by Max Jager
Feeling him tense as he growled she rolled her eyes. "You don't know if he is going to refuse, come himself or send someone else. If when it happens no one comes from him, we will mark that off, if someone does then it is done."
With a sigh Kiyoshi closed his eyes. "If that damn leopard knows what is good for him he will refuse to come or send anyone." Kissing the side of her head he then turned as he rubbed the sides of his head. "What else is it that you need to do?"
"Kiyoshi?"
"Mother is still upset from what happened this afternoon, and now Father is back and not pleased."
"I see." Kissing his cheek and pulled wide eyes to him she smiled. "Nearly all done. I just have to talk to some older demons that were here for your mother's and see what sort of events they had. But right now I am going to get Imae and Takara and go to the hot spring." Letting her eyes flutter closed as he dipped his head and kissed her again. "Everything is going to be fine in time. You will see."
The Priestess and The Demon Chapter 72
Pacing in his room after failing to calm Sorae down, Kurosai turned a glare at the door when he smelled his son walking past. "You get your ass in here!"
Walking in the room, Kiyoshi growled as he met his father's glare with one of his own. "Father?"
Pointing at his mate who sat there on the bed still crying, Kurosai growled. "I want to know what in the hell made you think that you could talk to your mother the way you did or fling your sister into the pond!" He then stormed over to him with his eyes narrowing down. "I don't give a damn who or what your mate is, you don't treat them like that. You got me pup?"
Not budging, Kiyoshi didn't even move. "I would not have had to had they not been acting the way they have been towards my mate. It not theirs nor your choice to make for me. Would your parents have done the same thing?"
"My parents wouldn't have done anything! But there is a difference here Kiyoshi. I mated another demon. Not a human miko! You are going to make it up to them. Or by damn I will show you that no matter old you that I am still the parent and you are still the pup. Is that clear!?"
"Just stop it! Now!" Sorae was now on her feet as she hugged herself. She has had enough of the fighting. Enough of the arguing and the hurt feelings all the way around. He was right. Who his mate is or isn't is his choice. They can't make it for him. When Kurosai tried to touch her she jerked away from him as she sighed. "Yes Kurosai what he said to me and how he said really shouldn't have been said. Yes he shouldn't have flung Yukani in the pond, but she did slap him. But what he said is true. We have got to stop fighting it." Dropping her head more, she headed for the door as she covered her mouth. "I can't say that I like it either. But the choice of who he mates to mate is his choice. But if we do force him to do what we want then we are really no better than my father was." Then she was gone.
Turning to his son, Kurosai glared and growled. "By all means I should kick your ass good for this one. Taking in Imae as your daughter was one thing. We didn't like it, but being your daughter we knew that there was no chance of mating her so that is one thing that helped us let it go easier. Your mother may let it go, not so sure about your sister. But I refuse too." When Kiyoshi turned and headed for the door he growled even louder. "And don't expect me to relent and let this pup call me anything. Use Imae against me, I will see her and explain it to her when she can come and go as she pleases."
Stopping at the door, Kiyoshi dropped his head as he fisted his hands at his side. This was his father, but the urge to defend Yokiyo was starting to over-ride that. "If you do not claim my blood born pup, you will not claim Imae. She is already upset over everything and I doubt she will understand. You have truly disappointed me father. You all have." Then he was gone."
X
Hearing the door open, Yokiyo turned around and blinked when she saw the red eyes of Sorae. It was so clear that she had been crying most of the day after what happened with Kiyoshi. When their eyes met, it was clear that she had something she wanted to say to her, but Imae was there also. Reaching over and getting her attention, Yokiyo smiled. "Honey I forgot that brush that I like to use in my room. Would you go with Takara and go get it?" A glance up at Takara who already had the brush in question hidden.
With a sharp nod Imae giggled. "Right Mama!" She then jumped out of the water and into her robe, then before she left she wrapped her little arms around her grandmother's legs. "Hello Grandma! I will be back as soon as I can."
Laying her head on Imae's head just before she rushed out, Sorae managed a small smile for her. Turning back to the water she dropped her robe and then sank into the water, a good distance away from the miko and hugged her knees to herself. "I really don't' like this. Not at all. I never imagined either of my kids being with anyone other than another demon of some kind. I don't know how long it is going to take for me to accept this. But I will do my best to try and do it. My son made a good point to me today."
Blinking, Yokiyo didn't move as she looked at her. "He did?"
Nodding Sorae kept her eyes on her knees. "My father had it planned that he was going to force me to the North and mate with a dragon. Kurosai found out about it during court on the day he was going to take me and stopped it. I stayed here at the palace after that and things with us just happened. But…." Then she dropped her head even more as she let fresh tears fall from her eyes and let out a shaky sigh as her body started to shake. "I didn't realize what we were doing until he pointed it out to me today. Trying to force my son to do what I want him to do because I don't like the choice he made. The same basic thing that my father wanted to do to me. I just…." But then she gasped and tensed when she felt arms wrap around her from the side. Looking up to see Yokiyo smiling she blinked. "Yokiyo…"
With a smile as her own tears misted in her eyes, Yokiyo hugged her mate's mother as she sighed. "I get it Sorae. I do. It doesn't really bother me either. Enraging your son, that distracts me. Upsetting Imae upsets me. But I understand. Just a few weeks ago, the same time it all happened my demon slayer friend and her monk husband tried to force it to stop too. Everyone has an idea of what is best for the two of us."
"I see. So we are not the only ones who are not happy about it."
Letting go of her as she sat next to her, Yokiyo smiled as she shook her head. "Nope. Honestly if you would have talked to me six months ago, I would not have had one nice thing to say about your son. And would have probably tried to kill you if you would have told me in six months time I would be his mate and pregnant with his pup."
No longer crying, Sorae's eyes met the dark blue eyes of the miko as she blinked. "What?"
Looking down into the water with sad eyes, Yokiyo still smiled as tears misted in her own eyes once again. "When I was only five years old, I lost my grandmother, mother and father along with the village I was born in to Shinra. She attacked with hordes of demons and killed everyone. My brother and I got away and were the only ones to live. We went back the next day and found our parents before they died and had just enough time to tell them that we loved them. I don't know how long passed, but while I sat at their graves a demon attacked as Kiyoshi flew over. He was enough to scare it off before it could hurt us. But he didn't even look down to see if we were okay at the time and it left a really bad scar on me when it came to him. It wasn't until I ended up here and we talked about it that I understood."
"I see."
Giggling as she looked up at one of the windows opposite them, Yokiyo let out a sigh. "I think that and the fact that my parents words would ring true when we had moments together that we weren't trying to kill each other."
Looking at her odd again, Sorae blinked. The only talk they ever heard humans having about her son was always bad. So she didn't understand how moments that were pleasant with her son hold truth to what a human said. "Your parents talked good about him?"
Shocking Sorae as she winked at her, Yokiyo giggled. "All the time. Father actually made Senri promise that the first place we would go was to come here and t
ell him that Shinra attacked us and where our village was. He said over and over that while Kiyoshi acted like he hated all humans, he knew that he more than likely had good reason with the way everyone else talked about him. He couldn't have had good experiences with them. But that he knew he was just and fair in how he dealt with and treated humans. Until now, the day he didn't even look down at us I thought Papa was a nutcase for thinking like that."
Seeing how she only dropped her head with a half-smile, Yokiyo took a deep breath. She had an idea now. If she was really going to try to let it all go and be peaceful, this would show if she was or not. She knew how much Imae loved her as her grandmother. And the relationship she had with her own grandmother was something she would always cherish. So she hoped this would work and be the start of all of them accepting her. "Sorae may I ask you something?"
Nodding Sorae kept her eyes down as she blinked. "Of course."
"I know how much Imae adores you as her grandmother. And I remember how much I loved and cherished the relationship with my grandmother. And Kiyoshi told me about some of the stories you told him about his grandmother."
Looking up at her odd, Sorae blinked. There was no question in that. "I don't understand where is the question at Yokiyo?"
Looking at her as she smiled, Yokiyo let her head fall to the side. "Will you please be here at the palace when I give birth to this pup?"
Gasping as her eyes went wide, Sorae didn't know what to say to that. She never expected that after the way that she has treated her. "You mean it? You really want me to be here?"
Nodding as she kept her eyes locked with Sorae's, Yokiyo smiled. "I do. I know how precious the relationship with a grandmother and a grandchild is. I see it daily with you and Imae and remember my own. And I know that it would elate Kiyoshi and Imae if you were here."
Fresh tears spilling from her eyes, Sorae was finally starting to see what her son seen in her. And why she would be the one to draw him out. She did seem like a genuinely nice person. And wasn't at all like your typical miko they hear so much about killing demons. After a moment she smiled as she closed her eyes and nodded. "I would like that very much Yokiyo. I will be here."
"Great!"
"Mama! Grandma! I am back! Mama I got your brush!"
Both Sorae and Yokiyo giggling as Imae jumped in the water next to them splashing water all over the place, Yokiyo felt like she mad true progress with his mother. And if she did show up when she had the pup, that would prove it, and no one can say no to a baby.
X
At the evening meal that night, Yokiyo was still elated to see that Sorae was coming around more than the others. When she walked in with Kiyoshi, Yukani slumped in her chair and refused to say a word to anyone. And Kurosai just left. It seemed that from the start Kamui was the only one who didn't beguile them for it. And now Sorae was making an effort. Two out of four were not bad odds for her.
But now the meal is over and she found herself standing on the balcony of their room looking up at the full moon. One hand on her stomach and the other over her chest. She had never thought that she would end up like this ever in her life. Demon or human. She never thought that she would be with someone, expecting and totally content about it.
"Yokiyo?"
Looking up as Kiyoshi came to stand next to her and put an arm around her waist, Yokiyo smiled at him. "Just thinking about how things are. Things with your mother went much better today. I am not sure if we actually bonded though or if it was all just a front when she came to the hot spring."
"Mother may have or she may not have. We shall see as time goes."
With a smile she looked down at her stomach and smiled. "Takara and Yoite took Imae and me around to different demons in the palace today after the hot spring. Ones that either knew a human who had a half demon, or have had one themselves. From what we found out, if I follow suit with them, it won't be too much longer before we know if she is really trying to change or just putting on a show."
"What are you talking about?"
Turning to him, Yokiyo giggled as he rested one hand on each of her hips and she placed her hands on his chest. Looking up at him she smiled. "Everyone I talked to today said that a dog demon carries a baby for about two months. A human about nine months. Everyone we talked too said it is usually a mid-point. So about four to four and a half months from now is how we will know."
With a growl and a half glare for her, Kiyoshi arched an eyebrow at her. "How will that prove my mother's intentions?"
"I asked her to come and be here with me when I give birth."
Gasping as his eyes went wide Kiyoshi could only look down at her. "You asked her that?"
Nodding Yokiyo giggled again. "I know how precious it is to have a grandmother and I want that for not only Imae but this pup as well." She then leaned in and laid her head on his chest. "And I have a feeling that if she watches the baby come into the world, she wouldn't be able to turn it away. And your father and sister would follow suit as well."
"Cunning."
"Strategic my love. While your father may be her mate and 'man of the house' so to speak, it is always the woman that runs things." Then she giggled at his glare and growl. "Yes we will be no exception. On certain things it is not going to be you that make the choices. But me."
"Like?"
"You will just have to wait and see." Yokiyo then giggled as he pulled her flush against him and seared her mouth with his. Once Kurosai and Yukani come around, then life will truly be perfect for her.
The Priestess and The Demon Chapter 73
With his eyes closed, Sanzo soared over his retinue through the clear blue sky. Not a cloud in sight. The warm rays of the sun felt invigorating to him. And it would only be two more days before they reached the South and he could see for himself if it was true or not that Kiyoshi mated with a miko. Though eh did have to admit that a human miko ro not, if she was strong enough to draw out that stick in the muds demon in just a few months, then he wasn't going to try nearly as hard as he would someone else to get rid of her.
And he would know seeing how Kiyoshi reacted to his first interaction to her if there was a bond or not. And if there is one, that in and of itself would be a feat alone. Opening his gold eyes to look up higher into the sky he laughed. 'If she is a miko this is going to be interesting.' But once again feeling eyes on him he glanced down to see the glare of his sister. She wasn't happy at all about what his plans were for his mate when they got there.
Glaring at her foolish older brother, Ayame walked in front of everyone else and next to Atsana. He was taking this whole thing so easily! If Kiyoshi was stupid enough to mate with a human, and even more stupid if she is a miko, they had to do something about it before there was a bond or pups. And yet her brother acted like it was natural for someone of Kiyoshi's stature to do something like this!
Shaking her head as he turned away from her and just flew around in the sky like he didn't have a care in the world, she hissed. 'I swear how can he be so calm about this. If Kiyoshi is weakened because of this he will fall and so will the South. And if that happens we are all in danger of Motoichi!' Sucking in a big breath, Ayame looked up at her brother as she stopped making everyone else. "Sanzo! Will you get down here already! We really need to talk about what you are going to do when we get there!"
With a sigh at his sister's voice, he turned and headed back toward them. Her closed mind on this matter has gotten them into more than a few fights on this trip and they have only been gone for a couple of days. He did see her point and also thought it was insane to Mae a human. But if he claimed her because of his demon, and she was able to draw that hard ass out, she was far from weak.
Landing in front of her and the whole party, Sanzo crossed his arms as he glared at his sister. Ayame I told you already what my plans are. I will strike at her once and only once. If she can defend herself or land a blow on me, then I see that as her be ing worthy. She was strong enough to get that old fart to mate her after all. She just mi
ght surprise us."
Hissing at her brother, Ayame deepened her glare for him as she stomped his foot. "And what if she isn't just your normal human? What if the rumors are true that she is a human miko? What then?"
"The plans will not change because of that Ayame. Sorry."
Shaking her head Ayame was so angry right now that she didn't know what to do about him! "You have to kill her and get it done with! She is a human, miko or not and will be weak compared. She will make him weak and the lands will fall to Motoichi in time! We cannot allow that to happen!"
