Tales Of Ayakashi

CHAPTER 18

"Your...wife," he started. 

"What about my wife?" Ayakashi frowned. 

"...I approve," Hebimaru said after a brief hesitation. Ayakashi stared at him blankly. He scratched his head. "This is a surprise. To hear such high praises from the Snow Prince himself...why?" he asked, more curious than anything. 

"She didn't fall into my illusion," 

"Your illusion?" Ayakashi blinked, then grinned. "He~h? Doesn't this mean that my own charm exceeds that of the Snow Prince? Mm! My wife naturally has good taste," Ayakashi said, gloatingly. 

Hebimaru smiled wryly. "It means only one of two things," he explained. "Either she's extremely powerful, or..."he paused. "Or she's pregnant," he said. 

Ayakashi, who had been silently praising himself about his wife's good tastes, froze when he heard those words. "What did you say?!" he asked. 

"I said-" Hebimaru started again, but Ayakashi waved him off. "I heard what you said! I meant...pregnant? How?" he asked, bewildered. There were myriad amount of emotions flitting through his eyes at light speed. Joy. worry. doubt.

Hebimaru glanced at him from the corner of his eyes. "The usual way, I suppose," he said, dully. 

Ayakashi grinned. "You're sure you're not mistaken?" he asked, looking at him earnestly. Hebimaru shook his head. It didn't even cross either of their mind, that it could be because Hanamari could be powerful-more powerful than Hebimaru, hence avoiding his Illusion technique, because how could she be? She was a plant demoness to begin with and plant demons exchanged every bit of their cultivation to gain a mortal's life. 

So the only explanation that's left was...that she's pregnant. Ayakashi felt elated. The emotions he could feel right now could hardly be described, but he quickly clamped them down. His heart was threatening to beat out of his chest, but he forced it to clam down as he gazed at the solemn figure standing before him. "It couldn't be simply to tell me this, that you came here. Speak. Why are you here?" he asked. 

"Genryuu's been looking for you," 

"Genryuu," Ayakashi blinked, bewildered. "The Beast King? Why?" he asked, furrowing his brows. 

Hebimaru shrugged. "Who knows? Maybe you pissed him off?" he asked, sarcastically. 

Ayakashi hook his ehad. "I don't remember any-wait! Genryuu? green hair, nasty temper, a pipsqueak...is that him?" he asked. 

Hebimaru looked amused. "I don't know about the pipsqueak part, but he indeed has green hair and a nasty temper as you described," 

A vague memory that had been buried in the deepest recess of his memory start to rise. 

Ayakashi had just ascended to the Heaven Realm. He was both inexperienced and weak in term of fighting experience, and he only had his wits and cunning to survive and swindle his way through. The amount of trouble he got into could be piled sky high, and the enemies he had made were countless. So, he always had a habit of sticking to unpopulated roads and avoiding meeting people. 

That was when he had coincidentally stumbled upon an entrance at the bottom of a craggy mountain. He was contemplating on whether to go in and search for treasures, when the door opened from a the inside and a short kid, hardly upto his waist stepped out. He looked harmless on the surface, but Ayakashi had learned early on never to judge a book a by its covers. Especially books in the Heaven Realm. 

After a  short converstaion, which mainly consisted of the kid demanding answers to the questions he posed and Ayakashi answering them 'honestly', they parted ways. He never heard from him again. But some rumors started to circulate around about how a kid had challenged the Heaven Sovereign over and over again for three consecutive days and nights, he unintentionally thought of that little brat. Then he cast that to the back of his mind. 

"Haaa~ It had been centuries...to think the kid wants to come after me, heh? Is he drunk?" He asked curiously. 

"Anyway...he's turning the Underworld upside down in his search for you, and some people asked me to come and ask you to resolve this yourself," Hebimaru said, sighing wearily. 

Ayakashi sneered. He knew just who these certain somebodies are. More like nobodies. All they do is skulk around in brothels and fish for gossip. Gossip mongers the lot of them! 

Of course, what Ayakashi failed to mention was the fact that the people he so casually cursed to be gossip-mongers and old maids...*ehem*...also just so happened to be the most powerful gathering of great yokai outside of the great yokai clans. They are more like rogue yokai who has no affiliation with any clans or groups and only gather together for the main purpose of relieving boredom and fish for interesting tidbits of news. 

Genryuu's action was mingling with those five had been a more prudent choice than to randomly search around the Underworld. Ayakashi doubted that anyone could just randomly barge into his clan's domain- like how his sworn brothers and Hebimaru had down- but then again, you can never be too careful. 

Guess he's been putting that off what with all the trouble in the clan and all,   Ayakashi sighed. He smiled wryly at Hebimaru. "I got it. The usual place. Would that be alright?" he asked. Hebimaru tilted his head in acknowledgement then the next second he was gone.  

Ayakashi called for one of his bodyguards, and asked them call in a midwife, while he himslef rushed inside. He couldn't wait to check whether what Hebimaru said was correct. 

-

A while later, Mikaribaba- a one eyed old woman, wearing an old furisode, with plain head ornaments- slid open the paper door to the inner chamber. Ayakashi who had been pacing outside approaced her impatiently and asked, "Well?" 

Mikaribaba's big blue eye glinted with joy. "Congratulation, Ayakashi-dono! Hanamari-sama is indeed pregnant!" 

Ayakashi didn't wait but strode past her. He paused abruptly. Sitting on top of futon, with the screens pulled back, she was stroking her belly, a look of wonder on her face. Instead of the youthful aura she used to display, her figure now held a motherly aura that radiated from her. 

Ayakashi feld his heart skip a beat as he took all this in. He was going to be a father!  Suddenly he felt nervous and uncertain. Hanamari must have sensed him, because she lifted her head, and smiled. Suddenly he wasn't so nervous anymore.

That smile...

He thought as he went inside. 

...will be what I would protect from now...

He knelt beside her, and kissed the back of hand. Hanamari didn't release his hand as she brought it forward and pressed it atop her belly. Warmth engulfed his palm and he imagined the little life they created sleeping inside. 

Yes...Her smile, and this little one right here, I will turn the nienrealms upside down to protect them both... he vowed to himself silently.