Vampire Princess Miyu Fan Fiction ❯ When Friends are True-A Vampire Miyu Saga ❯ The Third Clan ( Chapter 2 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Chapter Two



Chapter Two
The Third Clan
Though still cautious, Miyu found herself going more comfortable around the new kids as the days went by. They were friendly and fun to be around, but she still had no leave to who they really were, even though she and Larva continues to watch them closely. Miyu knew that Shinma often disguised themselves as students to get close to the human students, and the attacks started no less than a week after they arrive. So far, there was no student or faculty illnesses or fatalities. She also figured that if they were Shinma then they would be a little bit more careful around her. They still often slipped up with their wording when they were around her, talking to each other as if they had known each other for years. Larva kept telling her that all of them went to the same house every day after school.
Miyu still wanted to know what they were doing here and what they wanted with her. If they knew who she was, that is. She had to keep reminding herself about that. As long as they did not cause any problems, then they could stay in this world. She was really hoping that she would not have to send them back to the Dark.
Larva was acting oddly after they arrived; this worried Miyu more than anything else did. He was constantly reminding her to be careful around these people. At night, he held her a little closer than he usually did for a longer amount of time, as if he was afraid that something would happen. It made Miyu feel as if he knew something that she did not. For her, it was one of the uneasiest feelings in the world.
It was now about one week after they had transferred to Miyu's school. Nothing had happened yet. Miyu was in her history class doing her best to look like she was paying attention. Kia sitting behind her, her long legs sprawled on either side of Miyu's desk; her head bowed to her chest in a half-snooze. Their teacher was reviewing the Toyotomi battles when the teacher asked: "Miss Inaru, where did this particular battle that we have been talking about for half the period take place?"
Kia snorted and looked up. "Uhh… on the battle field?" The class snickered.
"No, I mean what war was it?"
"What ever one we've been talking about." Miyu herself stifled a giggle.
A vein appeared on their teacher's forehead. He sighed, soothed back his hair and straightened his necktie. "Let… me rephrase that. Which battle killed thousands of innocent people?"
"That really big one." Was Kia's comeback. Now the class was laughing all around her.
Now their teacher's face was bright red with anger. "I'll ask you one last time, Miss Inaru. When did this unparticular war take place?"
"A long time ago." The class was out of control, laughing so hard that the majority of them had tears running down their faces. Kia only calmly twirled her long black hair around her finger as if nothing had happened. Their teacher, on the other hand, looked as if he was about to explode.
He pointed a knobby finger at Kia. "That's it! You have detention, young lady!"
"Tennis practice." She said without even looking up.
"After then!"
"Fine."
It took the teacher the next five to ten minutes to calm the class down so he could finish the lesson, but by then he was still almost too angry to speak.
Miyu and Kia walked down the hallway together for a little while before they went to their separate study halls. "Why did you make him angry like that?"
Kia shrugged. "Dunno. I already know the stuff as if I've learned it a hundred times already. There is no reason for me to learn it again. I'll see you at break, Miyu." Kia turned down another hall and disappeared into the crowd of students. Again? Miyu thought.
Miyu and her new group of friends adopted the tree they had sat under the first day they met as a meeting spot for lunch. "Kia…" Yoshi whined at lunch that day. "Did I ever tell you that you're my favorite sister?"
"Yoshi, I'm you're only sister." She said in a monotone voice. "How much money do you need?"
"A hundred yen." Kia sighed, pulled out her wallet and handed him the money.
"Thank you…" he said. He and Ryuko ran off to buy lunch.
"Let's see, adding that to the account, he now owes me about three billion yen." Kia grumbled to herself.
"You know Kia, it's not usually healthy for your reputation if you piss off the teacher in your first week." Tacha advised, biting into an apple.
"Hey, it's not my fault that his class was so incredibly boring that I had no choice but to fall asleep!" Kia snapped back.
Tacha smiled, but then looked at Miyu very intently. Putting her apple down, she leaned forward so she was no more than an inch or two away from Miyu's face. Miyu tried to pull back, but Tacha took for chin firmly in her hand, staring straight into her eyes. Miyu began to feel nervous. Why was she looking at her like that? Could she find out what she was by looking at her eyes? Were they brown or gold? Could Tacha see past the illusion that she put over her eyes? Along with that, Miyu did not like anyone being that close to her under no condition what so ever. Her heart began to pound and her palms became slick with sweat.
After what seemed like an eternity, Tacha let go and sat back. "What was all that about, Tacha?" Ryuko asked, coming back with Yoshi and an armful of school food.
"Nothing… since we are in the shade and there is not that much like I had to take a closer look. Miyu, you have really pretty eyes. They explain your personality well. So… mysterious in their own unique way."
Miyu's throat tightened so much that she could not speak; she only nodded. Unique… eyes? Could she really see her golden eyes? They must… what was so special about brown eyes? It was then the bell rang. Lunch was over and it was time for sixth period to begin. Ryuko and Yoshi quickly inhaled their food before they went off to their separate classes. Miyu felt sick to her stomach. She took a sick day that day for PE, claiming she had a headache.
It was Thursday, which meant the class had to run a mile and a half. Miyu sat under the shade of the tree, feigning her headache by closing her eyes and burying her head in her arms. A few feet away, their teacher called out times as the students ran by. But she still felt confused, and it felt as if a ball of solid cold iron had settled in the pit of her stomach.
Larva… Miyu called out desperately in her mind. I don't know what to do. Maybe I'm just overreacting, but one of them commented on my eyes today, they said that they were mysterious and unique. Can they see my golden eyes? I'm so confused…
There was a long pause along the mental link that she and Larva shared. Finally, he sighed. Don't worry about it too much, Miyu. I'll explain everything to you tonight.
I want to follow them to their home today. Miyu could almost see the worried look in his eyes. Before he could say anything else, she added in quickly: Just for a little while. I will be careful, so don't worry. Just wait at home for me.
There was another pause. Very well. For your own safety, be on totally alert.
Not more than a few moments after that, Kia, Yoshi, and Tacha all plopped down in the shade of the tree next to her. They were the first ones done; a mile and a half in less than seven minutes. "Ahh…" Kia sighed. "That was refreshing. Hey Hon', are you feeling any better?" she asked Miyu.
Miyu looked up. "Yes… a little. I don't think I'll be able to stay after school today. I have an essay due tomorrow in English that I have to get done, and get rid of this headache before that."
"That's all right. We can't stay either. We even need to miss practice today. Why don't you just go home after school. Don't worry about meeting us at the band room today." Tacha suggested. Miyu nodded. She was still feeling very sick.
* * *
Miyu did follow them home, just as she said she would after school that day. From about eleven o'clock on, dark clouds began to roll in from the coast. Now they blanketed the sky, transforming the landscape and the distant city of Kyoto into drab shades of gray. This was favorable conditions to Miyu; she could hid in the branches of trees without being seen by them (hopefully) or any humans going the same way. Larva had told her where they walked on the way to the house they were all staying in. It was in the cedar forest also, the opposite direction of Miyu's home, but roughly five or six miles away from the school. It was more secluded than the house she and Larva were staying in.
The sky became blacker as they entered the forest, and the trees became masses of dark shadows among the limbs and branches. Miyu still hung behind them, but her keen sense of hearing let her perceive every word they said.
"Are you sure it's her?" Kia asked.
Tacha answered: "I'm sure of it. Have you seen anyone else with golden eyes?" Miyu held her breath, then carefully stepped over to another tree branch as they walked on, making sure she did not break any twigs. The forest seemed deathly quiet.
"True," Yoto responded. "But we still have to be on our guard. As a vampire, she will immediately try to return us back to the Dark, as they call it. We must introduce ourselves carefully."
"What about her Shimobe?" Ryuko inquired. "He's of the Occident. And you know what kind of problems that can cause. We can't screw up here, guys."
"He opposes no threat." Yoto said. "And even if any others knew that we were here, they would keep their distance."
Miyu had heard enough. These people whom she had been attending school with for only a week and a half knew about her and Larva, and she had no idea in heaven of hell of what they were. For the first time in years she began to feel very afraid. She had to talk to Larva about this. She disappeared from her perch in the tree. The leaves rustled.
* * *
Yoshi caught a faint sound with his sensitive hearing; the faint whisper of leaves brushing together. He looked up, searching among the night-cloaked branches. "What is it?" Ryuko asked.
"There's something in the trees. Or was, actually. They're gone, now. Yoto, Ryuko, you didn't smell anything?"
"No, nothing."
"I could have been Miyu." Tacha said. "I think I may have frightened her today during lunch."
"Really?" Kia said sarcastically. "I could not tell since we can see her eyes no matter how well she can disguise them!"
"I was hoping that there could be some way to tell her about us without much of a problem." Tacha continued, ignoring Kia's bitter retort. "We are under our parent's order to find Miyu and tell her what the Foreseers know. We can not wait any longer. Tonight." The others nodded.
"We are running out of time." Kia said. "There is a growing tension in the air."
"Miyu will probably be talking to Larva about this. Let's go home, get our homework done, then try to talk to her. This is not going to be very easy."
* * *
As her heart rate lowered, rational thought can back to her. She was sitting in the far, dark corner of her room, her legs drawn up tightly to her chest and her chin resting on her knees. What in the world was making her this anxious? There have been plenty of times where Shinma addressed her directly, who knew about her and Larva before they even came into any form of contact, but this was so different from those times. Maybe it was because she did not know who they were. Or maybe it was because she was friends with them and closer friends with anyone she had met at school for a long time.
Shadows engulfed the room as night descended outside the paper walls, making the surroundings almost pitch-black. Miyu was still able to tell when Larva came into the room. "I didn't think if you were back yet or not." He said. Miyu remained silent; she really did not hear him. She was too preoccupied with her own thoughts. He sat down next to her. She barely moved. "Are you all right?" He asked softly, touching her shoulder. It was then that Miyu came back to reality.
She looked up at him. "I'm sorry. What did you say?"
"It looks as if you haven't moved for hours. Did you learn anything?"
"They know about us. I have a feeling that they will be coming here in a very short time." The thought had played through her mind several times since she arrived back at the house they was staying in, but saying it aloud sent shivers down her spin, and the taste of nausea welt up in the back of her throat. Larva put his arms around her, and Miyu did not resist being pulled into his embrace. Normally she would feel safe and comforted, but it only made things worse in a small way. She remembered the tone of the voice that Ryuko used when he pointed out that Larva was a Western Shinma. It was harsh, as if he hated the Westerns. And if they were all from the same place, that meant they all did. Five against two, and they had the better chance for victory. Miyu shuddered, and forced the thought from her mind. "You said that you would explain everything when I got back tonight. Do you know what they are?"
Larva stayed silent for a very long time before he began to explain. "I'm only surprised that your Elders did not speak to of this any sooner." He started. "You know of the two Clans of Shinma that inhabit this realm, right?" He felt her nod. "That is only in this realm. There is a third. They are the Chinese Shinma, and they come from the world on the other side of the Earth realm."
"Do they mean any danger to us? If they come from so far away, does that mean that they're our enemies?"
"They are a different race. No one from this world has ever been to theirs, or so I'm told. But apparently they are very technologically advanced, probably ahead of the humans by a few hundred thousand years. My masters have told me that they have not left their realm since the Shinma Wars, and that happened back when I was a child."
"We were fighting against them?"
"No, and I've forgotten the details of who was fighting who for what reason. The Chinese Shinma are allies to the Japanese Shinma, so you do not have to worry about them harming you. As for the Western Shinma… let's just saw that they feel indifferent towards us. And no one can remember for what reasons. It's as big as a question to why the Japanese and Western Shinma are enemies."
"And their powers?"
"If they are from the higher class, they are very powerful. Stories have been told that one can level a forest."
"Do you think that they are here to fight?"
"Who knows."
Miyu held onto Larva tightly, burying her face against his shoulder. Suddenly, every last fear centered around him and his safety. Losing him in any way was Miyu's worst nightmare, and she knew that it could happen at any given time since he was her guardian.
There was a knock on the door at about midnight.
Fear settled into the pit of Miyu's stomach like a lump of cold iron. She stayed where she was for a moment long before standing up. "I'll go out and talk with them. Hopefully there will not be any strife."
"Miyu, if there is any problems, please call for me." Miyu remained silent, and bit her lip. "As your guardian, it is my duty to protect you from any sort of danger, no matter what the consequences of the outcome may be."
Miyu swallowed, then said, reluctantly, "If there is any trouble, I'll call." She left the room.
She descended down the dark hallways very slowly. A chill began to creep up her spine; they were right outside the front door. Taking to doorknob firmly in her hand, they knocked again, and her heart stood still. Giving the knob a firm twist, she pushed the door open.
There was nothing on the other side.
They were there, though. "Hello?" Miyu called out nervously. "Is anyone out there? Kia, Tacha, Yoshi?"
"How did you know it was us?" Came an answering voice; Tacha.
"I… followed you home. I had a feeling you would be paying a visit tonight." She paused. "Where are you?"
Kia said: "We were not too sure what form to take for this little visit. We're in our real forms right now, so we didn't want to freak you out. I think Tacha did a real nice job of that earlier today."
"Drop it, bird-brain!"
"Why are you here?" Miyu demanded, trying not to show her fear. She knew how bad the squabbles among themselves could become. She could be here for hours. "What business do you have with me? I don't want to fight you, but if you intend to hurt Larva, than…"
"Whoa, hold on there for a moment." Ryuko's voice came from the dark. "Nobody said anything about hurting anyone!"
"We're only here to talk, and talk we must. Your Shimobe might want to hear this too. It's really important." She sighed. "All right, we're coming out. Try not to be too scared, all right?"
The shadows moved, and five tall, slender figures appeared. There was no doubt to they were the new students at Miyu's school; Kia, Yoshi, Tacha, Yoto and Ryuko, but there was something slightly different about them.
They were unlike any Shinma that Miyu have seen before. In the long run they were still similar to humans, but now with animals characteristics, and each were dressed in long, flowing light brown cloaks that looked similar to Larva's. Kia and Yoshi were anything but identical twins in their true form. Kia looked like more like a bird, maybe an eagle, but her agile form made her look more like a stork. Her eyes were no longer black, but yellow; not golden like Miyu's, deep and mysterious, but hard and cold. There was a long, dark slash mark across both eyes, running down the full length of her face, and her ears ended in tufted white feathers that extended beyond the crown of her head. The lower part of her arms became scaly and an orangish-brown, and her fingers were abnormally long and ended in curved black claws. Her feet looked like the talons of a bird of prey. The most distinguishing feature was the six-foot long white wings that grew from her back. Yoshi had similar features, but her looked more like a bat. The only way that Miyu could place that was the dark, leathery wings that he had growing from his back. His ears were long and pointed too, with the same leathery texture, and his eyes were a deep crimson with the same markings. His arms were covered in a dark brown fur, and his fingers were longer than his sister's were, spidery and fragile-looking. His feet were also large, with long toes that were webbed with a light brown membrane.
Tacha was the only one of her kind out of the five. She looked like a cat; her eyes were the still same sparkling green that they were since they first met, but they seemed to glow in the dark. Her ears were pointed like a cat's and black, and there were three dark marks on her lower right cheek and jawbone, looking a bit like she had been scratched by a cat. Black fur grew from her arms and her hands and feet looked like cat's paws with curved white claws that grew from the fingers and toes. A long black tail swished behind her. Yoto and Ryuko looked identical, and they looked a lot like wolves. Their eyes were the same hard yellow as Kia's, their ears with pointed and gray, and they both had a dark mark that ran the whole length of their face, starting from their right temple and ending at the left side of their jaw. Their arms and feet looked like a wolf's, a little like Tacha's, and they had gray canine-like tails as well.
For a long time the two different Shinma races just stared at each other, not moving, not saying anything. "Don't tell me that just because we're Shinma too that we can't be friends anymore." Kia said after what seemed to be an eternity.
"It all depends on what you're here for and what actions you take." Miyu said. "How do you survive here? Do you need to take human lives in order to keep your energy up?"
"Oh, God no. Never touch the things. We may eat a little bit more than average people do, but we don't depend on humans. We've been in this realm for the last four hundred years, and not a single human as died in our hands. At least not due to taking their souls. Is that all you're worried about?"
"Larva just told me how the Western Shinma and the Chinese Shinma are enemies. If you intend to hurt him in any way, then…"
"You're gonna have to calm down and hear us out. We're here for training, but not for fighting of any kind, so your Shimobe is safe. Not to mention, it's not our place to pick fights with other people. We're also here because we're way too hyper for our own good. Not very good heir material, you know."
"Heir?" Miyu asked. "You're royalty?"
They nodded simultaneously. Ryuko said: "Heirs to the throne of the three different Clans of our world. We have these rings that we're supposed to wear all the time, but we didn't want to wear them until you knew about us. Anyway, we not here to talk about that. This is fairly important, and we think that you Shimobe want to hear about this too. We promise we won't do anything to hurt him."
Miyu nodded then ducked back into the house with the Chinese Shinma waiting patiently outside. "You know mom would kill us if she found out that we weren't wearing our rings." Yoshi whispered to Kia.
Larva was in the main room of their house, within close hearing range incase anything happened. "They want to talk to both of us." Miyu said. "They promised that they would not hurt you." Larva followed her wordlessly outside.
They stayed within the doorframe and the Chinese Shinma were still where they standing. "We got to keep this short; we do have school tomorrow and it's already late." Kia said. "About a year or so ago we got sort of a telegram from the Foreseers of our Clan. They had a vision of an upcoming peril to the Japanese Shinma and their Realm, and they wanted us to deliver the message to the current Guardian. It took us one heck of a time tracking you down, let me tell you. They said that the vision was very sketchy, and there was not too much detail. But they told us that your Realm will be invaded, but whom they did not know. What they did tell us, and this was emphasized greatly, that it will more than likely change the whole face and relationships of the three Shinma Clans, and the current Guardian is going to be the center of this entire ordeal.
"When the Foreseers get a vision, it's not there once and then never heard from again. Individuals have been picking up bits and pieces to this larger picture, and they are taking this very seriously. They are doing very intense research right now, and are beginning to piece together something that looks to be an ancient prophecy that may be older than your Elders. They will send us the final copy when they get enough information."
Yoto added: "Oh course, none of this has been set in stone."
"How bad are they planning this to be?" Larva asked.
"If it's true, you mean." Tacha said. "There are usually a lot of false alarms when it comes to issues like this. A prophecy can cause a big hype, kind of like how the humans react to the coming of a new century. But, if this is true, then it could be big. We're talking like Armageddon dooms-day material. But it may not be true. Foreseers come up with flukes all the time. And if it does happen, there is no telling when it could happen. It could be next year, in the next hundred years, it may not happen for another thousand. You may not even be the Guardian when this happens. There is no telling what the time frame for this is. They just want us all to be careful."
Kia said: "Will you consider our warning?"
Miyu stayed silent for a moment. "As the Guardian of this realm, it is my duty to protect it from any type of danger. I have no choice."
"Would you like us to help you out?"
"Since you know more about this prophecy thing, yes. But hunting down the stray Shinma is my duty, and that I don't need any help with."
"We know. You know, since we're going to the same school and everything, then we should do something this weekend. We'll go see a movie or something, on us. See you tomorrow at school, Miyu." Ryuko flashed her a peace sign and the Chinese Shinma disappeared into the dark night.
The songs of crickets echoed in the still night air, and the crashing waves on the distant shore sounded closer than it usually did. "Larva, do you think this is something we should be concerned about?" Miyu asked.
Larva shook his head. "Early foresights are hard to be taken seriously. Probably the best thing we can do is wait and see what happens. I don't think the Chinese Shinma would do anything to jeopardize their alignment with the Japanese Shinma."
Miyu shivered; she was not sure if it was from the chill in the air or the Chinese Shinma's haunting words. The current Guardian is going to be the center of the entire ordeal. "It's getting cold. Let's go back in." Miyu and Larva turned back into the house, shutting and locking the door behind them before retiring for the night.
* * *
Later that night Larva woke up in a cold sweat from a deep sleep. He had just had one of the most disturbing dreams he had ever had. For some odd and terrifying reason, he had been fighting against Miyu, who was not fighting back. There was blood on her yukata and tears streaming down her face. Right before he woke up, he remembered rushing at Miyu, who suddenly slumped over in his embrace. He looked down and she that he had impaled her with his own hand; blood was everywhere. And he remembered feeling himself smile.
For several moments (or was it hours?) he stayed perfectly still where he sat, trying to recall if it was just a dream or if it really had happened. It seemed so real. He finally found enough strength to get out of bed and check on Miyu. His legs still felt weak.
To his relief, Miyu was all right. She was sleeping soundly, facing towards the wall with her dark hair fanned out around her. She was breathing soundly, and was very alive. He was barely able to contain his sigh of relief. She looked so peaceful while she slept, so he decided not to wake her. He returned to the room that he was currently staying in, thinking about what the Chinese Shinma had said earlier that night about a foresight of upcoming danger to the Japanese Shinma Clan. Was that a foresight of his own?