gave her life in his stead without his knowing. She said she would follow him soon after she gathered the shrine spirits, for she was also a protector like ourselves, and used a spell to transform herself into his image."

Tomoe furrowed his brows. "Shikigami can do such a thing?" he inquired.

She shook her head. "She was a youkai like yourself," she explained, smiling warmly.

He blanched, staring blankly as he processed all of this. Another demon in the Mikage shrine?

"This demon," Mamoru spoke, "was a firm believer in second chances much like Mikage himself. She lived a life of destruction, specifically kidnapping lost souls who wandered into dark forests." He cringed slightly. "Such strange and despicable creatures..."

Tomoe growled faintly. "Get to the point."

Mamoru huffed. "This demon begged the land god to show her a new life, a new possibility, after seeing a child get rescued by their family. She too wanted to know what it was like to protect. So to understand such love and affection, she gave her life to protect the Mikage shrine and Mikage himself."