"Oh..." He nodded and put up a matching smile... Or tried to. Shes... not dead... She just cant... I... Shouldn't pry, should I? Is Nee-chan... ok?
He was thinking hard about this for a brief moment before shaking it off. Not right now...
"I don't think there are many places good for a traditional ceremony around here... Though there is a lot of this island I don't know about... I would really love to see your home shrine though. It sounds like an interesting place."
"It is, I bet you'd like it! And it's not only my home, it's home for all the kitsune including you. No matter where they live the shrines of Mount Inari are their home because Okami resides there... As for the ceremony - you remember my illusions, I could rearrange any place of a suitable dimensions to look just like a tea house." She winked.
She knew him already well enough to be able to easily notice when something was bothering him - he'd shook his head in a specific manner. At first she tried not to mention it this time, but she couldn't help it. "By the way, you seemed like there was something troubling you a few moments ago. I can't say for sure of course... But just in case I'd like to remind you that you can say or ask anything..."
She knew him already well enough to be able to easily notice when something was bothering him - he'd shook his head in a specific manner. At first she tried not to mention it this time, but she couldn't help it. "By the way, you seemed like there was something troubling you a few moments ago. I can't say for sure of course... But just in case I'd like to remind you that you can say or ask anything..."
"I looked..." He let out a sigh and hung his head in a mock defeat before looking back at her with a weak smile. "I'm no good at hiding things, am I? You can already tell... But... I just didn't want to pry... Why can't your mother just stay at Mount Inari?" She could tell there was something on his mind... Might as well come out with it.
"Oh, so that was it? Don't worry, I wouldn't mention it if I thought it was something you shouldn't know about me." She smiled tenderly.
"Well you see, she is a human... Her destiny was to stay with humans. She doesn't even remember she had given birth to a girl - she was only supposed to do it, not to remember it because I was not a normal child!" She took another sip of tea and cleared her throat before continuing.
"So... It was a miracle that she was able to recognize me as her daughter for entire 6 months before the memories of having me completely faded away... And yet she stayed with me until I turned 3 years old, though thinking of me only as an abandoned child she was nursing at the shrine." Akane sighed wondering if she'd remember her, even only as the child she nursed if she had a chance to meet her again.
"She and father moved away then, by the request of Okami. And that's it!.. I guess nothing makes much sense to you now. That's because this was only a part of the weird story of my life..." She chuckled. "The full story is a long one, but I'll gladly share it with you if you're interested to hear it."
"Well you see, she is a human... Her destiny was to stay with humans. She doesn't even remember she had given birth to a girl - she was only supposed to do it, not to remember it because I was not a normal child!" She took another sip of tea and cleared her throat before continuing.
"So... It was a miracle that she was able to recognize me as her daughter for entire 6 months before the memories of having me completely faded away... And yet she stayed with me until I turned 3 years old, though thinking of me only as an abandoned child she was nursing at the shrine." Akane sighed wondering if she'd remember her, even only as the child she nursed if she had a chance to meet her again.
"She and father moved away then, by the request of Okami. And that's it!.. I guess nothing makes much sense to you now. That's because this was only a part of the weird story of my life..." She chuckled. "The full story is a long one, but I'll gladly share it with you if you're interested to hear it."
Kenta nodded silently. He... Doesn't remember having a mother or father... well, ever. Still, he knew this wasn't right. Family was important, wasn't it? He... Didn't much care for this 'Okami' person, whoever they were... The name sounded familiar.
"Well then, make yourself comfortable cause this is gonna be something like a bedtime story." She took a new pillow from the closet and placed it next to her own. "Lucky I brought a spare pillow and this bed is big enough for two people." She smiled.
Before she lay down on her side of the bed she took an old scroll from her suitcase. "Are you ready?"
Before she lay down on her side of the bed she took an old scroll from her suitcase. "Are you ready?"
He turned in place to follow her as she moved around the room. When she laid down he nodded. A little puff of smoke obscured him for a moment, and he had turned into his tiny fox form, his five tails swaying behind him as he hopped onto the pillow. He looked at her with his wide eyes staring up at her in anticipation. Hes been sleeping in his fox form a lot lately. He didn't actually expect to sleep, but its almost become habit. Possibly another nonsense change to his sleep habits in hopes it'd stop the nightmares... It won't.
She was overwhelmed by the cuteness of his tiny fox form. She petted his head gently and then she started, still not showing him the content of the scroll.
"Once upon a time the deities Izanaki and Izanami created Japan and populated it with humans and many different kinds of yokai. They all coexisted in peace until the war occurred between some of the groups of yokai and affected people too.
That's when Izanaki and Izanami have decided to separate humans and yokai and choose the strongest yokai of each kind to be representatives of the groups.
Each of them has became kami - the divine protector and each has gotten their own area to be homeland for their kind. Kami were supposed to preserve peace within their own group and settle all the issues peacefully with kami of other yokai groups.
Kitsune, who were one of the largest groups of yokai, have gotten Mount Inari to be their homeland and a female nine-tails kitsune has became their first kami. Many years later her first female descendant was born and she became the second Inari Okami, and so on. Current Inari Okami is 12th in the lineage...And this is where my story actually begins..." She made a dramatic pause to check if she managed to pique his curiosity.
"...But first, did you like the story so far? Have you heard about it already before?"
"Once upon a time the deities Izanaki and Izanami created Japan and populated it with humans and many different kinds of yokai. They all coexisted in peace until the war occurred between some of the groups of yokai and affected people too.
That's when Izanaki and Izanami have decided to separate humans and yokai and choose the strongest yokai of each kind to be representatives of the groups.
Each of them has became kami - the divine protector and each has gotten their own area to be homeland for their kind. Kami were supposed to preserve peace within their own group and settle all the issues peacefully with kami of other yokai groups.
Kitsune, who were one of the largest groups of yokai, have gotten Mount Inari to be their homeland and a female nine-tails kitsune has became their first kami. Many years later her first female descendant was born and she became the second Inari Okami, and so on. Current Inari Okami is 12th in the lineage...And this is where my story actually begins..." She made a dramatic pause to check if she managed to pique his curiosity.
"...But first, did you like the story so far? Have you heard about it already before?"
He shook his head and continued to look up at her in anticipation. He had heard of these deities, but didn't know anything about a war or different groups.
"Well then..." She continued.
"Our current Okami, whose human name was Hisako, fell in love with a man which was a very common thing among kami of kitsune. They would transform and seduce men easily.
Hisako met this man named Ueda Wataru whom she got to love very much. She lived with him for a while and she gave birth to a son some three hundred years ago.
But she soon had to go back to Mount Inari, and since human and spiritual realms are bound to be separated the boy couldn't go back with her because he was never meant to turn into kitsune."
Akane opened the scroll to reveal a scheme of a family tree, with names written in kanji by a very skillful calligrapher. The names of Okami's descendants were written in blue ink, their human wife's names in black ink and kami's names in red ink.
"That boy was my great-great-grandfather. He too had a son, and his son had a son, and so on for generations, as you can see here...
All of the Ueda boys were normal humans who were only mediums supposed to pass, well let's call it kitsune gene, down to the next generation, until a girl is born in the family. The first girl in Ueda family would become the next Inari Okami, and Ueda's bond with kitsune would be broken.
Mamoru was 12th medium of Ueda family. He married a woman named Emiko, and she gave birth to twins, me and my brother Shinichi..." She paused again to check his reaction to this part of the story.
"Our current Okami, whose human name was Hisako, fell in love with a man which was a very common thing among kami of kitsune. They would transform and seduce men easily.
Hisako met this man named Ueda Wataru whom she got to love very much. She lived with him for a while and she gave birth to a son some three hundred years ago.
But she soon had to go back to Mount Inari, and since human and spiritual realms are bound to be separated the boy couldn't go back with her because he was never meant to turn into kitsune."
Akane opened the scroll to reveal a scheme of a family tree, with names written in kanji by a very skillful calligrapher. The names of Okami's descendants were written in blue ink, their human wife's names in black ink and kami's names in red ink.
"That boy was my great-great-grandfather. He too had a son, and his son had a son, and so on for generations, as you can see here...
All of the Ueda boys were normal humans who were only mediums supposed to pass, well let's call it kitsune gene, down to the next generation, until a girl is born in the family. The first girl in Ueda family would become the next Inari Okami, and Ueda's bond with kitsune would be broken.
Mamoru was 12th medium of Ueda family. He married a woman named Emiko, and she gave birth to twins, me and my brother Shinichi..." She paused again to check his reaction to this part of the story.
The picture of the "scroll" isn't too impressive, sorry XD I focused mainly on names there