Post by saro on May 5, 2006 2:27:28 GMT -5
>:D HAHAHAHA! I have finished typing up the first chapter of my (probably) very OOC, fantasy AU fic!
7th May - Added chapter two.
8th May - Added chapter three.
Chapter one - Cat Demon Kikumaru
The land of Seigaku is probably the nicest, most balanced kingdom of all the fantasy realms. It is ruled by the fair king Oishi, who is reasonable and uses logic above all. Never on his record has he started a war. His army however, led by the strict General Tezuka, has brought the end of many wars with no nonsense strategies, and violence used only when needed.
The two greatest influences on King Oishi's rule are High Priest Fuji and his personal adviser, Inui. He uses their knowledge, analysis and assessments to form an unbiased decision. A system that has worked for years.
Though recently this system has been delayed. Following a present exchange with a neighbouring country, King Oishi's stress levels have risen dramatically.
The present exchanging in question actually occurred about a year ago, and the present was put under the care of he Dungeon Master, Kaidoh, a specialist in creatures of all kinds. Knowing this you'd of thought he'd expect what happened to have happened, but even he didn't predict the accelerated growth of the tiny cat demon.
It was given to them under the name of Kikumaru Eiji (as it is custom to give all demons names with which to use). At the time it was no bigger than the palm of Kaidoh's hand; a small, soft, plumpish ball of kitteny cuteness.
But it had grown.
And freed itself from the dungeon to literally jump all around the castle.
This meant the kingdom's two top independent knights, Kawamura and Momoshiro, had to be called in. But the cat demon was as tall as King Oishi himself and as agile as their most trusted spy. Kawamura could not bring himself to harm it as it seemed far too human - minus the ears and tail.
The desperate chase and waving of swords was brought to a sudden end though, when the demon - after one last triumphant leap - landed exhausted on its face.
"Is it dead?" Asked Momoshiro, lowering his sword and taking a few steps forward.
"Wait! It could be a trap." Kawamura held his sword steady and directed a determined gaze at the cat demon's body.
Momoshiro stayed still and quiet. In this moment of silence he could hear the demon breathing. It was heavy but the sound of its gasps for air were sweet and young.
His sudden thoughts of curiosity and confusion were interrupted as a calm, young voice called out from the doorway behind.
"Have you succeeded in capturing it?"
He turned to see the King, followed by several guards in full armour.
"It just collapsed." He stated, relaxing himself as the King and his guards approached.
"Guards, take it to the dungeon and inform the Dungeon Master of the situation."
"Yes, sir!" They shouted in unison as they clomped forward in metal boots and took hold of the demon's limbs.
-
The next day the King visited the dungeon to see how the demon was.
"He was thoroughly worn out, but by dinner time he seemed just as lively again." The Dungeon Master, Kaidoh, had explained.
The King stood before black metal bars at the front of a stone cell. It was dark and dimly lit by a torch on the wall outside the cell. He could only just make out the feline face that stared back at him. It had a small white plaster on its right cheek. Possibly a wound from yesterday's chase.
"What precautions have you taken to stop it escaping again?" He asked, returning its glare.
Kaidoh nodded towards two guards on either side of the cell door.
"We found that he had simply slipped through the bars... like a cat."
"So they're just going to keep an eye on it?" The King sounded unimpressed.
"I've... fed it three buckets of fish..."
"Hn?" The King raised an eyebrow.
"It cannot fit through the bars anymore." He looked down to avoid eye contact after such an embarrassing statement.
The King's face showed a mix of wide eyed shock and embarrassment to the point of self-loathing. It was such a simple but ridiculous solution!
"Nya-a!" Came a sweet though irritated voice from inside the cell.
King Oishi just stared.
Kaidoh changed the subject:
"Would you think of keeping him as a pet?"
This snapped the King out of it.
"A pet?!" He faced Kaidoh to see if he were serious.
"It's common for kemono demons to seek affection, attention and praise."
"Like a child?" King Oishi looked back into the cell, where the demon still seemed grumpy.The Dungeon Master hissed, making the King jump. "I-I see," King Oishi managed to say.
"So this is where it is!" Said a warm voice from down the corridor.
As the owner of the voice came into light, Kaidoh started to hiss again. It was Momoshiro. He and Kaidoh had never gotten on, due to Kaidoh's need to preserve wildlife that Momoshiro had been hired to slay.
"I would have thought you'd use more security, viper."
"And you to use a death-blow." Kaidoh growled back.
"That thing's dangerous, if there's no way to hit it then there's no way to defeat it. It's too fast."
"That's typical of you," Kaidoh mumbled.
"It hasn't tried attacking yet, we can only guess what horrors-"
Clink. Croooaw.
The cell door was open. Kaidoh had opened it with a confident smile.
"W-what are you doing?! That's d-dangerous!" King Oishi stuttered and stared, pointing at the open door.
One step, two steps, three steps, four.
The cat demon stood before Momoshiro. Looking up at him with pure, deep blue eyes. King Oishi fully understood what Kaidoh had said. The demon's belly stuck out just a bit, but enough so that he couldn't squeeze himself through the bars.
Momoshiro just stood there, face to face with it. Everyone was silent.
"I have leg cramp..." Came a distressed and adorable moan from the demon's mouth. Its expression matched, its eyes near tears.
-
The next thing King Oishi knew, he was keeping the demon, Kikumaru, by his side: in the throne room; in his office; and at the dining room table.
The cat demon was happy to fiddle with objects it was given, to stare at grand ceilings, ask bothersome questions and most of all, lie on the floor, seeing how far he could stretch himself out.
Please inform me of major mistakes in English and anything particularly OOC so I can work on improving the quality of this fic as it goes! :0
Please note that some characters will be a bit different because they have some rewritten pasts (clearly Momo and Kaidoh don't have the exact same relationship here).
And, if you have no clue what a kemono is: use Wikipedia!
7th May Edit
Chapter two - The Kingdom is Doomed
On a day when the demon was stretching flat on the floor, High Priest Fuji came rushing down to the throne to tell King Oishi what the stars had to say:
"So, put simply, the king is doomed unless we find the prince of legend." He explained with an unchanging smile.
"We have to find a legend? Do we go out looking for him or will he just appear at our doorstep?" King Oishi made some random hand gestures. "Do I have to find myself aqueer queen or something?"
"Within the year, Your Highness."
Inui leaned over the King's shoulder.
"You could impregnate the demon and he'd give birth within four months," he suggested quietly.
"You think I'd leave this country in the hands of something like him?!" King Oishi pointed at the demon, who noticed they were talking about him and sat up. He used his innocent eyed stare in the hopes that they'd tell him what it was.
King Oishi sighed.
"So should we go out searching?"
There was a moment of thought and scribbling to his left.
"You could send the cat demon."
"Yes, it is about time he left the castle." Fuji added.
It was now King Oishi's turn to think.
"Would he be reliable? Would he arrive home safely? How would he know it were the prince?"
"He'll know." Fuji assured the King, his smile seeming genuine.
The King looked back to the demon who was now standing on his head, holding himself up with his hands. His ears twitched one or twice and the loose shirt he'd been made to wear in the King's presence fell down into his face.
The King blushed.
-
After much fussing from Kaidoh, cat demon Kikumaru was ready to go! He had been equipped with a bag full of warm clothes, maps, a compass, bread and cheese, a metal flask of cold milk and furs for bedding. He'd also been made to wear sandals, which he found to be very awkward and kept trying to kick off, which was hard as the claws on his toes clung around the edge.
"And you're certain he'll be okay?" King Oishi worried.
Fuji nodded reassuringly as he had done many times this week.
The castle gates opened and Kikumaru became impatient. He hopped up and down on the spot and once King Oishi had begun his farewell, jumped high into the air.
"Ya-hoi~!"
There were a number of gasps and Inui began to scribble down notes. The cat demon continued jumping, all the way over the horizon.
"He'd... He'd better be okay."
8th May Edit
Chapter three - A Bad Omen[/u]
On his way the cat demon Kikumaru encountered many challenges. He discovered things in the world he never knew existed. Like the rough, green things that slept in water. They snarled when you hopped on them.
He also discovered where fruit and fish came from. He found many and ate his fill before sunset, when he curled up on a bear fur and fell asleep under a tree.
-
King Oishi wasn't having as much luck in sleeping. Kaidoh listing everything that could go wrong did not help. In the morning, he would speak with General Tezuka about the impending doom. Fuji had insisted that the prediction was true, and so no matter what Tezuka had to say, the King had to believe it. How could he convince Tezuka to be that open minded?
-
Kikumaru woke to bird song directly in his ear. He swiped with his left hand and heard strong wing beats as his morning call flew off. He opened his eyes and sat up. The sun was just starting to light the sky and the birds were out in force to welcome it. Their welcomes went unheard though as a dark cloud covered the sun.
Soon the whole sky was grey and a drop of water fell on Kikumaru's nose.
He remembered the warning about when water fell from the sky: it was called rain; Kaidoh used to talk a lot about King Oishi's rain. When it rained you were to find shelter and take cover or you'd be cold, wet and 'catch cold'. Kikumaru didn't like the sound of being cold all the time, so he found a hollowed out tree trunk and crawled in. He took out of his bag the flask of milk and lapped some up with his tongue while he waited for the rain to stop.
-
King Oishi woke to heavy rain. A maid pulled open his curtains and walked through to his en suite to run his morning bath.
"A bad omen." King Oishi grumbled as he kicked his duvet off the end of his bed.
General Tezuka arrived on horseback. He spent a while drying off before King Oishi could confront him.
"So what was it you needed to discuss with me?" Tezuka asked coldly.
"The High Priest's prediction." He made a gesture towards an armchair by a fireplace, to which Tezuka nodded and sat down. King Oishi sat down opposite him.
"High Priest Fuji's prediction is that our kingdom is doomed should we not find an heir within the year."
"An assassination attempt?" Tezuka leaned in to speak more quietly.
"He was vague, but yes. With no current heir this kingdom may be taken by another should they claim victory." King Oishi spoke in a whisper.
"Then what actions have you taken? Or are you expecting me to deal with it?"
"He advised me to search for the 'Prince'."
"Prince?" General Tezuka laid back into his chair.
"Yes. The one from the legend." King Oishi sighed.
"And you believe this?" Tezuka gave him a harsh gaze.
"He says that I must, no matter what." The King shook his head.
"Have you sent a party to look?" He averted his gaze to the crackling fire.
"We have sent the cat. Fuji-"
"Fuji said it would work?"
"Yes."
They both stared at each other for a second.
"The nymphs were chattering about a strong demon passing by the other day. That he gave no respect to the river monsters." Tezuka spoke casually.
"Oh dear... But-! Strong? It couldn't have been the cat."
"Then it could have been anyone else." Tezuka concluded, standing and taking his leave. He paused by the door, "inform me of any new developments. I'll keep an eye out."
"Thank you."
King Oishi watched the General leave. He felt a bit more reassured now.
-
A nut fell from above and Kikumaru opened an eye to see an angry, fuzzy thing, and sunlight glinting off wet leaves. The rain had stopped and the landlord wanted him gone.
It scrambled aside as he reached a leg out and put his sandaled feet down on damp grass blades. He heaved himself out and took his bag with him.
"Sorry." He apologized, and was countered by grumbly 'urk-eee' sounds and the gnashing of pointy incisors.
He dashed away before he could hear another mouthful and soon found his sandals had gone soggy. Everything was wet. It made him shiver and the hairs on his ears and tail stand up. He couldn't let this worry him though. He didn't want to let Oishi down.
7th May - Added chapter two.
8th May - Added chapter three.
Chapter one - Cat Demon Kikumaru
The land of Seigaku is probably the nicest, most balanced kingdom of all the fantasy realms. It is ruled by the fair king Oishi, who is reasonable and uses logic above all. Never on his record has he started a war. His army however, led by the strict General Tezuka, has brought the end of many wars with no nonsense strategies, and violence used only when needed.
The two greatest influences on King Oishi's rule are High Priest Fuji and his personal adviser, Inui. He uses their knowledge, analysis and assessments to form an unbiased decision. A system that has worked for years.
Though recently this system has been delayed. Following a present exchange with a neighbouring country, King Oishi's stress levels have risen dramatically.
The present exchanging in question actually occurred about a year ago, and the present was put under the care of he Dungeon Master, Kaidoh, a specialist in creatures of all kinds. Knowing this you'd of thought he'd expect what happened to have happened, but even he didn't predict the accelerated growth of the tiny cat demon.
It was given to them under the name of Kikumaru Eiji (as it is custom to give all demons names with which to use). At the time it was no bigger than the palm of Kaidoh's hand; a small, soft, plumpish ball of kitteny cuteness.
But it had grown.
And freed itself from the dungeon to literally jump all around the castle.
This meant the kingdom's two top independent knights, Kawamura and Momoshiro, had to be called in. But the cat demon was as tall as King Oishi himself and as agile as their most trusted spy. Kawamura could not bring himself to harm it as it seemed far too human - minus the ears and tail.
The desperate chase and waving of swords was brought to a sudden end though, when the demon - after one last triumphant leap - landed exhausted on its face.
"Is it dead?" Asked Momoshiro, lowering his sword and taking a few steps forward.
"Wait! It could be a trap." Kawamura held his sword steady and directed a determined gaze at the cat demon's body.
Momoshiro stayed still and quiet. In this moment of silence he could hear the demon breathing. It was heavy but the sound of its gasps for air were sweet and young.
His sudden thoughts of curiosity and confusion were interrupted as a calm, young voice called out from the doorway behind.
"Have you succeeded in capturing it?"
He turned to see the King, followed by several guards in full armour.
"It just collapsed." He stated, relaxing himself as the King and his guards approached.
"Guards, take it to the dungeon and inform the Dungeon Master of the situation."
"Yes, sir!" They shouted in unison as they clomped forward in metal boots and took hold of the demon's limbs.
-
The next day the King visited the dungeon to see how the demon was.
"He was thoroughly worn out, but by dinner time he seemed just as lively again." The Dungeon Master, Kaidoh, had explained.
The King stood before black metal bars at the front of a stone cell. It was dark and dimly lit by a torch on the wall outside the cell. He could only just make out the feline face that stared back at him. It had a small white plaster on its right cheek. Possibly a wound from yesterday's chase.
"What precautions have you taken to stop it escaping again?" He asked, returning its glare.
Kaidoh nodded towards two guards on either side of the cell door.
"We found that he had simply slipped through the bars... like a cat."
"So they're just going to keep an eye on it?" The King sounded unimpressed.
"I've... fed it three buckets of fish..."
"Hn?" The King raised an eyebrow.
"It cannot fit through the bars anymore." He looked down to avoid eye contact after such an embarrassing statement.
The King's face showed a mix of wide eyed shock and embarrassment to the point of self-loathing. It was such a simple but ridiculous solution!
"Nya-a!" Came a sweet though irritated voice from inside the cell.
King Oishi just stared.
Kaidoh changed the subject:
"Would you think of keeping him as a pet?"
This snapped the King out of it.
"A pet?!" He faced Kaidoh to see if he were serious.
"It's common for kemono demons to seek affection, attention and praise."
"Like a child?" King Oishi looked back into the cell, where the demon still seemed grumpy.The Dungeon Master hissed, making the King jump. "I-I see," King Oishi managed to say.
"So this is where it is!" Said a warm voice from down the corridor.
As the owner of the voice came into light, Kaidoh started to hiss again. It was Momoshiro. He and Kaidoh had never gotten on, due to Kaidoh's need to preserve wildlife that Momoshiro had been hired to slay.
"I would have thought you'd use more security, viper."
"And you to use a death-blow." Kaidoh growled back.
"That thing's dangerous, if there's no way to hit it then there's no way to defeat it. It's too fast."
"That's typical of you," Kaidoh mumbled.
"It hasn't tried attacking yet, we can only guess what horrors-"
Clink. Croooaw.
The cell door was open. Kaidoh had opened it with a confident smile.
"W-what are you doing?! That's d-dangerous!" King Oishi stuttered and stared, pointing at the open door.
One step, two steps, three steps, four.
The cat demon stood before Momoshiro. Looking up at him with pure, deep blue eyes. King Oishi fully understood what Kaidoh had said. The demon's belly stuck out just a bit, but enough so that he couldn't squeeze himself through the bars.
Momoshiro just stood there, face to face with it. Everyone was silent.
"I have leg cramp..." Came a distressed and adorable moan from the demon's mouth. Its expression matched, its eyes near tears.
-
The next thing King Oishi knew, he was keeping the demon, Kikumaru, by his side: in the throne room; in his office; and at the dining room table.
The cat demon was happy to fiddle with objects it was given, to stare at grand ceilings, ask bothersome questions and most of all, lie on the floor, seeing how far he could stretch himself out.
Please inform me of major mistakes in English and anything particularly OOC so I can work on improving the quality of this fic as it goes! :0
Please note that some characters will be a bit different because they have some rewritten pasts (clearly Momo and Kaidoh don't have the exact same relationship here).
And, if you have no clue what a kemono is: use Wikipedia!
7th May Edit
Chapter two - The Kingdom is Doomed
On a day when the demon was stretching flat on the floor, High Priest Fuji came rushing down to the throne to tell King Oishi what the stars had to say:
"So, put simply, the king is doomed unless we find the prince of legend." He explained with an unchanging smile.
"We have to find a legend? Do we go out looking for him or will he just appear at our doorstep?" King Oishi made some random hand gestures. "Do I have to find myself a
"Within the year, Your Highness."
Inui leaned over the King's shoulder.
"You could impregnate the demon and he'd give birth within four months," he suggested quietly.
"You think I'd leave this country in the hands of something like him?!" King Oishi pointed at the demon, who noticed they were talking about him and sat up. He used his innocent eyed stare in the hopes that they'd tell him what it was.
King Oishi sighed.
"So should we go out searching?"
There was a moment of thought and scribbling to his left.
"You could send the cat demon."
"Yes, it is about time he left the castle." Fuji added.
It was now King Oishi's turn to think.
"Would he be reliable? Would he arrive home safely? How would he know it were the prince?"
"He'll know." Fuji assured the King, his smile seeming genuine.
The King looked back to the demon who was now standing on his head, holding himself up with his hands. His ears twitched one or twice and the loose shirt he'd been made to wear in the King's presence fell down into his face.
The King blushed.
-
After much fussing from Kaidoh, cat demon Kikumaru was ready to go! He had been equipped with a bag full of warm clothes, maps, a compass, bread and cheese, a metal flask of cold milk and furs for bedding. He'd also been made to wear sandals, which he found to be very awkward and kept trying to kick off, which was hard as the claws on his toes clung around the edge.
"And you're certain he'll be okay?" King Oishi worried.
Fuji nodded reassuringly as he had done many times this week.
The castle gates opened and Kikumaru became impatient. He hopped up and down on the spot and once King Oishi had begun his farewell, jumped high into the air.
"Ya-hoi~!"
There were a number of gasps and Inui began to scribble down notes. The cat demon continued jumping, all the way over the horizon.
"He'd... He'd better be okay."
8th May Edit
Chapter three - A Bad Omen[/u]
On his way the cat demon Kikumaru encountered many challenges. He discovered things in the world he never knew existed. Like the rough, green things that slept in water. They snarled when you hopped on them.
He also discovered where fruit and fish came from. He found many and ate his fill before sunset, when he curled up on a bear fur and fell asleep under a tree.
-
King Oishi wasn't having as much luck in sleeping. Kaidoh listing everything that could go wrong did not help. In the morning, he would speak with General Tezuka about the impending doom. Fuji had insisted that the prediction was true, and so no matter what Tezuka had to say, the King had to believe it. How could he convince Tezuka to be that open minded?
-
Kikumaru woke to bird song directly in his ear. He swiped with his left hand and heard strong wing beats as his morning call flew off. He opened his eyes and sat up. The sun was just starting to light the sky and the birds were out in force to welcome it. Their welcomes went unheard though as a dark cloud covered the sun.
Soon the whole sky was grey and a drop of water fell on Kikumaru's nose.
He remembered the warning about when water fell from the sky: it was called rain; Kaidoh used to talk a lot about King Oishi's rain. When it rained you were to find shelter and take cover or you'd be cold, wet and 'catch cold'. Kikumaru didn't like the sound of being cold all the time, so he found a hollowed out tree trunk and crawled in. He took out of his bag the flask of milk and lapped some up with his tongue while he waited for the rain to stop.
-
King Oishi woke to heavy rain. A maid pulled open his curtains and walked through to his en suite to run his morning bath.
"A bad omen." King Oishi grumbled as he kicked his duvet off the end of his bed.
General Tezuka arrived on horseback. He spent a while drying off before King Oishi could confront him.
"So what was it you needed to discuss with me?" Tezuka asked coldly.
"The High Priest's prediction." He made a gesture towards an armchair by a fireplace, to which Tezuka nodded and sat down. King Oishi sat down opposite him.
"High Priest Fuji's prediction is that our kingdom is doomed should we not find an heir within the year."
"An assassination attempt?" Tezuka leaned in to speak more quietly.
"He was vague, but yes. With no current heir this kingdom may be taken by another should they claim victory." King Oishi spoke in a whisper.
"Then what actions have you taken? Or are you expecting me to deal with it?"
"He advised me to search for the 'Prince'."
"Prince?" General Tezuka laid back into his chair.
"Yes. The one from the legend." King Oishi sighed.
"And you believe this?" Tezuka gave him a harsh gaze.
"He says that I must, no matter what." The King shook his head.
"Have you sent a party to look?" He averted his gaze to the crackling fire.
"We have sent the cat. Fuji-"
"Fuji said it would work?"
"Yes."
They both stared at each other for a second.
"The nymphs were chattering about a strong demon passing by the other day. That he gave no respect to the river monsters." Tezuka spoke casually.
"Oh dear... But-! Strong? It couldn't have been the cat."
"Then it could have been anyone else." Tezuka concluded, standing and taking his leave. He paused by the door, "inform me of any new developments. I'll keep an eye out."
"Thank you."
King Oishi watched the General leave. He felt a bit more reassured now.
-
A nut fell from above and Kikumaru opened an eye to see an angry, fuzzy thing, and sunlight glinting off wet leaves. The rain had stopped and the landlord wanted him gone.
It scrambled aside as he reached a leg out and put his sandaled feet down on damp grass blades. He heaved himself out and took his bag with him.
"Sorry." He apologized, and was countered by grumbly 'urk-eee' sounds and the gnashing of pointy incisors.
He dashed away before he could hear another mouthful and soon found his sandals had gone soggy. Everything was wet. It made him shiver and the hairs on his ears and tail stand up. He couldn't let this worry him though. He didn't want to let Oishi down.
