Hanabi

Chapter 46: Mind

Mami crawled away from the Oni the best she could, her head spinning and her body feeling the heaviest she thought possible. Rina came in her view, sword in both hands, and took a stance between the blonde and the roaring creature. Mami took a quick glance around the place as the darkness seemed to weaken a little. Haruna now had her eyes closed, and Tomoko didn’t seem to be moving either.

She felt hands around her, and Tomomi pulled her further away from the imminent danger. But escaping wasn’t what she had in mind. Rina couldn’t face that thing alone, and Mami knew that. Her body was heavy and numb, and there was this strange pain coursing through every part of her that she imagined should be a result from being possessed. Even though, she wasn’t done yet.

Looking at the dark creature, it was smaller now. The black smoke poured like a liquid, and the demon shrunk in size to a point where Mami knew they could finish it. It was still much bigger than them, but not in that mighty scale that could frighten anything and anyone in the world. Judging by the way it roared and screamed, it sounded hurt as well, not just weakened.

Mami let her lips form a weak smile when Tomomi stopped pulling her away and laid her down, placing a palm on her forehead. She did it, she hurt the Oni somehow. Ryuuichi must’ve known she was going to hurt the demon in the process of taking back control, he must’ve known because he looked so confident… He looked like he knew everything there was to know.

She understood when she looked up at Tomomi’s worried eyes, and her smile grew. The brunette looked down at her with confusion on her expressions, but Mami didn’t say a thing.

Mami never asked herself what would happen if, instead of being charged with all those negative feelings they thrived on, the Oni received a blow of the very opposite. Her brother knew that would happen, the little pest, and he didn’t say a word. That’s why he kept saying Mami had to go back and help. That’s why he kept reminding her of everything she could do, that’s why he kept repeating her friends needed her.

Shock filling her heart, Rina looked up at the demon in front of her without moving from her new spot. Why and how, she didn’t know. What she did know was that Mami did something huge, and now that Oni was suffering the aftermath of the bad idea that possessing the blonde came to be. Maybe Haruna felt something like that would happen, because she said it… She said the Oni shouldn’t have done that. Maybe that was just her gut speaking, but Haruna did have very accurate gut feelings.

Now she had to end that horrible night, for Mami and for Haruna too. For everything that she was forced to witness in over four centuries, this was her chance to actually do something about all that evil.

Finally, the Oni moved for her with red eyes brighter than ever, the thirst for revenge clear in the way they sparkled, and Rina moved too. Big claws came and she blocked with the katana over and over again. The creature kicked and she evaded; it tried to hit her with its tail and she dodged quickly. It wasn’t as fast as before, and Rina jumped and took the first chance she saw to land a cut that would’ve hit the Oni’s neck if it hadn’t moved. The blade cut the demon’s right shoulder and it punched the kitsune with its left fist when the critical slash failed.

They kept going like that, Rina tired but determined, the Oni acting like a wounded tiger. Mami sat up and watched as she regained her composure, her heart like a drum, Tomomi kneeled by her side.