~AKIHIRO~
"Crimstorm?" I called out, staring at Crimson's frozen form. I knew that when Crimson was in her zone, she could stand for ten minutes straight without moving as her eyes made a detailed inspection of what she'd just created, but this time was different. I could feel something was off and the Kitsune inside me wouldn't stop bashing at the magical barrier that kept it at bay until it knew Crimson was okay.
I noticed her trembling hand, but then she lowered it and lifted her free hand to her nose. The moment my eyes spotted the smeared blood on her hand and saw more drops that had fallen to the floor, my body was up and at her side before she could hit the ground.
"Crim!" I called out and Haru was already at my side and midway through creating a magic spell.
"What just happened?" Malachi was visibly shaken.
"Is she okay?" Itsuki asked worriedly.
Quil sank to his knees and gestured for me to rest Crim's head in his lap.
"Malachi, get a towel. Itsuki, get a wet cloth," I instructed.
"Okay," they said in unison and I heard their rushed footsteps fade as they headed for the bathroom and laundry closet respectively.
I quickly checked her pulse while Haru continued doing his thing; his hands pressed above her heart and he looked to be in deep concentration.
I didn't know much about Crim's health, but she did talk about having anxiety and getting fevers before having to see her parents. This could have been another one of those situations, but I felt there was more to it than that.
"What's wrong with her, Haru?" Quil asked.
I knew he was the least patient in these situations and would lose his shit if Haru took too long to answer. Seeing as he used to do the same to Storm, it made me realize Crimson was becoming just as important to him.
"Her heart isn't functioning properly. But that makes no sense. I check on her once in a while just with a little bit of magic when she's too quiet or standing for long periods of time. She’s completely healthy. Yet now..." Haru trailed off, biting his lip.
I could see his frustration, but also saw a hint of anger flicker in his mismatched eyes. I realized Yoshi had been completely silent and I glanced up to see him staring at the painting.
"Earth to Yoshimitsu? Worst time to be zoning out," Quil complained.
I took a quick glance at his annoyed expression, but returned to staring at Yoshi who now had a blank expression on his face. I’d known Yoshi long enough to understand his silence wasn't for nothing. There was meaning to it and I needed to know what it was.
"Yoshimitsu? What are you thinking?" I tried to break through his daze.
Malachi and Itsuki were back; Itsuki placed the wet cloth on Crimson's forehead and Malachi had a roll of tissue and a few towels to clean up the blood.
Thanks to Haru's current treatment, which began with halting whatever was wrong in the individual's body to give him enough time to create a spell to counter it, I knew Crimson wouldn't die on us, but knowing that still didn’t calm the fear rising inside me.
A quick glance at the others proved that they too were scared Crimson would fade away, just like Storm had.
"Has Crimson shared her dreams with you guys?" Yoshi wondered.
He didn't look at us, his eyes still focused on the large canvas that displayed twin swords with ribbons. I knew they were weapons used in sword dancing and that was Crimson's choice of weapon and her specialty.
"The time I watched her after she broke up with James, she did mention something about being cold. And she mumbled ‘swords’ when I asked her about it," Quil confessed.
Haru nodded, but his eyes focused back on Crimson. His left hand remained on her chest while his right rested softly on her forehead, on top of the wet cloth.
"She's definitely mentioned swords before," Haru agreed.
"Swords with me too. I didn't think it was a big deal ‘cause she’s been talking about how she missed sword dancing,” Itsuki admitted.
"She mentioned swords and a Kitsune. I thought she was thinking of Urufu or something," Malachi confessed.
"WOOF!" Uru ran into the room and to Crimson's side. She knelt next to her with her head next to Crimson's and whimpered softly. She must have been asleep and sensed something was wrong.
"She's been having multiple dreams and glimpses of Storm's memories. But the recurring theme is her being stuck in a blizzard, twin swords and a Kitsune with pink eyes...wait!" I paused, remembering the night when James had broken up with Crim. Her eyes were pink.
"What is it, Aki?" Quil asked impatiently.
"Crim's eyes. The night James broke up with her, she was pissed and was giving off power vibes like I hadn't felt since the night Storm's essence took over at the shrine. But this time, it wasn't influenced by Storm's powers. It felt like Crim’s own," I confessed.
"Wait, you mean her eyes were pink like they were yesterday when she went all ninja and almost sliced my cock off?" Malachi questioned.
I saw Haru roll his eyes.
"She wasn't gonna slice your cock off, but her eyes were pink. If she was using Storm's essence and powers, her magic would make Crim's eyes a shade that represents Storm which would have been silver or even blue. Not pink," Haru disclosed.
"So what does this all mean? She's not gonna...nothing bad is gonna happen to her, right?" Quil inquired. He was taking this harder than I had expected.
Yoshi took a deep breath and walked over to the picture. His hand trailed over the writing… "These are Old Japanese incantations," he announced.
"You mean Yamato Kotoba. Wasn't that the language Crim spoke to her father during their dispute?" Malachi remembered.
"It was. But Storm knew Yamato Kotoba as well," Itsuki pointed out.
"I doubt Crimson knows how to speak that dialect. It's not taught anymore and it's extremely hard to learn," Yoshi considered.
It wasn't that we doubted she could learn the language, but from personal experience, we'd all tried learning it and only Yoshi could successfully speak and understand it. I could read it, but the others couldn't do either.
I focused on the blades, trying to decipher the words. I blinked as the characters transformed into letters in my mind and I pieced them together.
"Sealed...One?" I translated aloud.
"Wait, what?" Malachi sounded astonished.
"It says ‘Sealed One,’" Yoshi confirmed.
"Aren't Sealed Ones individuals whose powers have been locked away for either their personal health or as a punishment?" Haru recalled.
"It generally is used on young children when their powers were far too strong for them to control. Storm wasn't sealed because she gained control of her powers rather quickly, but others with similar levels of magic affinity are typically sealed until they're eighteen. Once they reach of age, the seal is removed, otherwise it backfires," Itsuki explained.
"Backfires how?" Quil sounded nervous about the answer.
"The person dies," Yoshi declared gravely.
We were all stunned silent by those three words. Itsuki rose up, walking over to the painting to take a better look.
"That day, before Storm went on that mission, didn't she say she bumped into someone?" Itsuki queried.
"Yes! She mentioned something about a Sealed One. I didn't know what or who she was referring to," Malachi admitted.
"You think she met with Crimson and knew right away she was sealed?" I wondered.
"Knowing Storm's powers, yes. She'd be able to tell with ease. I bet she didn't tell Crimson more either due to the time constraint or because Crim was merely human. If it was an individual who had their power sealed during their childhood, they would still be able to use a small amount of magic here or there. But prior to Crimson obtaining Storm's powers, she wasn't able to use any magic." Yoshi looked thoughtful.
"Is Crimson's case worse because of that?" Quil asked.
I could feel the tension flowing off of him from where I was.
Haru moved his hand off Crimson's forehead and placed both his hands on her heart. He closed his eyes. "Give me a second.”
A large gold magic circle formed beneath us on the floor, followed by two progressively smaller orange ones. I could see the sweat begin to form on Haru's forehead as he scrunched his face in concentration.
He took a deep breath and pulled back his magic. When he opened his eyes, he looked pissed. The others and I exchanged looks, unsure what Haru discovered.
"Haru. Why do you look like you could kill someone?" Quil spoke cautiously. Even he was wise enough to watch his tone when Haru was pissed off.
"Crimson isn't human," Haru spoke with clenched teeth.
We all frowned at Haru who moved his hands from Crimson's chest and reached out to remove the towel from her forehead. He leaned forward and pressed a kiss there.
I was about to ask him what he was doing, but then Crim's hair began to glow. The silver highlights began to glow a bright orange while the rest of her normally black hair turned to an electric pink that reminded me of the Kitsune’s eyes in the image Crimson had created.
The wave of magic that pulsed off of Crimson made the hairs on my arms stand up and fear began to rise within me. Even my Kitsune was afraid, yet there was a small part of him that was intrigued by what she was.
"Holy shit!" Malachi exclaimed in shock.
Haru pulled away and the glow faded from Crim's hair, returning it to normal. She looked less pale and I could tell she was breathing easier than before.
"I didn't notice it because I couldn't feel an ounce of magic in her. Even when I checked on her over and over again, I didn't sense or see anything. But if she's sealed, there are only two locations a seal can be placed. Generally, when a shifter or child with magic is given a temporary seal, it's put in their heart," Haru began, pointing to his chest.
"But if they're sealed before birth, the only place that can hold that much magic within a baby is their mind." Haru touched his forehead. "So, if someone seals off a baby's powers before birth, the seal is placed on the brain," he concluded.
"So you're saying a seal was placed on Crimson when she was in the womb? Wouldn't that mean her mom placed it on her?" Itsuki questioned.
"Not possible. When a baby is in the womb, it 'steals' magic from their mother to survive. If the baby is a magician, it takes more magic from the mother than a shifter would. If the baby is both, it comes down to whichever is stronger, the magic side or shifter side," Haru described.
"Mosuki Arashi is a strong Kitsune shifter, but her magic is just as strong. Adding Konashi to the mix would double her magic threshold," Itsuki calculated.
"So someone else had to have placed a seal on Crimson while she was still in Mosuki's womb; she probably had no idea. Crimson was born as a human because the seal had already taken effect," Quil summarized.
Haru nodded. "And whoever did it would have had to do it multiple times during the pregnancy. It had to be someone close to Mosuki who knew she was pregnant, which could have been her husband, Konashi, one of their doctors, or close friends and family."
"Wasn't Mosuki part of a team? The books talking about the Arashi legacy state that they were a group. Mosuki was partnered with someone who was her best friend or something. I remember it being a guy," Itsuki confessed.
"We need to do more research on this, but not now. Let's get Crim cleaned up and in bed. After that, we can go hardcore on researching," I tried to sound confident.
As curious and pissed as I was, neither my Kitsune nor I liked that Crimson was still on the floor. Regardless of whether she was unconscious or not, I wanted to nestle in bed with her and give her the moral support and comfort she needed.
"We can't tell her," Malachi spoke up.
Quil lifted an eyebrow at him. "Um, either you’re blind or you haven't noticed how independent Crimson is. She's like Storm in that way, and I can guarantee both of them hate being left in the dark."
"I'm aware of that, but this is getting out of hand," Malachi huffed, rising to his feet.
Yoshi nodded in agreement. "I have to agree with Malachi on this one. This is getting to be too much. Crimson has been dealing with anxiety over having to see her family in a few days and also because of Storm's murder case. She went from an average human to carrier of Storm's powers and a pocket watch with four missing crystals that we all know she'll have to help us retrieve. She's working on her commissions that are now behind because of her breakup. Adding in the ambush you guys had two days ago, she's already on high alert."
"She doesn't get consistent sleep and even when she does, she's not resting; she continues to see Storm's memories or has nightmares. If we break it to her that she may not be human and that someone close to her planned this all at birth, I can guarantee she'll have a panic attack or breakdown," Haru predicted sadly.
"Imagine being treated like an outcast your whole life, only to then find out that someone took it upon themselves to steal away your powers, and inflicting upon you twenty-two years of misery and neglect," Quil whispered.
We were silent for a moment, all of us staring at Crimson. No one deserved to be treated that way. She had a difficult life because of someone's selfishness. If I were in her shoes, I wouldn't handle that well at all.
"We'll tell her, but she needs a break first. We need to do something to help relieve all this built up stress she has. Like a vacation or holiday," Malachi suggested.
The others nodded.
"If she has a few days to just recuperate and relax, it will help her process the information. She would handle it a lot better and we wouldn't need to be as worried about her panicking. We just need to give her some time to relax and enjoy life. Not deal with all these stressful events that keep hitting her left and right," Itsuki proposed.
"I agree. It might help her a lot." Haru smiled approvingly.
"Alright. We'll have to tell her after whatever vacation we figure out, but we need to start digging into this now. If the person behind Storm’s murder is a part of the Council OR is trying to get onto the new Council, we need to figure it out immediately and stop them," Yoshi declared.
"You’re thinking the person who either set up or contributed to Storm's death may be outside the Council and is trying to sabotage them?" Quil clarified.
I could see where Yoshi was coming from and what Quil thought of would be the perfect plan to initiate if you wanted power.
People were tired of all the crime going on across Nokamato and everyone was blaming the Council. What if the person pressing the buttons was setting us all up as a way to cause unrest?
"It makes sense. That could be another thing to consider. Let's deal with this later. Quil, I'll help you out today," I offered.
He nodded, stabilizing Crim's head so I could get a good grip on her to lift her up into my arms.
"Malachi and Itsuki, I want as much information as you can find on the Arashis. Haru, you stay home and figure out how we can release the seal and prevent anything bad from happening to Crim. I'm thinking because her birthday is coming up, the seal is putting too much strain on her," Yoshi pointed out.
"That would explain why she gets nosebleeds and fevers," I realized.
Haru nodded. "That definitely could be a reason."
"Aki, can you stay with Crim? I'm fine with any of us staying, but I can tell she's the most comfortable with you," Yoshi instructed.
I nodded, pleased with the decision. "Fine with me."
"Quil. You’re with me. Let's get an update on what’s going on and then we’ll try to see if we can locate those swords," Yoshi instructed.
"Alright," Quil nodded in agreement.
"Let's get moving. When Crim wakes up, try to ask if she remembers why she passed out, but don't probe her too much. I don't want her getting anxious either. Encourage her to rest and tell her we're going on a vacation," Yoshi directed to me.
I nodded. "Okay. Good luck guys."
We all nodded and got to work.
I glanced down at Crimson and lowered my lips to her forehead.
I won't lose you, Crimson. I won't lose anyone I care about without a fight.