Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ Elemental Education ❯ And, so it begins ( Chapter 1 )

Bekka was having a bad day. That in itself was nothing new. What made today especially bad was that she was now suspended by vines looking at her very amused tormentor and a very irritated man, though he had features that just didn't quite add up to “man.” Loki was laughing, which did nothing to help her mood and less for that of the man. The man had what looked to be a tail, switching from side to side violently, and ears that stood up from his head like those of a cat or fox. She wasn't sure since they'd been plastered back against his silvery hair most of the time she'd been there.

 

Loki had delivered her in what she was beginning to think of as the “usual” way, dropping her from some height so she landed face first on whatever hard surface was below her. Only, this time, the vines had wrapped around her body before she'd fallen very far. She let out a squeak of surprise, attracting the attention of the not-quite-man.

 

“Who are you and what are you doing here?” he demanded, his golden eyes flashing.

 

Bekka tried to get her mind to focus on the questions and their answers when she heard Loki's all too familiar laughter. She moved her head to glare in the direction of the sound as the man before her turned around, a whip appearing in his hand from nowhere. She felt the vines tighten around her body so that she couldn't have moved even if she tried. Loki was standing in the entrance to the cave they were in. Bekka managed to wonder briefly why vines were growing in a cave before Loki spoke, driving everything else out of her head.

 

“Well, little Absinthe, aren't you going to answer the kitsune's questions?”

 

The strange word barely registered in her mind as she yelled back, “My name is Bekka, you good for nothing piece of…”

“Tut, tut, such language,” Loki cut her off. “You know very well that your mother named you Absinthe, little girl. Behave and admit your name to your host.”

 

With a vicious glare at Loki, Bekka faced the…kitsune….was that the word Loki used? “My mother named me Absinthe. I go by Bekka. As to why I'm here….ask that over there,” she pointed with her chin at Loki.

 

Loki laughed and sighed, “Such gratitude, little girl. You know why you're here. This is where the next game is to take place.”

 

Bekka only glared at the god as the enraged man asked, “What do you mean, her host? What game? I did not wish to have either of you here. Both of you, leave now.”

 

“I'm sorry, Kurama, that just won't be possible.” The man looked taken aback that Loki knew his name. Bekka felt sympathy for him, knowing that uncomfortable feeling. “You see, she is a pawn in a much larger game. The rules are set, as are the moves. She must be here, with you, and you must help her.”

 

“I don't have to do anything,” the man, Kurama replied. Bekka felt the vines around her loosen and she fell to the ground with a thud.

 

“Thanks a lot. This wasn't my idea, you know,” she complained as she got to her feet.

 

“I don't care whose idea it was, leave.”

 

“Don't you think I'd love to?”

 

“What's stopping you?”

 

“I am,” Loki answered. Bekka glared at him, her fists clenched at her sides. Loki looked at her, continuously amused by the girl, “Didn't living with those monks teach you anything, or are you just too red-headed to figure anything else out?”

 

“You…” she growled.

 

“But, then, what do I expect from a gutter snipe?”

 

“You...” she growled louder.

 

“Maybe I should just stick you in a temple again?”

 

She launched herself at him, ready to tear his face off, forgetting that he was a god. She hit the archway head first with a sickening thud. Her vision blurred and darkened momentarily, anger restoring it when she heard Loki laughing behind her.

 

Still laughing, Loki turned to Kurama, who was mildly confused and very irritated by the display before him. “Here is your choice, Kurama. You teach her control over her powers or you loose yours. Which is it?”

 

“You bastard!” Bekka yelled, “How dare you threaten someone else! Isn't playing with my life enough for you? And what the hell do you mean powers?” As she yelled, venting her anger, flames began to appear around her. Surprised, she stopped suddenly, damping down on the anger she felt. The flames that had no fuel vanished quickly, but those that managed to find fuel continued to burn. Bekka's face blanched, turning very white against the red of her hair, her grey eyes growing very wide, “Oh, holy hell, now what game are you playing at?”

 

Ignoring the question, Loki turned his attention back to the kitsune, “Well?”

 

The kitsune felt trapped. No, he thought to himself, I am trapped. I can no more give up my powers than live without air. “Since she doesn't know, what are her powers? Other than creating fire, that is?”

 

“She is an elemental witch. She can control any of the elements, but some will be harder for her to learn than others. Fire just happens to be the easiest because it suits her temperament and hair color so well.”

 

“An elemental witch?” Kurama had never heard that term before.

 

“Oh, did I forget to mention, she's human?”

 

“A human? Here? In the Makai? Are you utterly cruel?” Kurama asked, aghast.

 

Loki shrugged, “I've been called worse. You have as much time as you need to teach her. She will be tested when it is determined you are finished.” With that, Loki vanished.

 

Kurama eyed the girl cautiously. “Why did you try to attack him?” He figured he'd start with what triggered her rage, trying to understand this human before him. Inwardly, he shook his head.

 

“Because of what he called me,” she answered.

 

“What did he call you? Red headed, which you are, gutter snipe, which I've never heard before. What of it?”

 

“He also mentioned putting me in a temple.” She sighed, there was no way of getting around it. “In a lot of cultures, red heads are considered to be fiery and passionate….and prostitutes,” she said the last in a very disgusted tone of voice. “He was calling me a prostitute, a cheap, common, easy, slutty whore.” The disgust was extremely evident in her posture and tone. He didn't understand that, though. “What did you mean by Makai? And what did he mean by kitsune? I've never heard either term before.”

 

“The Makai is one of the three worlds,” he answered. “Humans are typically in the Ningenkai, spirits live in the Reikai, and demons live in the Makai.”

 

“Demons?” she broke in, a puzzled expression on her face. “Demons are supposed to be like some kind of mythology or something….aren't they?” her voice was very uncertain.

 

“Mythology? I'd like to think I was real.” He almost laughed at her startled expression. “A kitsune is a type of demon.”

 

Bekka scratched her head, “Gods and angels,” she muttered, “I had to go and be stupid, didn't I?”

 

“What does that mean?”

 

Bekka sighed, “It's a long story, but the short version is I made a wish to travel and it was answered by Loki. I shouldn't have made that wish…I shouldn't have trusted some stranger who came up to me and asked if I wanted to travel. I should have been a lot more suspicious, less stupid, not made that wish.” She sighed again. “Well, should have, but didn't, so now I'm here.” Suddenly, Bekka felt as if the floor had vanished out from underneath her. She felt sick to her stomach. She groaned, “I almost forgot about this part of the whole situation. I'm going to a bit sick for the next couple of days. Part of the joys of how Loki transports me around. He says there's nothing he can do about it. I doubt it. He likes to watch me suffer. Is there somewhere I could lie down before I fall down?”

 

Kurama was beginning to wonder if this human would ever make sense or be able to endure training if just arriving made her sick. “Hey, this passes,” she protested.

 

“What?” he looked at her, confused by her sudden outburst.

 

“You wanted to know how I was going to endure….” Her voice trailed off. “You didn't say that out loud, did you?” Her eyes grew wide again as he shook his head. “Oh, hell, just what I need.”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“He made me an empath, too.” She rubbed her head, “I can now hear strong thoughts. I only catch a few of yours.”

 

“You're familiar with empathy but not with demons?”

 

“Empathy is accepted as a possibility where I'm from. Demons are regarded as myths only. Usually, they're depicted as evil and conniving and out to destroy humans.”

 

“You come from a strange place.”

 

“Pretty much, yeah. Please, really, I need to lie down.”

 

“Follow me, then,” he turned on his heel and began to walk off.

 

Bekka pushed herself off the wall only to continue moving forward without her feet. She landed face first behind the kitsune, unconscious. Turning, Kurama began to toe at the girl, disgusted at the lack of response. Sighing, he picked her up and took her to his room. He dumped her unceremoniously in the center of his bed, sitting at the foot to watch her. She lay where he dropped her, unmoving.

 

How was he going to teach some ningen? She wouldn't be able to leave his caves and he would be stuck having to watch her to make sure she didn't do anything stupid. Her strange lack of information intrigued him, as did her knowledge of certain things. Being kitsune meant he was curious, almost insatiably so.

 

“Good, she's asleep.” Kurama turned to face Loki, who'd reappeared just behind him.

 

“What do you want now? More threats?” Kurama did not like this person who could appear without triggering his defenses.

 

“No, information. I don't ask that you care for her for free, you know. I'm not as bad as she thinks I am.” Kurama snorted at this, but Loki ignored him and continued on. “That she gets sick and manages to recover from how I have to transport her is actually quite remarkable. Most humans would die. She's a lot stronger than she looks, a lot stronger than most humans. She can offer a lot of information and she's a good story teller. As for the test, that won't be for a while yet. Train her the same way you learned. She will be able to control all the elements.”

 

“What do you mean, all the elements? And why?” Kurama wasn't sure he trusted this person before him, but really had no reason not to or to take action, yet.

 

“Fire, water, earth, air and void. She can explain them when she wakes up. As for why? She'll need those abilities later in the game.”

 

“Game?”

 

“She agreed to join the game when it first started. Her version, while lacking in detail is accurate. Once she agreed, there was no turning back. Oberon controls the game, I'm just the messenger and she is quite entertaining. That temper of hers is funny. It's fun to bait her. You'd think after nearly 70 years of having the name Absinthe, she'd get used to it. Oh, speaking of time, she is physically 20 and will age in the normal human manner while she is here.”

 

“You still haven't told me what this `game' is.”

 

“It's complicated. We play it to pass the time. Being immortal gives us a lot of time to pass. She is now part of that game in a way very few ever are because of certain traits she has that other humans just don't have in sufficient quantities. Get to know her and you'll understand. And be kind, her last test was a very difficult one and just ended. She passed, but lost a lot in passing.” Loki gave the sleeping girl what could almost be called an affectionate look and vanished.

 

Kurama shook his head, more confused than before Loki visited.

 

“Ah, before I forget,” Loki's voice came from nowhere. “Here is her stuff, she'll want it.” Suddenly, a large sack and a smallish case landed on the bed next to Kurama. He opened the small case and did not recognize the item contained within. It was nestled in red velvet and had a reddish tone to the wood. Intricate carvings graced the upside of the piece and it was shaped in an elaborate hour glass shape. From one side, a darker wood shaft continued past the edge of the red wood to end in an elegant scroll about his hand span beyond the body of the item. Drawn across the red and dark wood were five metallic cords. He frowned at the item, closing the case again. Going through the bag, he found mostly clothing with a few items he could not identify. He shook his head again. This girl was going to have to explain a lot when she woke up. How long would that be? He decided he would wait until she woke and watch her as she slept.

 

The first thing Bekka became aware of was weight near her feet. The next thing was the softness of the bedding. Where was she? Oh, yeah, with the demon. But, I fell on the floor. I guess he moved me. I hope he's not angry. She became aware of a murmur in her mind that didn't fit with her own thoughts. She focused on it and forced it to become louder and clearer. It sounded like the demon's voice. He was wondering when she would wake up. Three days, he thought, and she keeps sleeping. Three days, she thought, is that all? She opened her eyes and looked toward her feet. “Three days is actually rather short. Last time, it was a whole week.”

 

Kurama looked at her, saved from being completely surprised by her movement. “How do you know it's been three days?”

 

“You were thinking that. Just now, you were wondering when I would wake up and grumbling about it being three days.” She pushed herself into a sitting position, breathing deeply as vertigo struck with the sudden movement. “I'm sorry, I heard you before I completely woke up.” She looked around, “This is your bed, isn't it? I'm sorry.” Her eyes fell on the items next to him. “When did my violin get here?” she asked.

 

“Violin?” Kurama had never heard the word before.

 

“Yes, violin. In the case, there,” she pointed to the small case. He handed her the case and watched as she opened it, running her fingers gently on the red wood. She then rubbed the fingers of her left hand with her thumb. “Well, I still have string calluses. Want to hear something?” she looked at him expectantly. Taking his shrug as assent, she picked up the instrument and placed it under her chin, also picking up a long bent stick with some type of string connecting the two ends. “This is a bow,” she said, noting his curiosity. Tipping her chin against the violin, she drew the bow across the strings, checking their tuning before she began to play a simple lullaby on the instrument. Kurama found the lilting tone pleasant and watched intently as her fingers danced on the strings. Finishing the song, she looked at him again, “You like it?”

 

“Yes, can you make more?”

 

“Yes, I can play more, but I'd like to eat first, please. By the bye, what type of demon is a kitsune?” she asked as she replaced the violin in its case.

 

“A fox spirit.” Kurama answered as he rose from the bed.

 

“Oh, okay…thanks,” she muttered as she moved to rise. Reaching the fully upright position, her head again spun and she deepened her breathing to compensate. “Sorry,” she said lightly, “I've been in bed a bit long to keep my head happy. All better, now, though,” she smiled brightly at him.

 

“Are all ningen this much trouble?” Kurama muttered under his breath.

 

“Am I really a great lot of trouble?” Bekka asked, concerned that she'd done more to offend her unwilling host than be an unwilling guest.

 

“You yell in your sleep. Do you do that all the time?”

 

“No, not all the time. Only once in a while.”

 

“What was your last test?”

 

“Oh,” she sounded hesitant and he looked back. Her expression was closed, her eyes down cast, “Mostly just a maze. At the end, I had to make a choice.” She bit her lip, looking up at him, “Because of that choice, I lost everything I had.”

 

“What choice…” Kurama began.

 

“Can we please discuss this later?” Bekka cut him off. “It's only been a week. I haven't had time to cope with everything yet. I'm sorry.” She dropped her eyes to the floor. She sighed, “I was in a monastery the last place I was. It wasn't a normal monastery. The monks trained to be the emperor's guards, elite fighters. I wasn't welcome at first. The high priest told me that women weren't encouraged to join the order. I challenged him to let me join, saying that I would surpass the group that I joined with.” She blushed a bit, “I was a little arrogant. The group I joined with was a bunch of five and six year old boys, but I had to work hard to keep up with them. After six years, I attained my mastery, a full year before the rest of the group. I wasn't satisfied with that, though. I wanted to become one of the elite and to do that, I'd have to be taken on as the high priest's student. The challenge was a little more direct. I had to fight his first student, the one who'd been with him the longest. I didn't have to win or anything, I just had to keep getting up until the master called for us to stop. Shortly after we'd started, the master was called away on something important. He returned the next day, quite surprised to see us still going at it. He said that he would have allowed me a chance to retest had we not been still fighting because he was gone longer than he thought he'd be.” She shrugged, “Didn't really matter, I passed and he took me as a student. I studied there for another eight years. His student eventually became my sensei and the high priest. He took me as his wife. Before I was brought here,” her voice caught, “I was six months pregnant. Loki came and took my husband away, telling me I had to find him and rescue him. It was a game we'd played before, but the stakes were different this time.” She took a deep breath, “I made it through the maze and rescued my husband, but then Loki told me I had to make a choice. Since I was out of my own time, the fabric of fate would not allow both my child and my husband to live. I had to decide which one would live. I choice my husband because I reasoned he could have children with other women. I lost my child and my husband rejected me, saying I did not love him. I was cast out of my home for my choice, but I honestly thought I did the right thing.” She sighed, a shaky noise.

 

Kurama looked at her appraisingly. Her story was simple and he sensed missing a lot of details, but it did make sense with what Loki had said, about her loosing a lot. The loss of a mate was a serious matter, the loss of an unborn child as well. “Why did you tell me this?”

 

She took a deep breath, “It's only fair you know. I'm not exactly myself right now, and Loki doesn't exactly bring out the best in me.”

 

They had reached the dining room area by the time she'd finished her story. It wasn't that there was a lot of distance to cover just that, during the course of the story, Bekka had not moved very far. Looking around, Bekka was amazed at the décor. There were tapestries depicting battles and love scenes on the walls. The furnishings were of fine woods and metals that glowed softly in the light. The light itself seemed to come from plants scattered around the room. “This is beautiful,” she breathed, eyes wide and trying to drink in the entire room.

 

Her frank admiration of the room did much to endear her to the kitsune. He had selected each item with care from his pilferings. Each item had a story attached to it, some of danger, some of sex and double dealings, all pleasurable for the kitsune to remember. He preened a bit as he moved to stand next to her. She looked up at him, for the first time noticing that he was nearly two feet taller than she was. He was rather attractive, as well, even with his oddities, like the ears and tail. She shook herself internally. She really didn't need to be thinking that way right now. She sighed, smiling again at him, “So, what's to eat?”

 

“What do you like to eat?” Kurama asked, unsure entirely what humans ate.

 

“Just about anything.” Picking up on his thought, “I think that if you can eat it, I'll try it. Worst case, I'll get sick.”

 

Kurama decided to keep it simple and walked into the kitchen to make a salad. Bekka wandered around the room, hands clasped behind her back, looking at the objects scattered tastefully around the room. Kurama watched her for a few minutes before starting the food. He found it amusing how she kept her hands behind her back and would tip her head around to get a better view of various items. Bringing the bowls of salads into the room, he watched her again as she continued to look around the room. She was staring up at one of the tapestries depicting various demons in different stages of violence and sex. “Absi…” he began.

 

“Please call me Bekka,” she cut him off, “I really do respond better to it. I've been called Bekka since I was three. I choose it for myself.” She turned around to face him and smiled, “Thank you.”

 

“Absinthe is a plant name of the Ningenkai, isn't it?”

 

“Yes, it is. It's a poisonous bitter tree that's also called wormwood. I choose Bekka when a babysitter read me a story about someone named Rebecca. I couldn't say it right because I was only three but I really liked it. I started calling myself Bekka. One day, my mother was yelling at me about something I'd done wrong and called me `Absinthe' and I told her my name was Bekka. I got into a lot of trouble for that, but she started calling me Bekka and everyone else did, too. Most people I knew didn't even know my name is Absinthe.”

 

“What did your mother call you normally?” Kurama asked, a little amused at this story.

 

“She called me `girl' or maybe `Abby,' but I didn't like `Abby.'” Bekka shrugged and approached the table and sat down. The salads had a variety of greens and other colors mixed in covered in an orange dressing. Sniffing a bit, Bekka smelled the living smell of chlorophyll and the sharp tang that reminded her of ginger. “You have ginger here?” she asked.

 

Kurama looked a little surprised to have her identify one of the ingredients. He wasn't entirely sure how much the plants of the two realms had in common. “Yes. What else do you recognize?”

 

Smiling, Bekka took the utensil that looked a bit like a spork but with longer tines and shifted through the salad. “Hmmm…lettuce, bell pepper, onion, cabbage, spinach…that's it.”

 

“There's also bok choy, water cress, bean sprouts, and edame.”

 

“I've heard of all of those. I've just never had them before. I guess, if there's nothing strange in the soil, these should be safe for me to eat.”

 

“How do you know about that?” Kurama was curious to find out what this girl did and did not know. Loki seemed to think highly of her intelligence.

 

“Well, my oma, my grandmother, used to grow a lot of her own vegetables. She had a huge herb garden too. She tried to teach me how to grow things, but I just didn't have the knack for it. I did learn a lot though. She taught me how to use different plants as medicine, which has helped a lot with this whole traveling thing. She said there were ways of testing plants to see if they were safe, but she died before she taught me that.”

 

“Knowing about plants has been useful to you?” As much as he did not like to admit it, this girl was interesting. He'd never met a human before, so he really didn't know what to expect.

 

“Well, throughout most of human history, women were expected to be either living with their families or their husbands. Most times, women weren't even allowed to work, except in a couple of occupations. Being an herbalist or a prostitute is about the only two ways a woman can live without being married. So, since my oma taught me about herbs, I've been an herbalist most of the time.”

 

“Most of the time?”

 

“Yeah…the first place I went looked at herbalists as witches and they tended to kill witches, so I taught kids how to read.”

 

“Why not be a prostitute?” He really wanted to know why she reacted the way she did to Loki's comments.

 

“Couple of reasons, really,” she shrugged. “Prostitutes were killed faster than witches there and I dislike the idea of selling my body. If I'm gonna have sex, it's going to be because I want to, not because I'm being paid to.”

 

“What's wrong with getting paid to enjoy yourself?”

 

“Nothing, I suppose, if you're enjoying yourself. All the prostitutes I've known haven't enjoyed themselves, though. They always seem miserable and angry. And a lot of them ended up with diseases, which is how I got to know them. A lot of doctors or herbalists refused to see prostitutes as patients. Stupid hypocrites would go and visit them at night but refuse to see them during the day.”

 

“So what actually bothers you is not prostitution but the attitudes about it?”

 

Bekka looked at him thoughtfully, “Yes, I suppose that would be accurate. Why do you ask?”

 

He shrugged, “Kitsune like sex. We enjoy seducing the reluctant to our beds. Even the most stubborn become willing participants, when we decide we want them. I just wanted to know why Loki's comments bothered you, too.” He smiled at the expression on her face, a mixture of embarrassment and attempted nonchalance.

 

Bekka's mind reeled. Loki did so love to torment her, and this was just another of his games. She forced her mind onto something else. “So, how like a fox are you?” she asked, knowing the question was stupid.

 

“Tell me what you know about foxes and I'll answer.” Kurama had to fight to keep from laughing at the girl.

 

“Well, in stories, they're said to be intelligent, clever, cunning, sly, sneaky, quick witted, and practically capable of vanishing.” Bekka's mind was not in top form. Gods above, she thought, why does his bluntness weird me out so?

 

“I'd say that's fairly accurate.” Deciding to ease the girl's discomfort a little, he asked, “How did you learn to play that violin thing?”

 

“Oh,” she smiled at him, grateful for a topic she could use to turn her mind away from sex, “I learned from Papa Hayden, Franz Joseph Hayden to everyone else. His students called him papa. He was a master player. When I first approached him, he wouldn't take me as a student, though. He said I needed to learn to put my heart and soul into whatever I played or I would never be any good. He told me to learn to sing. I took singing lessons for four years before he allowed me to study with him. He said, `You can be the best player in the world, but without passion, no one will remember you. Always play from your soul with everything you are, and even if you are a poor player, people will remember you fondly.' My violin used to be his. He left it to me when he died.”

 

“Why did he tell you to learn to sing?”

 

“Because it's easier to put passion into the voice since it comes straight from the body. It actually only took about a year's worth of lessons for me to become a singer, but it took the other three to go from being technically good to being absolutely brilliant.” She smiled at him, “Would you like to hear the difference? The salad was very good, by the way.”

 

Kurama looked at her bowl, surprised to see it empty. When had she had time to eat with all the talking she'd done? He shrugged, and Bekka took that as assent. Standing, she moved to the center of the room, facing him. “Okay, I'm going to sing the same song twice. The first way will be technically perfect; the second way will be the way I sang to convince Papa Hayden to teach me.” She opened her mouth and began a sweet tune. It was pleasant to listen to, her light soprano voice lilting through the melody. It was nice, but nothing that special. She ended the song, shifted her stance slightly and began the song again. This time, the melody throbbed with depth of feeling. The notes were the same, her voice still lilted, but there was much more to the song now. She finished the song the second time, watching him. “Well?”

 

“I've never heard that song before. What's it called?” He wasn't sure what she'd done or what she'd sang because the it was in a language he'd never heard before, but it almost felt as though he were being seduced.

 

“Oh, it's called Shule Aroon. The words are in Gaelic, Shule, shule, shule aroon, Shule go succir agus, shule go kewn; Shule go dheen durrus oggus aylig lume, Iss guh day thoo avorneen slawn. It means Come, come, come O love, Quickly come to me, softly move, Come to the door and away we'll flee, And safe forever may my darling be.”

 

“It's remarkable,” Kurama still hadn't quite fully recovered from the song's effects.

 

Laughing lightly, Bekka bowed and returned to her seat. Bekka noticed that the kitsune was watching her closely and this caused her to blush and look down to her lap. She noticed that she was still in the same clothes that she'd been thrown out of the monastery in. This thought caused her to frown and briefly forget the tension that'd been forming in the room. Still looking at her lap, she asked, “Is there anywhere I could bathe and change my clothes? I've been in these for almost a week too long already.”

 

Her sudden change in mood reminded Kurama of her recent losses. If he was going to teach her, she needed to trust him. Now was not a good time to try and seduce her. There will be opportunity later, he thought to himself. “Yes, of course. Loki also delivered some clothing for you when he left your violin.”

 

She looked up at him and smiled sadly, the light in her eyes dimmed from the sparkle that shone out when she sang. “Thank you,” she said simply.

A/N: Well...I know there's plot holes with the other stories I've written...and this is a little stranger than those...but I'll work them out...somehow...Bekka is a lot younger here than in the other stories, and that's going to make her personality a little different. It makes her harder to write, actually. I'm mean to her, no? The song is an actual song. It's a very pretty song, but the verses are sad. I love Irish melodies, the way they lilt. Hayden was actually called "Papa Hayden" because he influenced a lot of composers, I think Mozart is on that list...maybe Beethoven too. He did indeed play the violin. I don't know if he said any of that stuff, though. I'm not good at naming stuff, so Makai plants are gonna have the same names as Ningenkai plants...unless I know other names. Why the focus on sex? He's a kitsune...in a lot of stories about kitsune, they take the form of beautiful people (usually women in the stories) and seduce them...I don't think there's quite the same implications as with the Western succubus, which would take the person's soul during the...ummm...culmination of the sex act...but, then, Japanese culture seems a little more accepting of some things than the JudeoChristian culture. Anyways...review please and tell me what you think :D