21 September 2023

One shot with Mei from Hanako. I found her quite fascinating, so included this bonus chapter following the previous arc.

Mei sighed, ignoring the rumbling of her stomach. That young man really was a fine specimen; he really would have made a wonderful husband, and father for her brood. Not to mention a delightful snack. But there was no use bemoaning what could have been.

She tasted the air around her, looking for something to allay her ever-present hunger for a time. Maybe a deer; even a rabbit or two would do at this point.

To her surprise, she tasted several oni. Not the refined scent like the lovely girl she’d met yesterday, but the more typical bloody stench she associated with the wild ones. Only moments later and she could hear them, too, crashing through the forest as though the Great King Enma himself hounded their shadows.

Curious, she scurried through the treetops to investigate. While they wouldn’t be husband material, they should certainly make for a delectable meal. She found three of them; two blues and an ebony. She frowned at that last one; it was always a struggle to get her fangs into an ebony, and they always made such a fuss about it while she tried.

A minute or two later, the trio finally slowed down. “I think we should be far enough,” one of the blues said, a short, stocky fellow with a single horn. His hair had been pulled back into a topknot.

“I agree.” The other blue was female, with roughly cut black hair about jaw length. One of her two horns had been broken off at some point. “We should set up camp.” 

Mei would have to be careful hunting her; it was generally much harder to seduce women than men, and blues were already far more cautious than most oni. At least, when they were sober.

The ebony, a tall, muscular specimen with a notable underbite, nodded once and began setting up their campsite. Soon the trio had a fire going, and the stocky blue started to whine.

“Ah, dammit! I’m starving! Why couldn’t we have grabbed one or two of those leftover villagers on the way?”

The female snorted. “If you want to go back for them, be my guest. I’m not going anywhere near that devil girl.”

The stocky man shuddered. “Even if that girl is dead, there’s no way. Not with the commander dead, too. He was the only one who could keep those two monstrosities under control.”

“Yeah.” The female flumped backward. “Still, what the hell was with that chick? And how the f*** did a red get that f***ing powerful?”

So the girl did arrive in time. Mei wasn’t sure if she could do anything with that information, but it warmed her heart. The girl seemed to be quite the character.

The oni chatted amongst themselves for an hour or two–or the blues did, the ebony didn’t seem to be able to speak–then drew straws to determine who would take which watch. The stocky man cheered when he drew the first watch, and the other two went to bed, though the female grumbled under her breath.

Mei grinned. She couldn’t have set things up better for herself if she’d tried. She waited another two hours, then climbed out of the trees and moved a hundred yeards or so away and transformed to resemble a helpless young woman. She called out, just loud enough for the stocky blue oni to hear, “H-hello? Is someone there? I… I need help!”

She could taste the blue coming closer, and she turned so she wasn’t looking at him. Let him think he had the surprise, and he’d be far less wary of her trap. “Hello?”

The blue stepped into the clearing and chuckled. “Hello, little lady. Are you lost?”

Mei resisted the temptation to roll her eyes. Instead, she squeaked and bolted deeper into the forest. Relative to human speeds, at least; for Mei, it felt like a brisk jog at best.

The blue didn’t rush her, however. Based on the smile on his face, he intended to enjoy the hunt a little. He must have eaten well before the girl had attacked his camp; if he was as hungry as he had claimed, there’s no way he’d be this casual about a potential meal.

Once Mei broke his line of sight, she jumped into a tree and returned to her natural form. She watched the blue saunter through the forest, with his tetsubo tapping against his shoulder.

“Come now, little lady, no need to fret. Come on out, and I’ll make it nice and painless.” He sniffed the air, and froze when he couldn’t smell his prey anymore. “What the–!? Where did she go!?”

Mei crept around behind him, then drove her fangs into his neck. He screamed and tried to smash her with his tetsubo, but she danced out of the way, a smile on her bloodied lips. He pushed his free hand to his neck and took a shaky step towards her, but he collapsed before he could do anything else.

With practiced efficiency, Mei webbed him up and hoisted him into the treetops. Then she darted over to see if the oni’s screams had woken either of the other two; to her delight, both still slept soundly. She webbed them up, too, and sighed contentedly to herself. She would eat well tonight. And if many other oni had fled the battle into her woods, well… She would probably eat quite well for weeks to come.

6 May 2023

This feels like the first real introduction to the second major antagonist group; the yokai army. They feel a lot trickier to work with; I want to stay true to original Japanese legends, but also leave room for Hanako’s middle ground. Regardless, I wanted the yokai army to be positively brutal, and I think I achieved that here.

Also, we’re finally going to meet Mei. :) She is a very fascinating character; I’m not 100% sure what all I’m going to do with her yet, but it’s going to be fun.

It took a couple of days for the three of them to reach what was left of Tsurui. The smell of char hit them before they could properly see it, but it wasn’t long before they stood in the midst of the desolated village.

Many of the houses had burned down, and those that hadn’t had been smashed apart, as if a giant child had decided he was done playing and knocked everything over. The worst of it, though, was in the village square. A pile of bones lay smoldering. As soon as they found it, Daiki, the younger of the two workers, immediately turned and hurled onto the street.

Fumito looked a bit green, himself. “They just… burned everyone alive? Why?”

Pushing down her own nausea, Hanako approached the pile. With her sword, she poked among the bones. Many still showed teeth marks; some were even cracked to get at the marrow. She managed to cough out, “They… they weren’t burned alive. This was what the yokai did with the ones they’d finished eating.”

Fumito’s eyes went wide, and soon he was spewing out the contents of his stomach next to Daiki. Hanako closed her eyes and forced herself to breathe, then turned away from the pile to see if there was anything she could learn about the monsters that had done this.

She noticed one house at the edge of the village that seemed somewhat better intact than the rest; instead of being caved in, it was only the windows and the door that had been smashed open. It seemed the ushi-oni had spared this one for whatever reason.

Cautiously, Hanako stepped in and immediately wrinkled her nose. The smell of urine and other foul scents permeated the place; had the yokai army saved it as an outhouse? But no; Hanako found manacles, and then began seeing other traces that prisoners had been kept here. This must be where they stuffed everyone they hadn’t eaten during that initial feast.

Not that it stopped some of them from sneaking a snack before they left. In the corner, Hanako found a skeleton, with bones far too small to belong to an adult. Her blood froze, then started to boil. With tears in her eyes, she screamed, with such force it [could be heard for miles around]. 

Daiki and Fumito came running over. Hanako gathered her composure. “I’ll be fine. It’ll be fine.” She paused and heaved a breath. “We should go. There’s nothing more we can learn here, and the sooner we catch up to them, the better.”

As they left, however, a woman’s voice called after them, “H-hello? Is someone there?”

Hanako spun on the spot, hand reaching for her sword, only to find an exceptionally beautiful young woman running toward them. Her hair was black and tied back in a braid, and her clothes, while filthy, seemed to have once been of high quality.

27 April 2023

Sorry about the delay. I have been writing off and on, but it’s been hard to get things typed in. Next week will be rough, as well—my brother’s getting married, so I’ll be driving halfway across the country to participate in his wedding. It’ll be awesome! I just don’t know how timing and scheduling are all going to work.

I’m really enjoying Hanako, especially now that I’ve broken through to see roughly how this arc actually plays out. Should be getting into properly new content next time I write, rather than just filling in gaps.

…everyone around. For half a second, he seemed to want to say something, but then changed his mind. He gave Hanako a lopsided smile. “I… never did thank you, did I? For saving our lives. I… Words can’t express how grateful I am.”

For such a little thing, it was incredible how much that lifted Hanako’s spirits. She smiled bashfully and tried to play it off. “Nah, don’t worry about it. What else could I have done?” She offered a hand for a handshake. “I dunno if I ever properly introduced myself. I’m Hanako!”

The father hesitantly took it, reaching past the pot of rice he was tending. “Mitsuo. And my daughter is Ayami.”

Hanako beamed at him, but her smile dropped a moment later. “Actually, I came to ask you a few things. Is there anything you can tell me about the army that attacked Tsurui? If you can’t remember, or don’t want to talk about it, that’s fine.”

Mitsuo grew somber. For a while, he just studied Hanako. “Are you going to try to take them on all by yourself?”

Hanako shrugged. “They said they’re headed to Nanmoku next, right? I want to protect the people there. Or… at least give them a chance to evacuate.” She looked aside. “Although… Not really sure how much I can do on my own…”

Mitsuo nodded and looked down at the ground. When he looked back up, he said, “I can’t tell you much. Ayami and I fled as soon as the screams started. There were oni–a lot, all different colors–and at least one monster. A massive beast the size of a wagon or bigger, with eight spidery legs and a bull’s head, and teeth as sharp as knives.”

“An ushi-oni,” Hanako whispered.

Mitsuo nodded. “It plowed through our homes like they were made of paper. I’m not sure what even you could do against that thing.”

Hanako wasn’t worried about that; while they were plenty dangerous, she was confident enough in her skills and strengths she thought she could take care of one. But it would require focus; what was the rest of the army going to do in the meantime? Did she have a way to stop that?

After a moment, she shook her head clear. “Thank you.”

Mitsuo shrugged. “It’s the least I could do. Just… Don’t get yourself killed, alright?”

“I’ll do my best.”

From there, she headed to the tents by their makeshift hospital to find Chiaki.

21 April 2023

It all came together. I’m thinking that, in order to establish the yokai army as a threat, they’ve already destroyed a town, and are on their way to Nanmoku; Hanko and the construction duo pass through the ruined city on their way. Still figuring out how they beat the army to Nanmoku; maybe they don’t, and Hanako lays into them from the rear. I’d miss some of the Mikuzume/Hanako banter before, but if that’s what’s best…

Anyway, as part of figuring all that out, it gave me more focus for what she’s doing in Chizu. She’s just stopping to get supplies, maybe grab any extra info she can from the dad, and then going to book it for Nanmoku. Not sure if I carried that urgency into this yet; I’ll have to edit it a few times more before I’m satisfied.

Notes

Hanako spent the next day or two making sure no other yokai patrols were wandering near the new Chizu. When she arrived back, she ignored…

…speak with the oni. “Good to see you’re still in one piece. Any news?”

“I ran into an oni scouting party about five miles from here. They said they’d come from Tsurui.”

Keiko’s expression turned grim. “We’ve gotten a handful of refugees. It… doesn’t sound good.”

“And I think they’re targeting Nanmoku next,” Hanako said. She bit her lower lip. “I sent a father and daughter the oni had captured this way. Have they…?”

Keiko nodded. “They’re here; arrived yesterday, in fact. I assigned the father to the mess tent, if you wanted to speak with him.”

Hanako nodded. She needed all the information she could get before she headed to Nanmoku. “Thanks.”

She turned to leave but Keiko stopped her. “Wait. Before you head back out, would you drop by and visit Chiaki? Nothing we do seems to be helping.”

Hanako’s heart tightened. “Are you sure she’ll even want to see me?”

Keiko paused. “Honestly, I don’t know. But even if she doesn’t, I’m hoping that will at least snap her out of this.”

After a moment, Hanako nodded. Hopefully she wouldn’t just make things worse.

She started with the mess tent; it wasn’t too far from Keiko’s headquarters. A handful of people she passed smiled at her, but the vast majority either scowled or refused to meet her gaze. That was fine. Hanako was fine. She was used to it, after all. Right?

She approached the head chef, who gave her a disapproving look. “What do you want?”

Hanako forced a smile. “I’m looking for someone. A father, just came in yesterday. From Tsurui?”

The chef stared at her a long moment, then grunted and gestured toward the servers. Hanako found the father minding a pot of rice, ready for the lunch rush that would be starting soon.

As Hanako approached, the father started, then peered closer at her. “Are… Are you that oni girl that rescued us?”

“Ah, yeah.” Hanako reached up and showed him the talisman. “This lets me pass for human, as long as I don’t use my oni abilities. Normally,” and she took it off, “I look like this.”

As her horns reappeared on her head, everyone around her started muttering. Some hissed, others cursed; it caused a lot of panic. Hanako pretended not to notice and put it back on.

<-Hanako First

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Hanako Next->

Current Draft of Hanako’s story (including unposted content)

13 April 2023

I decided to go ahead and move the encounter with Mikuzune to Nanmoku, and tried to figure out ways for Keiko and the other villagers to show support. Honestly, this whole bit feels pretty rough, still. I kinda want to expand on the two builders, let them become characters in their own right, but I’m not sure what they could contribute. If I do, I’d likely expand the trip a bit to include some of the banter or discussions they have enroute.

Really, this felt like a very gardener-style chapter, even more than usual, referring to the different ways authors craft stories (pulled from Brandon Sanderson in one of his online lectures, I think). I was going to have them all go straight to Nanmoku, but then imagining her discussion with the elder, and considering her personality some more, she really would go scope things out first. No idea what happens there, either; kind of want to know what I want her to be dealing with at the end of the arc before I start trying to foreshadow it.

Keiko met Hanako on her way out of town, along with two of the men from the construction crews, Daiki and Fumito. “You’re headed to Nanmoku, right?” she said, before Hanako could even ask what was going on. “Take these two with you. I can’t spare anyone else, not with winter coming, but if you get there early enough to make some preparations, these two will be able to help the town set up defenses.”

Hanako’s eyes widened a bit. She hadn’t thought of that. She nodded, and the trio headed out to warn Nanmoku.

The trip was mostly uneventful; it was only two to three days from where the Chizu residents were trying to rebuild. About half a day outside of Nanmoku, Hanako separated from the two workers.

“Warn them about what’s coming,” she said. “I’m going to try to scout around and pinpoint exactly where this yokai army is at.”

[Insert first encounters/glimpses of yokai army and return trip here]

Nanmoku was bigger than Hanako had expected. Nicer, too; the whole place had a clean feeling, despite the number of people that must live here.

The town’s most notable feature, though, had to be the shrine at the top of the mountain. Hanako herself wasn’t particularly religious; she would occasionally make offerings to her ancestors, including Master, but that was about it. Still, something about the place drew her.

The shrine itself was clearly well-cared for. It was swept clean, and everything seemed bright and freshly painted. Hanako entered and slowly made her way to the shrine itself. Awed by the general atmosphere of the place, she knelt before it and offered a prayer. “Please, let me protect them this time. Help me keep the town safe.”

When she stood, she noticed a miko she’d somehow missed on the way in standing a ways away. She was two to three inches taller than Hanako, and her warm brown hair was tied in a long braid down her back. Their eyes met, and the miko took a step toward Hanako. “Ah, pardon me. Is this your first time here? I don’t think I recognize you.”

“No, I’m new in town,” Hanako replied, with a shake of her head. She offered her hand. “My name’s Hanako.”

The miko clasped Hanako’s hand with both of hers. “Welcome! It’s a pleasure to meet you. You can call me Mikuzume.”

Hanako found a smile slipping onto her face. She asked, “By chance, could you tell me where I could find the village elder? I have some important news to give him.”

<-Hanako First

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Current Draft of Hanako’s story (including unposted content)

6 April 2023

I realized I was trying to too much at once with this visit to New Chizu (I don’t know what they’re going to call it yet, but it’s all the Chizu refugees). Especially when the focus of this arc is on the attack form the yokai army in the area (still not sure if they attack the new town or the Chizu refugees). So, I tweaked the stuff I wrote in this post to make it a little more directed. I probably need to add back in a reference to the kitsune’s shrine, though, or remove Mikuzume and place her in the new village instead.

“...five miles from here. They mentioned searching for survivors from Chizu; you may want to tighten security.”

Keiko scowled and nodded. “Damn it. If it’s not wolves, it’s bears. Still, thanks for the warning.”

Hanako bit her lower lip…

…recognized what was happening sooner. “Do you think it’d be okay if I stopped by and said hello to her before I left?”

Keiko’s eyes widened. “Leaving so soon?”

“The oni mentioned a bigger force moving on Nanmoku; I’d like to track them down as soon as I can.”

For a long moment, Keiko studied Hanako. “Alright, but don’t push yourself, alright? You can’t save everyone all by yourself.”

Hanako hesitated. Was she talking about Chiaki, or Nanmoku? Either way, the logical part of Hanako knew Keiko was right. But what could a group of peasants hope to do against a horde of yokai?

In the end, she nodded, and Keiko slapped her on the back. “And don’t stay away too long, either. The construction crews are already talking about how much they miss you.”

Eh? Really? Hanak had been worried they’d think she was putting them out of work or something. She bid Keiko farewell, and headed over towards Chiaki’s tent, near the medical center.

<-Hanako First

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Current Draft of Hanako’s story (including unposted content)

4 April 2023

I wrote this at about 11:30 last night. I couldn’t sleep, and I’d wanted to get back to writing anyway, so here we are. It’s been long enough that I barely remember any of what I was doing with any of my plot threads, but I love Hanako, and I’d wanted her to help Chiaki somehow. Then, while I was writing it, this moment wound up so much more important than I would have expected. This feels like the moment where Hanako commits to take the fight to the shogun. Though she still does have to get through the Yokai army first…

Some of you may be familiar enough with Japanese legends and mythology to recognize the name Mikuzume. That’s intentional, though it’s not the exact same entity. One of my major sources for yokai legends and facts is at Yokai.com, for anyone who’s interested.

Hanako stood outside the tent door for half a moment. “Chiaki? Mind if I come in?”

When no answer came, Hanako tentatively opened the flap and stepped inside. Chiaki was curled up on her cot, facing the tent wall. The space was small enough that Hanako could smell Chiaki; the girl hadn’t had the energy to bathe, it seemed.

What could Hanako say in a situation like this? What could she do? She almost reached out and placed a hand on Chiaki’s shoulder, but eventually let it fall. Hanako’s own guilt devoured her. Eventually, all she could do was sit on the floor, back against the cot. In a voice so soft it was barely audible, she whispered, “I’m sorry.”

The cot shifted behind her. To Hanako’s surprise, Chiaki spoke. “Why? Why did it have to be us?”

Hanako bit her lip. Was Chiaki talking about her? Or the shogun’s men? “I don’t know.”

“I just… I can’t stop thinking about it. That day. When they came to the inn, and later with the torches. I… I hate them!”

Hanako turned to face Chiaki. The girl’s expression had twisted into a grim mask of rage and grief. Chiaki’s gaze pierced into Hanako. “You’ll kill them, right? The shogun. His men.”

Hanako’s blood froze. She’d never considered it before. Take on the shogun himself? “I… I don’t know that I can.”

Chiaki blinked, then slowly turned back toward the wall. Before she closed off completely, though, Hanako added, “But I will do everything I can to stop him. These raids… the way he treats people… it’s not okay. ”

Chiaki turned back to face her. Hanako smiled awkwardly. “But… I definitely can’t do that alone. Will you help me?”

For several seconds, Chiaki didn’t respond. Hanako started to worry she’d broken something important in the girl. Then a shy smile broke out on Chiaki’s face. “Ok.”

A huge grin of relief split Hanako’s face. “Thanks. You might want tot start by getting cleaned up; you don’t exactly smell like roses right now.”

Chiaki blushed, and Hanako left the tent. She was greeted by a beautiful woman in her early thirties. A nurse? “That was quite the bold statement. Did you mean what you said?”

Right. Tent walls. Probably not the best when it comes to soundproofing. Hanako nodded and said, “It’s… going to be hard. Maybe impossible. But I want to try.” She was actually a little surprised at how invested in this she felt. It wasn’t a bad feeling, though. “I’m Hanako.”

The nurse tipped her head. “You can call me Mikuzume.”

<-Hanako First

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Hanako Next->

Current Draft of Hanako’s story (including unposted content)

2 February 2023

It felt really good to write about Hanako again. She’s become one of my favorite characters I’ve written. Still not 100% certain how I want to set up the next arc; may need to add to/tweak some of what happens here. But I’m looking forward to it.

I hadn’t intended for Chizu Village and its residents to become major, recurring characters. I was planning for Hanako’s journey to be episodic, save a town and move on, rarely if ever referencing them again. Then I wound up (sort of) accidentally burning Chizu to the ground, and I realized Hanako wouldn’t just abandon them, so… here we are. Now I have to decide if she saves a different village from the local part of the yokai army, or if she saves these guys again. (Spoilers: she succeeds this time.) But I’m leaning toward her (slowly) integrating with and finding a home with the former Chizu residents. Maybe this new village could even become her capital. :)

Hanako ignored the wary looks from the guards, even the outright hostility in one case, and went to find Keiko. Keiko had been designated the unofficial mayor of the refugees, especially now they’d found a place to settle down and rebuild.

The clank of hammers and the shouts of workers filled the air, and the skeletons of what would soon become homes lined the streets. Hanako navigated her way to the central hub, where Keiko was discussing plans for the city with several other people, referencing a large map of the area.

It wasn’t long before Keiko noticed Hanako’s presence and excused herself to speak with the oni. “Good to see you’re still in one piece. Any news?”

“There was an oni scouting party about five miles from here. I don’t think they know about this place, thought.” Hanako bit her lower lip and asked, “I sent a father and daughter over here. Did they…?”

Keiko smiled. “They’re here. Over by the mess tent, if you wanted to say hello. Looks like you found yourself a new fan.”

Hanako sighed with relief. “And Chiaki?”

The smile disappeared from Keiko’s face. “No change, I’m afraid.” 

Hanako nodded, feeling a little crestfallen herself. If only she’d recognized what was happening sooner…

Keiko rubbed her chin, and after a moment a twinkle formed in her eyes. “Still, I have some work for you once you’ve checked in with everyone, if you’re willing.” She nodded her head toward the half-finished homes. “The faster those get finished, the better prepared we’ll be for winter and whatever else is coming.”

“Ah, yeah.” Hanako scratched the back of her head. “Those guys… I’m not sure if that’s the best idea.”

“If they don’t like it, tough. Tell them to take it up with me. I can’t delay getting my people housed because they’re butthurt over a girl half their size lifting ten times what they can.”

Hanako doubted that was the issue. Or at the very least, not the only issue. But Keiko had a point; they did need those houses. Maybe she’d drop by once she checked on the merchant and his daughter.

She found them exactly where Keiko had said. The father was helping the cooks prepare food for everyone, and the girl was running around, playing with the other kids. Hanako was pleasantly surprised at how quickly she seemed to have bounced back.

Hanako headed over to the father. “Glad to see you both made it safely. Is everything going alright?”

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Current Draft of Hanako’s story (including unposted content)

1 January 2023

I wanted to do something for New Year’s, and I didn’t feel like working on any of my usual stories, so I came up with this little feel-good one shot. It gave me a chance to practice my descriptive writing, which I want to improve, and let me just chill for a bit.

Some of my inspirations are probably pretty obvious. New Year’s led to Chinese New Year’s, despite being a couple months before that, and that led my to Eastern dragons. And once I connected the kid and the dragon, I couldn’t help but think of that scene in the Never-ending Story. It’s been ages since I watched it, but that scene is a bit iconic.

When Xiang had decided to watch the New Year’s fireworks from the top of the mountain, he hadn’t expected to find it already occupied. And certainly not by one of the legendary dragons.

The dragon was a great, long thing, that curled around the hilltop like a [noodle strand]. He had sky blue scales and a bushy white mustache, and a pair of antlers sprouted from his head. Below them, the dragon watched Xiang with a pair of golden eyes that seemed full of wisdom.

For a moment, the two just stared at each other. Then Xiang asked, “Are you here to watch the fireworks, too?”

The dragon slowly blinked, then turned to look down at the town. “Is it that time of year again already?”

Xiang nodded. “Do you want to watch them with me?”

The dragon regarded Xiang for a moment, then his eye twinkled. “Would you kike an even better view?”

Xiang’s eyes went wide, and the dragon chuckled. He stretched himself out, and invited Xiang to climb on.

No sooner had Xiang gotten himself situated when the dragon took off, swimming through the air, almost like a kite in the wind.

Xiang looked down in wonder as his village shrank beneath them. Then the fireworks started, lighting up the air all around them with every color imaginable.

The dragon grinned and sped up, dancing among the fireworks, adding an extra layer of beauty to the show for those below. Xiang laughed and whooped in joy, reveling in all the light and color.

Soon enough, though, it ended, and the dragon brought Xiang back to the mountain so he could go home. Xiang bowed and thanked the dragon. “I’ll come back and see you again!”

The dragon dipped his head, and Xiang hurried off, eager to tell all of his friends and family about his grand adventure.

31 December 2022

Happy New Year! Or, so it was when I wrote this.

You may have noticed I actually backtrack a little bit. One of the original ideas I had involved the kids actually being awed by her and wanting to learn from her, only for their parents to come in and take them away, afraid Hanako would “be a bad influence” since she’s too human, and I changed it to fit the new direction I took the scene. I may try that version out at some point, still; I’m not sure which fits the main drive of the story better. The one below draws closer parallels to the way she was treated elsewhere, and show that the people are pretty much the same. The original shows a different take on how she could be left out or shunned, and the contrast between the two might drive that home deeper. I haven’t decided yet.

On instinct alone, she spun around and caught it… only for it to burst in her hand, drenching her face and clothes in water.

She glared at the boy who threw it, an ebony oni bigger than the rest with a single horn. All the kids shrank back, terrified. Out of one of the houses nearby a bookish-looking blue oni rushed out and stood between Hanako and the kids, arms outstretched. “Don’t! They’re only children!”

Hanako’s eyes went wide, and she turned away. What did he think she was going to do? “Even among other yokai, they only see me as a monster, I guess.”

She turned and walked away, not even glancing at their expressions after her comment, and decided to go back to the inn. If anything else happened that day, Hanako wasn’t sure she could take it.

A couple hours later, she was sitting at a table with Nobuhito. He was the only one who didn’t treat her differently from anyone else. She cradled her head in one arm and rested it on the table, while she fiddled with her glass with her free hand.

For a long time, neither of them said anything. Then Hanako muttered, “The humans look at me and only see an oni. The yokai, oni included, look at me and only see a yokai-slaying human. Either way, they only see me as a monster. What’s the point anymore?”

Beside her, the kappa shrugged. “To be fair, most in this village have special reason to fear humans. Many were, themselves, chased out or hunted by them. Even those that weren’t have heard the stories.” He paused, then gestured to Hanako’s kamishimo. “How many of those hunters wore outfits exactly like that?”

Hanako frowned. “But this is…” Her words trailed off as she thought about it more. For her, it was a symbol of honor and respect. But, for these people…

“What else can I not see?” Hanako muttered to herself.

The kappa shrugged again, and quietly sipped at his tea. Hanako stared at him for a while, then asked, “Do you think this is what Lord Isshin meant when he said I wouldn’t find a home here?”

“Most likely.” Nobuhito put his cup down, then looked into Hanako’s eyes. “Whatever else, you were raised by humans, and so to some extent you think like them, act like them. You also carry many of the same implicit biases, even if you are unaware of it. Now I know not all humans hate yokai, but…” He gestured outside. “They do not.”

Hanako chewed on his words for the next hour or so, and then excused herself and retired to bed. No matter what she did, though, sleep wouldn’t come. Her experiences that day, combined with Nobuhito’s words, kept circling in her brain.

The next morning, Hanako packed all her things and headed downstairs. She left her room key at the front desk, and when the tanuki stared up at her in shock, she gave him the biggest, most sincere smile she could. She bowed and said, “thank you for taking such good care of me during my time here. I hope your business keeps running well.”

The tanuki could only nod, and Hanako went outside. She made a point to track down Nobuhito and bid him farewell, and thanked the handful of people who’d tried to help her during her stay. Then she took one last look at Ashina village, squared her shoulders, and headed back out into the world.

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Current Draft of Hanako’s story (including unposted content)

30 December 2022

This whole segment of Hanako’s story has been interesting to write. I hope Isshin’s thoughts and intentions when he said what he did are clear. I think so, but I’m also a bit too close to the story to have a clear picture. There’s one more short-ish section to go tomorrow, and the Ashina village arc will be done for the time being. I plan on shelving Hanako for most of January, actually, to focus on other things, like the Majesty storyline.

Hanako almost attacked him but she managed to restrain that impulse at the last moment. “Who are you?”

The tengu raised an eyebrow, and behind Hanako, the tanuki started trembling. He hissed, “That’s Ashina Isshin, lord of this village!”

Hanako’s face flushed and she dropped to one knee. “I, I’m sorry! I’m new in town, and didn’t know who you are, and–”

“It’s quite alright.” He waved it away, then stared at the tanuki. “And what is happening here?”

“Er, well, this girl seems to think this sword belongs to her, when it’s been in my family for years.”

Once more the tengu raised an eyebrow and looked at Hanako. “And what do you say?”

She took a deep breath. “Yesterday, when I checked in, that sword wasn’t there. Sometime last night, even though I’d locked the door, my sword was stolen from me. When I got downstairs, I saw it there.”

The tengu nodded. “Was this sword important to you?”

“Well, yeah. It was my master’s. He passed it to me when he died.”

“And who was your master?”

Hanako had to think for a moment. “Kojima. His name was Kojima.”

“I see.” He extended a hand to the tanuki. “May I see the sword?”

The tanuki handed it over, and Lord Isshin inspected every inch of the blade. “Did you know I had a student once, who wanted to learn the sword?”

Hanako cocked her head. Where had that come form? The tanuki meanwhile just shook his head.

“He was a young man. A human, actually, of all things. He had a purity I’d never seen before or since; he was devoted to the sword, but he used it only to protect what was important to him. He had no love for the shedding of blood.” He looked first at Hanako, and then the tanuki. “His name was Kojima.”

Hanako’s eyes widened, and the tanuki’s face turned white as a sheet. With the barest hint of a smile at the corner of his mouth, Lord Isshin asked, “Do you still wish to claim this sword belongs to your family?”

The tanuki shook his head, and Isshin handed Hanako the sword. Hanako bowed deeply. “Thank you very much!”

Once again, Isshin just waved it off. “There is no need for that. Besides, I did it more for his sake than yours.”

The tanuki looked confused. “Mine?”

“Indeed. She is an oni, after all; she doesn’t need a sword to wreck destruction. Based on the power I felt, were I only a few seconds later, you would no longer have an inn, assuming you’d even survived.”

With wide eyes, the tanuki looked from Isshin to Hanako and back again. Then, after a moment, he fainted and fell back to the floor.

Hanako hugged the sord tight to her chest. “Once again, thank you, sir.”

“Think nothing of it.” Isshin turned to leave, then paused. “You are certainly welcome to stay in this village as long as you like. However… I doubt you will find a home here.”

After the relief from getting her sword back, it felt like someone had driven a spike into Hanako’s heart. By the time she’d recovered enough to ask what he meant, though, Lord Isshin had already left.

The next few weeks were rough. The tanuki refused to let Hanako pay for anything, and did everything he could to make her stay comfortable. In some ways, that was a lifesaver; Hanako didn’t have a lot of money, and she struggled to find work in the village. But it left a bad taste in her mouth; it reminded her too much of the fear the one merchant had, when during a guard job she’d been outed as an oni and he’d thrown her a whole sack of gold, in the hopes she’d leave them alone.

As for the rest of the village… A few had heard about the incident at the Lucky Tanuki, and avoided her out of fear. Most, however, seemed indifferent. They rarely ever explicitly excluded her, but none of them did anything to include her, either. And no one seemed willing to give a job to a swordswoman who smelled human. After all, the town was peaceful, and didn’t need warriors. And there were plenty of other oni around for physical labor.

The clincher, though, came one day while she was wandering the streets. A group of children, including a small nure-onna, a rokurokubi, and maybe 3-4 oni, started jeering at her. This wasn’t the first time, and they were just kids, so hanako fully intended to ignore them like usual.

This time, though, one of them grew brave and threw a water balloon at her. On instinct alone, she spun around and caught it, without letting it burst.

The kids all stared at her, mouths open, and Hanako couldn’t help but grin.

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Current Draft of Hanako’s story (including unposted content)

27 December 2022

My biggest concern with this scene (both this part and the ones surrounding it) is my depiction of the tanuki. As I understand it, they’re pranksters, and rarely if ever actively malicious. Not that the guy here is, but he doesn’t give off the vibe of toying with or playing with Hanako that a natural prankster would have… One of the options I’m considering is that he was trying to protect Ashina from this human-affiliated person by removing her weapon, but in that case his approach still seems a bit off here, and there’d be some major issues in the next section. I’ll want to think on that some more.

…breakfast. She stopped in her tracks, though, the moment she saw what was hanging above the front desk.

Hanako’s rage flared awake, but she kept a lid on it, and even managed to make a convincing smile as she approached the tanuki. “Hey, hey. Owner-san. Where did you get that sword?”

When the tanuki replied, he seemed utterly at ease, as if that wasn’t clearly the sword Hanako had brought in just the evening before. “Oh, that? Old family heirloom. My grandfather used it in battle a hundred years ago.”

The beast in Hanako’s chest roared, but she managed to keep her anger out of her face. She leaned in and rested an elbow on the desk. “Really? Because it looks a lot like my sword, before it was stolen sometime last night. Even though my room was locked.”

“I’m sorry to hear you were robbed,” the tanuki said. “Wish there was something I could do to help, but we have a very strict policy. We are not liable for any theft or lost possessions during your stay with us.”

The edge of the table crunched in Hanako’s grip, but otherwise she maintained her calm. “Hey, Owner-san. That sword wasn’t there yesterday. If it’s a family heirloom, why would that be?”

The tanuki shrugged. “Why would an oni have human money? Or use a sword instead of a kanabo. When you reek of human like you do, that’s pretty suspicious.”

What? “You don’t believe I’m an oni? Do you need to touch my horn or something?”

“I’m just saying. Even this conversation isn’t a very oni-ish way to handle things.”

The anger  that’d been building since Hanako had arrived in Ashina started to break free. So she wasn’t “oni” enough for him? He wanted to see the monstrous side of her? Fine. She could show him what it really meant to anger an oni.

The tanuki’s face paled. Hanako wasn’t sure at first if she’d already started leaking pressure, when the tanuki bowed to someone behind her and she felt a hand on her shoulder.

She spun around to find a tengu, seven and a half feet tall and rail thin.

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Current Draft of Hanako’s story (including unposted content)

26 December 2022

Pretty simple section today, but setting things up for how much she will feel out of place later.

Honestly, I’m a bit worried about how I portrayed Nobuhito. I want him to seem odd, but not stand-offish. I also want to make it clear that he’s a bit of an outcast in Ashina society even if it doesn’t bother him much.

When she arrived, she found a warm, inviting inn with an image of a dancing tanuki hanging from the sign post. Inside, she found a rotund, cheerful tanuki behind the counter, and off to the right a handful of other customers milling around the dining area. Among them was a kappa with graying hair, sitting by himself in the corner, sipping tea.

The tanuki gave her a big wide smile. “Welcome, welcome! What can we do for you today?”

“Um, yeah.” Hanako shuffled her feet. “I’m going to need a room for a few days. And I heard there’s someone here who can trade yen for zenni?”

The tanuki’s eyes widened for half a second, but he kept his smile and he gestured to the kappa Hanako had seen earlier. “Nobuhito should be able to help you out. He’s a bit of an odd one; a bit too fascinated with the humans. But he should be able to help you out.”

Hanako thanked him and headed toward the kappa. As soon as she walked into the main dining area, everyone stopped and stared at her, their eyes flickering from her horn to her clothes to her sword. She did her best to ignore all that, though, and sat down in front of the kappa. “Are you Nabuhito?”

The kappa slowly looked up and blinked at her. “Why do you want to know?”

She pulled her purse onto the table and pulled out a few coins. “I… don’t have the right money for here, I guess. I’ve only ever worked with yen, ab the people here only accept ‘zenni’. Could you help me out?”

Nobuhito took one of the coins and examined it closely. He took it in his beak and bit on it, and in wonder he said, “These are real!”

“Of course they’re real.” Hanako’s eyebrows scrunched together. “Why wouldn’t they be?”

The kappa gave Hanako a long, appraising look. “Why did you come to Ashina?”

The question surprised Hanako. “Well, I mean, this is a village for yokai, right? I wanted to be somewhere I belonged, a place to call home.”

Nobuhito tapped the coin on the table. “But you can earn human money. You found a way to live among them, Unless you stole or killed for it?”

Anger flashed in Hanako’s eyes, before she brought it back under control. “I’d never do that.” She rested a hand on her sword. “I was lucky enough to put my master’s skills to use protecting people. But… well, they never really accepted me.” She smiled sadly, then forced herself to cheer up. “But hey, I’m around a bunch of other oni and yokai now, right?”

“Hmm.” The kappa stared at her a while longer, then pulled her purse over and counted the contents. “I’ll give you five fifty for all this.”

Hanako hesitated. Was that a fair deal? She realized she didn’t know enough about the value of zenni to be able to tell. Still, kappa were widely regarded as honest and honorable, so she nodded.

The kappa handed her a different type of coin, and she got up and paid for a room for the next week. She considered going out and exploring the town, but the day’s events had been surprisingly draining, so she locked the door and went straight to bed.

The next morning, when Hanako woke up, her sword was missing. She practically tore the room apart looking for it. The door was still locked, as was the window, so how would anyone have gotten in?

Finally, despondent, she trudged down the stairs to breakfast.

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Current Draft of Hanako’s story (including unposted content)

23 December 2022

I wanted to show that Hanako is caught between worlds; neither human nor truly yokai, at least as far as they’re concerned. So this arc is a little bittersweet at best, maybe outright tragic, even though I don’t plan on anyone dying.

I actually did a fair amount of research on different kinds of yokai for this, to make Ashina village feel as vibrant and diverse as possible. If anyone else needs a reference, my primary source was yokai.com. They have all kinds of information on there, with illustrations to help give a better idea what they’re talking about. It also includes specific individuals from old stories and fairy tales, like Tamamo no Mae, Shuten-doji, or Urashima Taro.

And yes, I shamelessly named the village (and its ruler, Lord Isshin) after locations and people in Sekiro. I have no regrets.

1-2 years before the destruction of Chizu

When Hanako had heard rumors of a hidden yokai village in the mountains, she wasn’t sure she believed it. Between the strength of the shogunate and the reclusive nature of many yokai, it seemed too good to be true.

Yet now, six months later, here she stood, at the gates of the Ashina castle village. Maybe here she’d find a place where she belonged.

An easy smile fell to her lips as she squared her shoulders and walked inside. Her jaw almost dropped, though, when she saw the marketplace. A group of kappa drunkenly belted out enka songs from an outdoor pub, while a nekomata couple fawned over each other as they walked down the street, their four tails intertwining. One yokai that looked like a giant umbrella with a long tongue hopped up and down on its single foot as it argued with a tengu merchant.

And mixed in with all that were dozens and dozens of oni. Red, blue, black, white, yellow; anywhere from a single horn to a crown of five; walking alone or whole families herding kids around for a day out. Part of Hanako wondered if she’d died and gone to heaven.

Or at least, she did until she accidentally bumped into a large, blue-skinned oni with a single horn. Hanako turned to apologize, but the oni only wrinkled his nose. “You reek of human.”

Eh? Hanako paused and tried to sniff herself, but she couldn’t smell anything. What did human even smell like?

After that, though, she began noticing little things. Like the way most parents herded their children away from her, or how shopkeepers wouldn’t meet her gaze. Still, it wasn’t like she could let this get her down. She approached a woman selling baked goods and cheerfully asked, “Hello! I’m new in town, and I need a place to stay. Do you know where I could go?”

The woman’s head rose a bit to look at Hanako better, stretching out her neck and proving her to be a rokurokubi. “Yeah, I know a couple places.” She poked her head out into the street and looked right. “If you’re only here for two or three days, I’d go to the Kirin’s Rest; it’s a bit pricey, but the rooms are worth it, and they won’t cause a fuss. That’s here on this street, about two blocks up to the left. If you’re going to be here a week or more, though, I’d head to the Lucky Tanuki; take the next right and follow that until it curves around to the north, and it’ll be on your right. The rooms aren’t as nice, but they’re cheap, and the food is good.”

“Thank you!” Hanako looked over the rokurokubi’s pastries. “Could I get four daifuku, too?”

“Of course! That’ll be twelve zenni.”

Hanako’s hand froze halfway into her purse. Zenni? What was that? She pulled out a few coins and stared at them. “Umm… Is there a way I could pay in yen? Or is there a place I could exchange money?”

The rokurokubi stared at Hanako like she was an exotic creature at a traveling circus. Hanako blushed furiously and scratched at her cheek. “I, uh… I’m sorry. I didn’t know what to expect when I finally found this place. I haven’t actually heard of zenni, before.”

The silence continued long enough to get awkward, before the rokurokubi finally said, “Er, well… There’s a kappa that hangs out at the Lucky Tanuki I told you about. He’s kind of strange, but he should be able to help you.” She packaged a pair of daifuku and handed it to Hanako. “Here. On the house.”

Still blushing, Hanako bowed and thanked the woman, then scurried off to find the Lucky Tanuki.

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Current Draft of Hanako’s story (including unposted content)

19 December 2022

The final part of her encounter with the oni scouts. I’m honestly not sure on a lot of things with this scene (both the previous part and this one); is Shuten-doji the Youkai King? If so, is he this one or the last one? I’ve been researching Japanese mythology, yokai in particular, to prepare for this story and its various pieces, but I’m on the fence on what to use and how to use it. I don’t want to disrespect the established legends, for one thing. There’s also the fact that Hanako’s story does not take place in Japan, at least the way it’s written now, and I worry that using established figures like Shuten-doji or Tamamo no Mae will make people think it does. I’m definitely drawing heavily there for inspiration, after all…

I’d say the only solutions I can come up with are to make it explicit somehow this isn’t Japan, or to spend time in Japan, do a lot of research, and change place and people’s names to reflect Japan itself. Right now, I don’t think it’s a big deal, where I’m not official publishing this or anything, but it’s something I want to keep in mind.

“Don’t worry about it.” He stroked his chin. “Y’know, all this talk’s got me craving some now.” He gestured to Red. “Grab the bigger one; we’ll save the small one for last. She’ll be the most tender.”

Red glowered at Yellow and grumbled, but he walked over to grab the father. Hanako considered herself lucky she’d gotten as much information out of them as she had. When Red walked past her, she stood and drew her sword. “I’m afraid I can’t let you do that.”

Blue and Yellow exclaimed in surprise and reached for their weapons, but she’d already stabbed Red through the chest before any of the three could react.

Red roared as Hanako pulled her sword free, and she could feel the waves of anger pulsing off of him. He charged her, hands outstretched, but she danced to the side and lopped off his arm as casually as a noble woman might wave her fan.

Blue swung his own kanabo at her, and did his best to stay out of range of her sword, but she dodged and jumped inside his reach. SHe drove her knee into his groin and used the pommel of her sword to bash him in the head, dazing him.

Before she could finish him off, the yellow one released a burst of pressure, though it was barely enough to catch her attention. “You’re good, I’ll give you that,” he sneered. “But do you think a lowly red oni like you could do anything to me?”

Hanako cocked her head. “Ne, oji-san. Was that supposed to be scary?”

Both Yellow and Blue froze. Red had turned and roared at her, and was about to rush in when she said, “Shouldn’t it be more like this?”

And with that, she released all the pressure, all the anger she felt, both from the threat they posed to the Chizu refugees and for this family who’d lost everything. Red stopped in his tracks and began cowering away from her, and both Yellow and Blue fell back on their butts.

Yellow tried in vain to scooch away from her as she slowly walked towards him. “But…how? How?”

Hanako thought for a moment. Then she shrugged. “Practice? Or else it’s because I’ve got something to protect.” She raised her sword and cleaved his head from his body.

Before the body even hit the ground, though, Blue’s voice yelled from behind her, “Drop your sword!”

Hanako spun around, and found him holding the girl by the neck in front of him. His eyes were desperate, as if they’d seen a monster. Hanako found that ironic on a number of levels. He repeated, “Give us your sword, or she dies!”

It only took a moment for Hanako to decide what to do. A small smile played at her lips. “Alright, then. Catch.” She sheathed her sword and tossed it to Blue. His eyes left her for a moment, and Hanako took the chance to dart in. As he caught her sword with his free hand, she drove her fist into his solar plexus, and when he doubled over, she twisted his head and broke his neck.

She retrieved her sword and faced the final oni left. “So what are you going to do, big guy?”

Red looked from Yellow’s corpse to Blue’s body, then up at Hanako, who’s innocent smile didn’t match the hardness in her gaze. He backed away a couple steps, then turned and ran off into the forest.

Hanako turned to the two captives, who looked up at her in fear. She sighed, then removed their gags and began to untie them.

“Who… Who are you?” the father asked.

“Just a wandering swordswoman.” Hanako finished up and stepped back. “There’s a group of refugees about two hours’ walk north of here. Follow this road to the river, then turn right and follow that up. Ask for a woman named Keiko; she’s running things right now.” She turned to leave. “Tell her Hanako sent you.”

She turned to leave, when the father asked, “How can we trust you?”

Hanako looked back at the two oni she’d just killed. Her eyes met the father’s. “If that’s not proof enough, I don’t know what would be. The choice is yours, though.”

And without another word, Hanako left.

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Current Draft of Hanako’s story (including unposted content)

17 December 2022

This is the first time we’ve seen Hanako interact with any other yokai, and I kind of wanted to show that she’s caught between worlds. This isn’t the best scene for it; I plan to add another scene, maybe set before the Chizu village arc, where she actually finds a yokai settlement (maybe predominantly oni, maybe not), and show how wary they are of her. Still, I hope I captured a bit of that feeling here…

When Hanako noticed the tracks leading off the road, she wasn’t sure if it was instinct, caution, or curiosity that compelled her to follow them. Whatever it was, she was grateful.

At the other end of them, she found a trio of large, male oni, each a different color but all around eight feet tall, gathered around a fire. Some creature–it looked to be the remains of a horse–turned on a spit above it.

Off to the side, a father and daughter were trussed up, quivering in fear. The girl couldn’t have been more than ten years old. The ruins of a wagon rested on the other side of the fire, its contents strewn about, either broken or devoured. A bit of bile rose into Hanako’s throat, and she desperately hoped the mother of the family hadn’t been traveling with them. 

Hanako took a moment to consider how she wanted to approach this. Then she put away the charm she got from the old merchant and walked out into the clearing. “Hiya! What’s cooking?”

The oni stopped their conversation to look at her. The red one even got up and reached for his kanabo. All of them, including Hanako, ignored the muffled screams of the father and daughter when they saw her.

The blue one glared at her. “And who are you?”

Hanako beamed at him and held out her hand. “Hanako! Nice to meet you.”

After an awkward moment, the blue on sneered and spat off to the side. “You reek of human.”

There it was again. What did that even mean? Hanako had spent so much time around humans she couldn’t tell. “Occupational hazard, I suppose?”

The third–the largest of the three, with a yellowish tint to his skin–studied Hanako carefully. “Y’know, rumor’s goin’ ‘round about the shogun’s pet oni. You hear anythin’ about that?”

“Oh, her. “ Hanako’s face soured. “Yeah, I ran into her once. Big, blue woman. Seemed like bad news.”

The yellow one seemed satisfied with her answer. “Got fresh-cooked horse for now. But if you’re patient, well…” He flashed a cruel smile at the father and daughter. “We’ve got a real delicacy comin’ later.”

Hanako plopped herself down next to Blue, across the fire from where Yellow reclined. “Huh. I thought what’s-his-bucket had strict rules about eating humans.”

Blue looked over at the red one. “Sit down, already!” He smiled at Hanako. “That’s old news. After the shogun started his campaign, Shuten-doji deposed the old man as the Yokai King, and eliminated all those laws. Only for his army, of course. Gotta incentivise people somehow.”

“Oh-ho. So you three are all in the new King’s army, then? What are you doing out here?”

Red spoke up for the first time. “We scout. Shogun’s men near here, burned village.” His smile turned ferocious. “If lucky, we eat survivors.”

The beast inside pushed against Hanako’s ribcage. That was Keiko, Chiaki, and the others he was talking about. But she held it back for the time being and pretended to look thoughtful. “Sounds tempting. How would I join? The main army nearby?”

Yellow snorted. “The big armies are up north; better to avoid that, I say. No, you wanna join, head southeast toward Nanmoku. Our company’s going to hit there next.”

Hanako beamed at him. “Thanks for the info.”

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Current Draft of Hanako’s story (including unposted content)

10 December 2022

I felt pretty proud of this scene. This is where the shogun’s true nature as a gaslighter really comes out to the front. One of the revisions I’m considering is cut out the bit with Nakamura and the hearing, and just have him bring it up after the fact in this scene. I’d want to show Nakamura fleeing Chizu village more expicitly during that battle if I do that, though.

As always, they were lavish, from the vibrant colors of the rugs on the floor to the silk-covered pillows for guest to sit on. Suzune moved to prepare tea, and soon the scent filled the room, from the finest tea money could buy.

She used extreme caution as she placed the tea cups and poured from her father. From past experience, she knew the cups were incredibly fragile, at least in her hands, and even more expensive.

“Sit.” Father nodded across the table from where he sat.

Suzune’s blood chilled from the tone in his voice, and the joy she’d had on receiving the promotion to major evaporated. She kneeled on the cushion, placed her hands in her lap, and patiently waited for Father to begin speaking.

He finished his cup and gently set it on the table. “So. You were defeated. By a single oni, no less.”

Suzune’s heart curled in on itself, though she did her best to keep her expression neutral. “Yes Father.”

He looked up and met her eyes. “If you lack even the strength to defeat one oni, then what good are you?”

It felt like the floor fell out from underneath Suzune. She wanted to protest, remind him that Hanako was no ordinary oni, of all the things Ito had said earlier. But the words wouldn’t come out. At the end of the day, he was right, wasn’t he? She’d lost, and hundreds of her fellow soldiers had died for it.

The shogun stood, and began to walk slowly around the table. As he moved behind Suzune, he said, “Not only did this defeat cost us many good officers and soldiers, every loss leads to doubt. And doubt is unacceptable. Did you not hear Nakamura? The very fact you lost caused him to question your loyalty, and the honor of my line. I suspect it’s also related to Major Ito’s sudden leave of absence, don’t you think?”

If she could have, Suzune would have vanished into nothing. “Yes, Father.”

He moved back around in front of her. “I took you in as a child, despite the fact you are an oni. That is all anyone else will ever see. If you want them to accept you, such failures will not be permitted. Do you understand?”

Suzune nodded. She couldn’t bring herself to look up and meet his eyes.

“Fortunately, you have a chance to rectify this.” He sighed and sat down, and out of the corner of her eye Suzune was surprised to see him smile at her. “In spite of your failure in combat, your strategic thinking was excellent. You did achieve the goal in battle to remove a village of foul yokai sympathizers, and rescued many other soldiers, besides. This promotion will give you a chance to further prove your worth.”

Like someone finally seeing a light after weeks of darkness, Suzune clung to the hope the shogun dangled before her. “What would you have me do, Father?”

“Polish your mind. Use that strategic brilliance to gain advantage over the yokai army. And if you ever face that oni in battle again, do whatever it takes to kill her. Especially if she was trained by the traitorous swordmaster.”

She rose and saluted. “The will of the shogun be done, Father!”

He nodded. “That will be all.”

Suzune bowed and turned to leave. Then she thought of what Captain Takamoto had reported on Hanako’s description of the army, and the way Hanako herself had been so desperate to protect the village. That didn’t sound like the oni Father often described, or even the ones Suzune had met and killed in battle. She paused in the doorway, and almost asked Father about it. But something held her back. In the end, she just left.

She was probably mistaken, anyway. She was just an oni, after all; better to leave things like that to Father.

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Current Draft of Hanako’s story (including unposted content)

5 December 2022

The next part of Suzune’s report/confrontation with her father. The whole scene was surprisingly hard to write; maybe it’s just the mood I’ve been in lately? I went back a bit to revise how I introduced Nakamura, and then mostly, it was just struggling to figure out what arguments he, Suzune, and Ito would all use, and in what order.

They entered the room, and Suzune was shocked to see Lieutenant Nakamura kneeling before Father. It was all she could do to keep her face impassive. So Nakamura was a coward. The only way he could be here was if he’d fled from the battle at the village and abandoned the general and Captain Takamoto.

Suzune walked up beside him and kneeled before the shogun. “You requested to see me, Father?”

“Indeed. I have some questions concerning the battle at Chizu village.” He turned to Nakamura. “Recount what you told me one more time, lieutenant.”

“Sir!” Nakamura glanced sidewise and sneered at Suzune before he stood and saluted the shogun. “It pains me to tell you this, my lord, but I suspect treachery from Lieutenant Suzune.”

At that, there was a collective gasp from the councilors and officers in the room, and Suzune’s heart roared. Her fingers twitched, eager to remove Nakamura’s head from his body for even suggesting such an impossibility. She managed to restrain herself; she’d tried hard to prove to the shogunate–and her father in particular–that she was more than some barbaric oni.

Once the hubbub quieted down, Nakamura continued. “The night before the battle, Lt. Suzune herself outlined the plan to eliminate an oni warrior and the village sheltering it. As part of this plan, she would lure the enemy oni away and subdue it, while the general and the bulk of the army fell upon the village and razed it to the ground.”

“Go on.” The shogun’s face was impassive. Even Suzune couldn’t tell what he was thinking. A small nugget of doubt began to worm its way into Suzune’s heart.

“The plan proceeded as normal; Suzune’s group attracted the oni, and I, along with the general and the rest of the army, attacked Chizu. However it was only moments later when the oni fell upon our rear in full battle-frenzy. The general, along with Captain Takamoto and many other officers, fell to the unexpected onslaught. I can only conclude that either Lt. Suzune is incompetent, or she was in collusion with the oni to eliminate key officers in your army, and thus secure a promotion.”

Suzune trembled in rage. How could Nakamura tell such blatant lies to her father when she stood right there? All she needed was an excuse, and she’d end him then and there.

Then Father turned and looked at her. And all that anger evaporated into a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. Did Father believe him?

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3 December 2022

For whatever reason, I was in a major funk all day last Saturday. I still managed to accomplish some things… but I only got about 25 minutes of writing in before I was just… done. I kind of regret it, to be honest, but I think days like that happen sometimes.

On the other hand, I did finish up a fair amount of research on gaslighting (based mostly on this video from Cinema Therapy on Mother Gothel in Tangled), and figured out how that applies to the shogun and some of his interactions with Suzune. Even if I haven’t gotten to them yet.

Suzune marched to the shogun’s throne room. Ito walked just behind her, to her right. She didn’t know what to make of him, anymore; after the battle with the oni girl–Hanako–he’d stopped his angry rants, and even walked beside her as an adjutant, despite the fact he outranked her.

They entered the room and kneeled before the shogun. “You requested to see me, Father?”

The shogun sat upon his wooden throne, painted cherry red with gold inlays. “Indeed, Lieutenant Suzune. I wish to hear in greater detail the events surrounding the village of Chizu.”

“Yes, Father.” She stood and opened her mouth to speak but her father held up a hand. “First, there is one other report on the matter we would hear. Speak, Nakamura.”

From out of the crowd, Lieutenant Nakamura stepped forward and sneered at Suzune. It was all she could do to keep her face impassive; if Nakamura was here, then he’d fled like a coward. Most of those who’d survived Hanako’s onslaught had already reunited with Suzune’s forces; the fact Nakamura hadn’t spoke volumes.

Nakamura bowed to the shogun.

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31 October 2022

When I started, I had a couple choices. I could work on another story, write the aftermath of the final battle in Hanako’s story, or I could tweak the final battle to make it fit my vision better. I did the last of those.

I actually like the way it ends as is, at least for a stand alone short story. If I build on this, more of a transition might be a good idea… or maybe not. I don’t know. But the end carries a certain weight to it, and anything I can think of to wrap things up would take away from that. I also liked the tweaks and things I did; fleshed the scenes out more. The bit with Keiko and Benjiro was fun, too.

“They’ll kill you. You know that, right?” Keiko, the woman who had defended the oni sword girl, asked.

Benjiro strapped his old sword to his side and ignored the ache in his joints. “There are worse things than death. That girl reminded me of that.” He gave Keiko a gentle smile and made his way outside.

Screams and shouts headed their way from the north, and they could see villagers rush to get away from the encroaching army. Keiko glanced that way before she tightened the grip on her pan. “Then I’m coming, too.” 

Benjiro shook his head. “The villagers need a leader, one they can trust. They’re panicked; even if those few of us who can fight could hold them back, it’ll mean nothing if we can’t organize the evacuation.”

Keiko’s expression turned bitter, but she didn’t argue. From her, that was as good as a promise. The old man nodded to her once, and headed toward the shogun’s soldiers.

Chiaki’s mom

“What… what happened?”

“She was directing evacuees out of the village when a few of the shogun’s men found us. Chiaki was…”

Entering the village

Once she arrived, half the village was aflame. She pulled a handkerchief over her nose and mouth to avoid the worst of the smoke, but even then, it was difficult to breathe at times.

As she raced into the village, she began seeing bodies here and there. Among them was the boy who’d lifted a sword too big for him; he sat in the street, clutching his stomach. His sister shook his shoulder as she pleaded, “Satoru! Satoru!”

Hanako almost stopped, but if she didn’t take care of the army, nothing she did here would matter. So she ignored the ache in her chest and rushed toward the sound of fighting ahead. Not long after that, she ran into a pocket of villagers about to be overwhelmed by a group of the shogun’s soldiers. Hanako rushed in behind them and cut the soldiers down before they knew what was happening; she didn’t have the leeway to be merciful right now.

The villagers turned to thank her, but she yelled, “Just get away from here!” They nodded and fled, taking the wounded with them as best they could. As she moved forward, she came across several small cells of the shogun’s army; she dealt with them the same way.

When she arrived at the town square, she found their commander…

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