LAYA'S P.O.V.
Rafael had gone to interrogate
Dr. Saltzman with Landon on the subject of Alaric ignoring the Phoenix. I offered to go, but Raf insisted he would be fine. I was simply happy he was okay. My classes had already ended, and I watched the younger students play Wickery through my window.
"Laya! I got a problem!" Josie Saltzman exclaimed bulldozing through my door. "What's up, Jo?" Before the witch could respond, a raspy voice speaking in a different language erupted from the halls, students murmuring to themselves fearfully at the voice.
Josie held her pointy finger up, signaling for me to wait whilst she headed out of the room. "Um..."
Josie pulled an older Asian man into my room, the man clad in an ornate helmet, and samurai armor. "Who is that?" I questioned. "Long story. Short version? He's a Samurai/Demon Hunter who lost his oni, and the only way we can kill it is with his demon-banishing sword before it carries off Landon into Malivore, and Lizzie won't help. Can you come?"
After the very not short explanation, Josie finally took in a breath. "Well, I suppose I have nothing better to do seeing as Raf is with Landon." Josies face brightened, "Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!" The Saltzman cheered as she rushed me into a hug.
The Samurai chuckled knocking his head before pointing to me. He said somethings in Japanese before saying one word that stuck out to me. "Kurutta," he knocked on his head again, pointing to me. "He's talking about me, isn't he? He's calling me crazy."
That would never not hurt, being called crazy. "No. No, he's talking about the oni. It possesses people, makes 'em act crazy." Josie tried to fix the words of the Samurai. I let out an sigh, "Should I bring the twins?"
"All of the help we can get, the better." The students who had been grouping at my now opened door to see the Samurai we're getting louder. The man whipped out his blade, whirling around. Students gasped as the Samurai yelled at them chasing after the children. Josie yelled something in protest following after the man making me laugh.
It didn't take long to get to Bastien, and Barry's dorm. When I got there, they were both taking a nap, or so I thought. Their eyes were wide open, glowing bright blue as they chanted the words, "In blackness, the light emerges, illuminating the path for darkened souls to follow. Two forge their own way, but a third sees a new path."
I swallowed down the small bit of fear trying to creep up my throat. Spinning around, I found MG walking back with an old camera in hand. "MG! Go get Dorian, and ask him to watch them until they wake up." The vampire peered into the twins rooms letting out a soft groan, "Oh, god."
Turning back around, he asked, "Wait, where are you going?"
"To help a friend destroy a Japanese demon."
We followed Kurutta's sword's crimson glow all the way to the local high school. "Dad?" Josie questioned as we stepped upon him, Hope, and Landon standing outside of
Dr. Saltzman's Grey Jeep. "Josie."
"What the hell's going on?" Kurutta smirked declaring something proudly in Japanese. "He said, 'We came to protect the bonsai headed boy'." I snorted realizing Kurutta was speaking of Landon, and all of his curly haired glory. "I think."
Josie's eyes fell on Hope, and she leant over to Kurutta speaking in Japanese. The man grunted looking in the new girl's direction. "That's Japanese for, 'What the hell is she doing here'?" I nudged Josie in her rib with my elbow. "Jo," I warned quietly. "What? Just because she's supernatural, doesn't mean we can trust her. I mean, she shouldn't be here."
"Look, I will take all the help I can get. Even from him," the three opposite of us turned to Kurutta who had taken a seat on the curb fumbling with edge of his blade. "So, ask him to tell us everything we should know."
"Kurutta-San." Josie encouraged causing the Samurai to stand to his feet, beginning his explanation in Japanese whilst Josie tried as quickly as she could to translate. "Dropped on his head as a baby," she explained as Kurutta made a bang motion against his temple.
"Samurai school to learn discipline.He learned to slay oni—demons, which is what we're chasing. He was a hero. All the women begged to..." Kurutta grabbed the hilt of his sword waving it around making me laugh. Josie set out some words of protest in Japanese before switching back to English, "Kurutta-San! I don't even know that word, but it can not be relevant."
Another snort escaped my lips, "Josie, the point. Let's get to it." Josie have Kurutta a reassuring nod, and the man continued.
"Kurutta spent months tracking down an oni that possessed people, moving from person to person by touch. He was just about to kill it when it found its way into the body of a child, and escaped him yet again. He gave chase, and caught the demon. But he could not bring himself to harm an innocent child. So, instead, he man an impossible choice, and he took the oni into himself. But it was then that he realized, unlike everyone else who had been possessed, and remembered nothing, he was still partly in control of his faculties. He thinks the oni found it harder to possess his broken mind. His words, not mine," Josie assured.
"He tried to stab himself with his sword, and the oni wouldn't let him. So he decided to never touch a person again——" Josie stopped looking back to Kurutta before asking him something in Japanese. The Samurai ignored the comment, and went on explaining, so she continued translating. "So that it could never possess anyone else. And then... Malivore, eternity of nothingness... deep psychological torment. He came through an... Ana? I think he's talking about a portal."
"Portal?" Hope questioned a little too suspiciously. "Uh, where?"
"Uh, sorry, the ancient samurai isn't an expert of Mystic Falls Geography." I rolled my eyes at Josie's sarcastic tone. This was going to be a long day.
"How do we kill the... the demon?"
"Uh, with his sword," I answered pointing to said demon vanquishing weapon. "It's spelled with a special kind of magic, so if we can just find the oni—" Dr. Saltzman's Jeep rocked back and fourth, banging erupting from the vehicle.
"Not a problem." The door to the trunk ripped off, Rafael growled as he leapt from the car. I gulped jumping back, but Kurutta didn't feel the same way I did. Instead, the samurai lunged at my boyfriend. "Wait, no,no, no, no!"
The two's brawl ended in Rafael running away, and Kurutta on the ground. He might have killed demons, but apparently he had never fought a werewolf before. Josie darted over to the samurai shaking him awake.
Kurutta spoke some words in Japanese weekly, Josie turning hastily to translate. "He said that could've gone better."
It was happening. The voices were coming back, and I didn't have enough time to focus on what they were saying. I followed Dr. Saltzman, and the teenage girl who's name I couldn't remember through the pep rally.
Whispers dulling my hearing abilities. "Damn. I wonder if Raf already touched someone."
"Yeah, lets just ook or one strange radical." I whipped around in
Dr. Saltzman's direction what he could possibly be talking about. "What did you just say?!"
"We need to look for anyone acting weird!" Dr. Saltzman's voice finally cleared, and suddenly the whispers stopped. "You mean besides the football team?"
"There's a student here that needs your help." A sheriff told us. Something was off. Why would they just stop? Maybe it was because Barry, and Bastien were going through an episode. I hadn't spit out a prophecy in a while, so why would it just stop?
Rafael sat on a bench in the locker room earning a relieved sigh from me. "Raf!" "Laya, wait!" I didn't take the time to listen to
Dr. Saltzman's protest. I think I'd know if he was possessed by a Japanese demon.
"Raf?" My boyfriend met my eyes fearfully, "Hey. That's you isn't it?" Rafael held his hands in each other giving me a small smile, "Yeah." Rafael glanced up to the two behind at me before adding, "Um... I wasn't in control back there."
I flashed a reassuring smile, "It's okay. I-I can help you. I just need to know if there's anyone you've touched, or who might've touched you."
"Um.... I don't remember." An unintentional sigh slipped from my lips. I didn't want him to feel guilty. "That's okay."
"Did you find Raf?" Almost as though I jinxed myself, I heard his voice. I had been purposefully avoiding Kai despite his help, it felt strange to me that the Parker man could just see everything I thought. It bothered me.
It's in him.
Turning from the group, I looked down trying to be quiet so the others couldn't hear, "Who?"
You know who. The oni is inside of him.
When I spun back around, and the three had disappeared. They went to find Landon.