In the dark room there were shapes in monochrome, of course the daylight could bring brilliant fuchsia or deepest scarlet, but for now it could be a scene from a black and white movie. The silhouettes were already more discernible than they were only a short while before as she gazed toward the window; any moment the sun would kiss the sky orange, igniting a new dawn, bringing the chorus of the birds.
The blackness became her blanket of protection, a place for her heart to beat quietly in steady rhythm. All that came to her was the warmth the sun gave to the daytime and the sounds of the other animals who loved the night, such as herself.
She who was the cloak of midnight itself and it's evermore of shadows. Twilight had faded, leaving her alone in the cold and dark cell, curling into herself with soft and easy breaths. However, her ears perked up as she heard footsteps.
A figure towering over her small feeble self had stared down at her, a lamp in his hand and a plate in the other.
From a non-context point of view, it was bizarre for a family of exorcists to keep a small kitten barred up inside a large cell that was used and fit for supernaturals and humans. So why was a kitten that was barley larger than half a foot, placed in the cold cell, stuck in the shadows alone? Especially since she looked harmless.
He slid the plate through the barrier of the cell as the plate clattered. She walked up to the dish, sitting there and waving her tail as the azure eyes stared down at her. They held neither pity nor remorse, not contempt or amenity. It was a wavering unsure look of what to think.
"No need to look like that. I won't bite." She said simply, taking a bite of the salmon that she already knew Kou had cooked.
He didn't feel guilty, since she wasn't just an innocent cat like she looked. But at the same time, he also wasn't the person who put her inside the cell. That would have been his parent's doing, after they had come home unexpectedly from a trip and saw the black cat in their living room, that was talking.
They weren't afraid of cats, but there was something that his parents were hiding from him.
"Mom told me that I need to take you with me tomorrow to the family meeting." Teru said simply as she let out a hum. He had seen much more odd things than a talking cat before, however his younger brother, Kou hadn't. He had been extremely surprised to find out that the cat that they have yet to name, was a talking cat.
She never told them why.
"That child, your brother right?" She had inquired. He eyed her carefully before nodding. "Kou."
The cat lied down on the cold stone floors. "Tell him that the salmon was good." She said, before curling up into her own little ball. He saw the cat one time a day, for about ten minutes. She had been in the cell for a week now. It had been a while since he had seen his parents stay at home for so long. Indefinitely it had something to do with the small furry black creature.
The only time Minamoto Teru was allowed to see the stray he rescued, was dinner, or an early breakfast once he was done with his usual hunting rounds for supernaturals. He would come home and travel down to the basement and watch the cat eat her food before napping again.
She had been quite cooperative about the entire thing.
"Are you a supernatural?" He had a hunch about what the answer was, considering he was capable of sensing the certain energies of non-humanoid beings. "No."
That was the only answer he had needed and wanted as he took the plate and made his way back up the spiral stone staircase, leaving the small cat alone again in the dark, staring outside the extremely small window that even she wouldn't be able to fit through.
-
The 'family' meeting was held once a month, or once every few months. It was a meeting that consisted of all adults, usually those of the Minamoto family and their branching families as well. Two representatives from each household would arrive for them to discuss their course of action for the next following months to plan beforehand.
Usually children weren't allowed. However Minamoto Teru was an exception. The eldest son of the main branch Minamoto family, hailed exorcists and a child prodigy himself. He excelled in school, top of his classes and excelled further in exorcism, single handedly exorcising large supernaturals himself at the age of eight.
Their family, specializing in spiritual lightning, Minamoto Teru was also hailed for having black lightning that differentiated from any other of his parents or previous ancestors that had either yellow or white.
The cat didn't enjoy being a one animal zoo, eyes nitpicking everything about her as she sat on the table in front of Teru and beside his parents. Around her neck was a collar made of prayer beads that could enlarge and capture her if she tried to run. There were murmurs and whispers as Teru looked around with a poker face.
There were many familiar faces. Some distant relatives, others not so distant, and others he had met before but had no clue what their names were.
Her ears twitched as a cough from Mister Minamoto, the current head of the family, had stopped everyone's ceaseless chatter as they all stared at him, causing him to stand up. "I'm sure you all are aware of what this thing is. The topic of discussion today, starting off, I suppose should be this one." He pointed at the black cat.
A few of the elders looked at the ebony cat before chuckling. "So it seems that Teru has done an outstanding job once again. I suppose all of our applause should go to him." An old balding man had said with amusement. Teru simply stood there, straight faced as they applauded. It was difficult to tell if some were sarcastic or if some were begrudging or not.
Another man had raised his hand as Teru's father nodded, signalling him to speak as he coughed, clearing his throat. "I don't believe that our time should be wasted on a discussion over such a creature. Should we not just kill it and call it a day?"
"Because. Eventually, you'll make me angry. This is my seventh life you know? I have lived all the way back to your ancestors." The cat had finally spoken nonchalantly in a dull monotonous and bored tone, causing him to flinch.
"Quiet, we did not ask for you to speak, Witch." The head of the Minamoto clan had spoken icily, glowering at her.
Teru had lost his poker face for a split second, eyes widening at the newfound information. She was a witch. Their family didn't particularly deal with witches since they did not count as supernatural creatures, since they were humans in reality, simply using supernatural powers. However, they certainly have had their run-ins and mix ups in the past.
Long, long in the past, before his parents were even born.
"As I was saying. Certainly, we may kill this witch. However, she will only be reborn again. Whether she is telling the truth or not, begrudgingly, she is not a supernatural, nor is she a threat. Yet. I am not saying that we should bow our heads to his creature, but should we anger the witch, we would only be putting the people in danger if her power goes rampant. Correct?"
The elders all looked at one another with a hesitant expression. "So what do you propose we do, Daisuke?" All eyes had locked on both him, his wife and his son as the tall male sat down.
"That is exactly what we will be discussing today. Now, let us begin."
Both the cat and Teru had sat still throughout the entire discussion. Several dirty glances were sent her way as she ignored them. Her ear twitched every time a reference to her was thrown into the conversation.
"Say we kill her, what would happen then? She's a cat." The same man from earlier had asked. He was asking for a theory, one that could back up the fact that they should not kill her right then and there. "Another option is to seal her away, no?" The man beside him had asked, stroking his beard.
The cat had stood up on all fours as all eyes flew to her once she had leapt on Teru's head, laying down on it, much to his discomfort. He had stayed still this entire time, not uttering a word or matching the eyes of any of his family members, just staring at the table blankly.
Or he was, until his father had called on him. "Teru."
"Yes father?" The blonde had stared his father in the eye as the old man gave a small but light smile. "What do you think we should do, my son? You are the one who caught her, I believe you too, should participate."
Teru sighed, knowing that this was yet another test given to him by his father to prove his worthiness of being the next heir to inherit the clan once his father retired or possibly died. The boy was still eleven, yet had the enhanced mind of a teenager. He was socially aware and academically smart.
But, in this situation. Only the truth would be best. "In all honestly father, I had no idea that this was .. a witch. I simply brought her home from my exorcising rounds one day. I have less knowledge about witches than you, so my only solution I can offer .. is to ask the witch herself, what would happen if we were to kill or seal her away."
His father deemed it a satisfactory enough of a response as they all looked to the black cat. "The Hokkaido incident a little less than two hundred years back. I'm sure you gentlemen and single lady have heard of this, no? I'm sure every exorcist has. After all, I've learned about it when I was still serving as a shrine maiden."
The silence was a given sign to continue. "All of the residents of Hokkaido had fallen into a comatose sleep. The work of a witch. My mother. Every witch has a last trump card that can be activated on the verge of death, no matter what life or how many lives you have left. I see why I'm getting dirty glances. After all, my mother gave you all quite a lot of work to do after exorcists from all around the world had to band together enough spiritual purification power to wake the island up."
"My trump card? Say you seal me away, I can activate it automatically. Regardless of how many of these prayer beads you put on me. I will cause disaster and misfortune for this entire city. That is millions of humans and apparitions alike. In the blink of an eye, someone can be plagued with bad luck, swerve off of a road. Someone can accidentally fall down the stairs, there's a lot of maybes."
"If I use that card however, I'd use the remainder of my lives. Therefore, I am negotiating. If you call bluff, we can always test it out. I am a witch who is on her seventh life, yet to live a full life. Therefore, I simply just wish to live quietly. If needed, we may form a contract. I will help the Minamoto family, protect your kin, in exchange, I ask for my lifestyle living as a normal human."
Some scoffed, others sighed, grunted and bit their inner cheeks in frustration. They were all backed in a corner with the addition of the witch. "From this information, I believe the best idea would be a contract, unless there are any obligations?" Teru had said in a firm tone, however the witch could feel the small quiver of his hand.
He was still some-what nervous with all of the pair of eyes staring at him, unsure if he was even doing this entire thing right as his father sighed and nodded.
"As for the contract, if it makes you lot, as well as me, sleep better at night, I would prefer it to be with one of you three. This benefits us in both ways. One, you can probably provide me with my needs, two, I'll be near by to keep a tight leash on, right?" The witch had hummed, staring at the three main branch family members.
The branched off clans were less wealthy, less strong, less understanding of her circumstances. That and because she preferred Kou and Teru.
"Then it appears we have come to a conclusion. All in favor?" They all had raised their hands in unison, bringing the important part of the meeting to an end as Teru was ordered to bring the witch back to the manor so that the rest of the elders could discuss the remaining portion of the meeting.
As they finally left the building, both of them breathed a sigh out simultaneously. The cat leapt off of the blonde's nest of hair, landing perfectly on her feet. "So you're a witch .. I see." Teru had mused to himself. "That doesn't classify as a supernatural, correct?" The cat had asked as he sighed.
She was indeed correct. A witch wasn't a supernatural, instead they were rather humans who used supernatural magic with occasionally the help of supernatural objects. But in some occasions, witches, to obtain more power or to manifest their deepest desires, will sacrifice their own body, mind and soul for their insatiable greed, and ultimately turn into a supernatural.
That hadn't happened in a long time though .. After all, witches were said to be extinct, gone as a whole. If not, then they were in hiding, living as though they were dead.