by C. A. Storm
YUKI SHIRO
BOOK 01
0 ABSOLUTES
THE NIGHT PARADE
First Edition
Written By
C.A. Storm
Edited By
Chelly Hoyle Peeler
Ink It Out Editing Services
inkitoutediting.com
Cover & Graphic Design By
Christopher M. Coyle
Dark and Stormy Knight
First Edition
January 12, 2018
Copyright © 2018 C.A. Storm
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.
This is a work of fiction. Any names, characters, places and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law.
C.A. Storm | Christopher M. Coyle
www.DarkAndStormyKnight.com
Dedication
Yuki would not exist at all without the inspiration from countless people, not the least of which are the authors and fans of Reverse Harem novels, in all their glorious forms!
In particular, I’d like to dedicate this book to the ladies of Do Not Read & Wine, who adopted me and dragged me willing or no into this crazy universe! Aleah, Ashley, Brittany, Paige & Soobee…this is officially all your fault. Without you pulling me into this world, I’d still probably be the sweet, innocent, wide-eyed writer I once was.
Jamie, as always, you’re a Light! Even if you’re the Crimson Queen of Mischief & Mayhem, thank you for your cheerleading – I needed it with this one!
To my partner, He Who Should Not Be Named lest he be summoned… love you, but no, just no. I don’t think the world is ready for your plans for domination quite yet. Thank you, however, for schooling me on Japanese culture, legends, and anime. You made a weeaboo out of me!
Acknowledgements
There’s a list of acknowledgements I absolutely have to include here, but a special shot-out to three special ladies in particular!
Molly McMichael-McFall – who has one of the most Irish names ever!
Ceri English – for your most exquisite taste in accessories!
Ashleigh Elizabeth – for always bringing the heat when it’s needed!
The party is coming, I promise, and your invitations have already been issued!
As always, I have to thank the readers. Each and every one of you elite few! Thank you for taking a chance on my stories.
Author’s Note
Yuki Shiro is a labor of love. It draws the Yōkai into my urban paranormal fantasy world created for my Cœur de Lyon series of books, introducing more supernatural creatures and complications.
I tried to approach the Japanese influences reverently and respectfully, drawing as much from actual myth and legend as well as from more modern interpretations found in manga & anime. Hopefully, I was successful in creating my own unique spin that people will enjoy.
This book is the introductory book of an ongoing series. I’ve labeled it a Reverse Harem Urban Fantasy solely because the RHUF acronym amuses the heck out of me, but while it’s not a slow burn, it’s not a flashfire either. There is some sex, somewhere, if I remember correctly…you’ll have to read to find out…and there is always the possibility that swords may end up crossed!
Likewise, the characters in this book are monsters. They are not human. Most of them have never been human. They may look human, sometimes act human, but they’re creatures of myth and legend. Their morals may not be those you’re always comfortable with. I don’t feel comfortable giving trigger warnings, but I try not to do anything gratuitously, just to do it.
This book doesn’t contain any of what I consider triggers, but I cannot promise this world won’t be getting much darker in the books to come. I will try and put fair warnings around them, make them easy to identify and skip over, but please, let me know if I inadvertently offend!
I am but Mortal, despite my reputation!
With that out of the way, and without further ado, I present to you my very first Reverse Harem! Please, enjoy!
And all that weird weather the US has been experiencing the Winter of 2017-18? Yuki would like for me to formally apologize on behalf of herself and her family.
#TheGlitterKing
CA Storm
Contents
Dedication
Acknowledgements
Author’s Note
Contents
Introduction
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Epilogue
Mada, Mada! まだまだ
Glossary
Coeur de Lyon: A Renaissance Flair
Coeur de Lyon: After Dark
About The Author
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Yuki Shiro: 0 Absolutes
My name is Yuki Shiro. I am the daughter of winter and shadow. Since birth, I have been trained to be a thief, a spy, and an assassin. I hate my life.
Okay, that was a lie. I kind of love my life, but it just got a lot more complicated. See, I have been summoned to stand before the Empress of Shadows, the wife of my biological father, which makes her my “stepmother,” to receive a mission of vital importance. Great! This totally won’t be a suicide mission.
She’s ordered me to travel to someplace in the middle of nowhere in America, under the cover of a diplomatic representative attending the Yuletide Celebration of some guy claiming the title of High King of the Gray Sidhe. While I’m there, I’m supposed to somehow figure out a way into the rumored underground city beneath the Cœur de Lyon Estates, steal a mirror, avoid any complications or guards, and then bring it back all the way to Tokyo, without getting caught.
Don’t ask me why she wants a mirror, she’s a bit of a crazy woman, but as Empress, her word is law. I don’t have much choice in the matter.
Oh, and to make things even worse? I seem to have developed this strange tattoo that’s decided to grow across my chest, and just what in the name of Susanō’s Ten-Grip-Sword are these empty circles supposed to represent? I’m cursed, aren’t I? That wicked empress probably cursed me. Great.
Can my life get any more complicated?
0 Absolutes is a lead-in story introducing a new complication to the tangled skein of supernaturals converging at the Cœur de Lyon Estates in Colorado, as the Night Parade (Japanese supernaturals) decide to make their presence known to the world. It is connected to the world shared by the A Renaissance Flair novels, but no previous knowledge of those books is necessary—just some shared characters.
Yuki Shiro is a Paranormal Reverse Harem/Polyamorous Fantastical Romance with a strong Urban Fantasy
leaning, with one girl and a bunch of guys who are all fated to be together. There may eventually be some sword-crossing, both figuratively and literally, but you’ll have to stay tuned to find out!
Introduction
My name is Shiro Yuki, although in the States, I go by Yuki Shiro, so I guess just call me Yuki. In Japan, though? It’s Shiro Yuki, and since this story starts there, we’ll go with that for now.
A few things you should probably know about me.
I’m Japanese. I hope the name and location clued you in to that, but since I’m being forced to write this all down, I just wanted to make that clear.
I’m Yōkai. In “American,” that’s basically what you gaijin call a monster or ghost. It’s a bit more inclusive than that, sort of covering a lot of different species.
I also hate Christmas. With the burning inferno of a thousand suns, I hate the holiday season.
Considering I’m a yuki-onna, a “snow woman,” that’s a lot of hatred, believe me.
Okay, I guess that’s not completely true.
What? Oh, no, I am a yuki-onna, and yes, I go by Yuki. See, depending on the kanji used, it can mean either “snow,” or “happiness,” or even “because it’s valuable.” Different meanings for the same word. I was actually named “Happy.”
Stop laughing. I will cut you without losing a moment of sleep over it.
No, what I was trying to say, is that I don’t completely hate Christmas. Not anymore, anyway.
Why not?
Well, if you’d let me actually tell the story, then maybe you’d find out!
Chapter 1
Yuki | Shinjuku District, Tokyo, Japan | 2017年12月5日
What does one do when summoned to appear before the Empress of Shadows, the Kage no Kōgō?
Well, if you’re me, first you curse like an American sailor who’s stubbed his toe, because summons from the Kōgō are rarely, if ever, a good thing.
Second, you call your mother, which, looking back, was probably one of my biggest mistakes.
“What do you mean that bitch has summoned you?” Yes, that was my dear, old mother speaking. Although if you tell her that I called her “old,” I will retaliate swiftly and brutally…if I survive her wrath, that is. “This is all your sperm donor’s fault. He had to go and marry that hag.”
“Hai, okāsan,” I said, rolling my eyes as I glared at myself in the mirror. Her snort at my formal tone made me smile.
“Ungrateful child,” she sniffed, then inhaled sharply before exhaling long and gustily. I could easily see her chain-smoking away like a fiend as she paced a circuit around her garage. “And she wants you there at dusk?”
“Yes, Mama,” I replied, switching to the more informal English my mother preferred. My mother was a proud Yankī, bleached blonde hair, studded leather jacket, and American muscle car and motorcycle otaku extraordinaire. To this day, I’m still surprised she never moved to America, but still haven’t worked up the courage to ask her why not. Frankly, my mother terrifies the fuck out of me. Hell, all the women in my family are terrifying.
It’s what we do.
The Shiro women have something of a reputation.
It’s both well-deserved and hard-earned.
“I will call your grandmother and my sisters,” she continued, and even through the cell phone, I could hear the stomping of her foot. She must have put out her cigarette. Ah, there was the distinctive flick of her Zippo, heralding her follow-up cigarette. Good thing she didn’t have to worry about lung cancer.
“Are you sure that’s necessary, Mama?” I had to try really, really hard not to whimper at the thought of a gathering of all the Shiro women. Bad things happened when they were all together.
“It’s just in case, Yuki-chan.” Oh shit, she was calling me -chan! Not a good sign when my mother was being affectionate. “If I don’t hear from you in a few hours, we’ll storm the castle!”
She sounded way too cheerful at that thought!
“I’m sure it’s just a formality,” I tried to sooth her, to forestall a literal storm from burying Tokyo beneath a blizzard. “I’ll let you know once it’s done.”
“Just swing by instead. We’ll catch up! It’s been months since I’ve seen my only child, ungrateful girl…” Oh, that sly tone.
Dammit! I walked right into that one!
“Hai, hai,” I sighed, surrendering to the inevitable. I had too many other things to worry about, and it was already a shitty day. Might as well end it by getting drunk and singing karaoke with my mom and aunts, because that’s how those outings usually ended.
After ending the call with my mother, I quickly sent off a message to my girls:
Meeting with WQ. Caught in mom-trap after. (;*△*;)
Almost immediately, I was bombarded by responses.
(ᗒᗜᗕ)՛̵̖ ʱªʱªʱª! Sucks 2BU! (ᗒᗜᗕ)՛̵̖ [Tsubasa]
ꀞꀞꀞ (◍´͈ꈊ`͈◍) (◍´͈ꈊ`͈◍) (◍´͈ꈊ`͈◍) ꀞꀞꀞ [Kaori]
ʕ̡̢̡̡̢̡̡̢♡ᵒ̴̷͈艸ᵒ̴̷͈॰ʔ̢̡̢̢̡̢̢̡̢✧ wwwwwwwww [Miki]
I don’t even know what that last one was supposed to mean, but knowing my girls? It was mocking me, somehow. Oh yeah, the love was overwhelming.
(๑o̴̶̷̥᷅﹏o̴̶̷̥᷅๑)ᵒᵐᵍᵎᵎᵎ RU OK? [Shinkō]
Aw, at least one of my so-called friends cared.
I fired off one last message.
┻━┻ ヘ╰( •̀ε•́ ╰)
Right, time to get ready.
❆❅❆
Kuro Amaya, most recent consort of the Kage no Mikado, the Shadow Emperor, made her lair in one of the most elite penthouses in the Ginza district. Ever since she had come into power, a little over five years ago, the entire Buzoku, the whole “Tribe of Shadows,” had seen a massive…change, for want of a better word. Unfortunately, as my biological father was the Kage no Mikado, my presence as a member of the Buzoku was a sad given.
My mother’s side of the family, the Shiro Clan, was one of the smaller clans that fell under the overview of the Kage no Buzoku of the Yattsu no Buzoku, or the Eight Tribes of Yōkai that ruled over all the monsters, ghosts, and spirits of Japan. Of which there were many!
For such a small island, relatively speaking, there sure are a lot of creepy crawlies lurking about!
I know I’m throwing a lot of foreign-sounding words and concepts at you. Sorry! I’ll have to throw together some references and stuff for you to flip through later, but for now, I’ll try and explain a bit as we go. Just know that some concepts or words don’t really have a direct translation into “American,” okay? Deal?
Anyway, the traditional seat of power for the Kage no Buzoku was in Okutama, the western-most district of Tokyo proper, but Amaya-sama had insisted on moving her personal court to one of the richest sections of Tokyo, in the heart of the Ginza district.
This was both a good and a bad thing. A good thing, because it was a lot closer to my apartment in Shinjuku, compared to Okutama, which was a lot farther away. A bad thing, because it was too damn close to my apartment. I was now almost smack-dab in the middle of Kage territory, and that was just way more Kage politics than I wanted to deal with on a regular basis!
Okay, so technically, all of Tokyo was considered neutral territory between the Tribes, but the reality of it was that each of the Tribes had carved out whole neighborhoods and claimed their piece of the city. Amaya-sama, however, upset a bit of that balance when she carved out Ginza as her own territory. Not “Kage” territory, per se, but Amaya’s own territory. The entire district.
Lesser Clans had to either move or change allegiance, and that had stirred up quite a bit of trouble in Tokyo, let me tell you!
And wow, that was a huge data-dump! Sorry, sorry! Right, back to the story.
Since Amaya-sama’s penthouse was only a little over 7 klicks, er, kilometers, away, I decided it would be quicker to take my motorcycle than deal with the subway crowds. Plus, I’d have it handy for heading over to Mom’s garage afterwards, since the
re was no way I was getting out of that little date.
Ah, my sweet, sweet baby love. Tucked neatly away in the corner of the small parking garage that had been the entire reason I rented this apartment, was my pride and joy. A 2017 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR with a 4-stroke, 4-cylinder liquid cooled engine and tires designed for taking hairpin turns as quickly as I liked to take them. He was my baby, my one true love, my sweet Tan-kun!
Of course, my mother hated him.
Granted, it was because I wouldn’t let her touch him, and she had that whole Harley or nothing thing going on forever now, but that wasn’t why I loved him—though, it did give me that happy, warm feeling of frustrating my mother, but shh, that’s our little secret—I loved my motorcycle because it was freedom. Just me, Tan-kun, and the road before us.
Sadly, I didn’t get the chance to take him out on nice dates as often as I’d like. The whole, I’m a responsible, adult Yōkai having to juggle a day job with the secret job of being a glorified spy and assassin thing.
What?
Yes! I have a day job! You don’t actually think I get paid decent money spying and killing people, do you? I mean, hello? I’m in a “Tribe,” part of a “Clan.” It’s expected. What’s not expected? The fact that the days of killing anyone unlucky enough to just cross our paths ended with the start of the Meiji Era, and some of us actually prefer the taste of chocolate over human flesh, thank you very much! And chocolate addictions can be expensive here!
Mm. Chocolate.
Tan-kun made navigating the city streets easy, even during this time of year and during this time of the evening.
The districts in Tokyo were distinct, each with a completely different vibe, each a small world all in its own little bubble. Where I lived, Shinjuku, was the largest neighborhood in all of Tokyo, and easily the most crowded, but it was also one of the most diverse. My apartment overlooked the Gyoen National Garden—the other reason I clung to my tiny apartment like the precious little jewel it was—and it was unfortunately a straight shot to the penthouse.
