My mind was filled with pleasant dreams of the past, each one reminding me of calmer times where I could help out my mother with household chores, or assist my father with his deliveries, or even spend time with the Matsuno brothers before I had entered the storehouse.

Moments lulled as Osomatsu brought me to his favorite hiding place near the large pond, Karamatsu smiling alongside me as I enjoyed our time in the flower fields with handmade nets that couldn't catch a butterfly, Choromatsu watching on while I helped his mother make food.

Ichimatsu's gentle smile lingered in my dreams, his hand holding mine cautiously as if I was a porcelain doll that would shatter with a flex of his fingers. As a child, I didn't understand what our parents were doing since I had considered the sextuplets my friends. Romance never dwelled in my head.

Yet, as we grew up, I had begun to feel a warmth swell in my chest whenever I was around him, and only him. There were tricks that his brothers had tried in order to confuse me, but I knew them all too well to be fooled.

...and yet a fool I was, My inner voice growled as I stirred from the once-peaceful sleep. I lifted my hands to my face, wiping away tears that formed while I yawned. My vision was filled with the rafters of my family storehouse as I groggily remembered what had transpired. The rustling of cloth drew my focus to the fabric that lay over me, the white kimono now stained with blood no longer bearing the stench of death.

"You're awake," Ichimatsu's dark voice was a welcome comfort, the back of his fingers brushing against my cheek while I sat up. I leaned into his touch while his other arm brought me close to him, pulling his kimono around my shoulders and securing it as a robe, "It's not morning yet."

"That doesn't matter," My voice was thick with sleep, clearing my throat briefly before looking up at him. His winter-blue hues gazed back, "Where's Choromatsu?"

"I'm here," called the daitengu from the rafters, his wings ruffling a little before he dropped to the floor near us.

"I want to seal your yokai before Karamatsu strikes."

"That's what was promised," Choromatsu's eyebrow lifted in curiosity, "I will not fight the process."

I paused, pursing my lips in thought before a huff drew my attention to the stove.

Osomatsu and Todomatsu sat in front of the open stove door, absorbing the needed heat. My heart jumped with joy before I fully took in their somber expressions, a mixture of regret and sorrow filling every inch of their face.

"You're both okay."

"Fully rested, thanks to your fiance," Osomatsu barely held my gaze before looking towards the fire, "We'll be leaving for the neighboring town once Choromatsu has been dealt with."

"The plan is to recuperate there, then travel back to Nagoya," Todomatsu spoke up, never glancing in my direction, "After...this matter has been settled, for good or ill, we'll figure out what to do from there."

"Then the only thing to do is to hold position and wait..." My gaze fell to my hands resting over my lap, taking in a breath before looking towards Choromatsu, "Shall we begin?"

"The sooner, the better."

Ichimatsu helped me stand while I pulled an empty fude brush from the pouch, holding it gently between my fingers before looking at Choromatsu. The daitengu had not moved an inch since he landed, his eyes closed while he waited.

The spell's words passed between my lips like a song, the brush dancing in my hand as I carefully made broad strokes on his right cheek, sweeping up towards his forehead before pulling it down the left side of his throat. The bristles 'painted' over his tunic, remaining on his left side before pulling to the right just before his belt. Raising my arm upwards, I led the brush towards Choromatsu's heart before circling around it.

A soft green color enveloped the daitengu as I felt a strange pulling sensation towards him, as if the yuki-onna within me wanted to be inside the light that now swallowed Choromatsu.

In moments, the light was gone and in its wake stood the third sextuplet, his hand holding a green fude brush. His eyes opened slowly, as if waking from a deep slumber, while a sudden rush of exhaustion fell over his body. Choromatsu roughly grabbed the front of his kimono, fatigue plainly seen in his gaze as his eyes snapped to me.

"Take it," His voice was tense as he shoved the brush back into my hands, "I never want to see that thing again."

I only nodded while tucking the brush back into the pouch, hiding it within my waist sash again.

"Are you steady enough to travel?" Osomatsu stood up, worry prevalent on his face.

"Every moment we spend here is a moment wasted in our journey," Choromatsu barked, the pointed frown back on his lips while he walked towards the storehouse door, "The storyteller needs to speak."

The eldest and youngest sextuplets nodded their quiet appreciation towards me before following Choromatsu out into the early dawn hours. The closing of the door sounded like a death knell to me.

Jyushimatsu and Ichimatsu sat in front of me, the fresh food from the inugami's hunt resting within my belly. They waited patiently while I gathered my thoughts and my wits, fighting back the fear that threatened to crawl up my spine.

"I am the storyteller that Karamatsu is feeding from," The obvious statement was known by everyone in the room, but it still needed to be said, "One hundred stories is the limit I have, with only three remaining since I had told everyone what he had done to me in our younger years. Those stories I will not repeat."

"I remember them," Ichimatsu spoke cautiously, bowing his head for a moment while Jyushimatsu gave a faint nod.

"Then I will tell the last three encounters with Karamatsu," I couldn't ignore the sudden chill sweeping over my back, shuddering for a moment before continuing.

"This happened a few months before the Hyakki Yagyō late summer. While I was wandering from town to town in order to find any resources that would help me craft new brushes to correct my mistakes, I had befriended another traveler. She and I spoke often of our past experiences to pass the time on the road. I had told her while drunk on rice wine that I had cursed my beloved family and friends when I was a child, divulging what Karamatsu had done with his intensifying pranks," My breath hitched as I swallowed a whimper, "She had laughed it off as drunken stupor until Karamatsu had stepped out from the fire pit, his eyes fixated on me while he devoured her fears. The poor girl...was left as a husk...that couldn't remember her name when he had finished his feast. I begged him to not do anything else, terrified as he said he 'couldn't wait to have me'."

An echo of his laugh rang in my ears as the temperature dropped even more.

"The next time I saw him was while the Night Parade wandered through the town I had been staying in, trapping myself in an old storehouse much smaller than this one. While I was focused on those in the Parade, he grabbed me from behind and made sure that I couldn't call out for help. Karamatsu began to...molest me," I couldn't bear to see the anger within Ichimatsu's eyes, his expression cold, "There was no physical deed done, but he had done enough that I was scared he would do something like that to me. Once Karamatsu proved that I could do nothing against him, he took his fill of fear and left me alone."

The memory brought a ghost sensation of Karamatsu's hands over my mouth and waist, forcing my face to flush as my breath passed between my lips in a mist.

"Lastly, I was fleeing Osomatsu's den when Karamatsu had used Ichimatsu's absence to his advantage. He used the lanterns that illuminated the road to find me, the blizzard blinding me to what was happening until I saw the flame turn blue. He chased me deeper into the blizzard, practically driving me from the main road before I collided with him and caused both of us to fall to the ground. By the time I recovered, Karamatsu had positioned himself to corner me against a tree while whispering lies about Ichimatsu and what he had kept hidden from me. When I denied his claims, he...he began physically molesting me, kissing me like a scorned lover while his hands pulled my clothes down. I tried fighting back before I lost consciousness."

"How dare--!" Ichimatsu snarled viciously, his fangs on full display.

"I found them before Karamatsu could do anything more. She was under him, yes, but I could smell that nothing had happened further," Jyushimatsu was calm, speaking clearly.

"I'd do it all over again."

A cold hand covered my lips while an arm wrapped around my waist to drag me backwards, forcing me into someone else's lap while their breath danced across my neck.

Both Jyushimatsu and Ichimatsu launched towards the intruder, fangs and talons bared. While I lifted my arms to protect my head, Karamatsu rolled back as his grip tightened around my waist, throwing me into an unprepared tumble before he sidestepped Jyushimatsu's talons. The ao andon pulled me along as he danced past the attacks that were aimed at him, my eyes squeezing shut as I was forced to turn this way and that. I was trapped and wholly believed that neither Ichimatsu or Jyushimatsu would let me be injured, letting out a breathy whimper when I felt Karamatsu slide his hand from my waist to my shoulder, his cold fingers against my skin as the fabric became loose from the 'dance'.

Snapping my eyes open to glare at Karamatsu, I tried pulling away as hard as I could before I was tossed down towards the ground. The only thing that kept me from hitting the floor was his hand clenched around my wrist, my free arm keeping my chest covered as the fabric slipped down my arm with gravity. His winter blue eyes lingered on my chest, a twisted expression of excitement covering his features before he yanked me back into his arms, a soft clattering of wood sounding against the floor as my eyes caught a brief glimpse of the brush pouch rolling to a stop close by.

"Such a beautiful desire to protect," Karamatsu leaned forward over my form, my waist sash loosened by one of his hands, "Is this what you're desiring, little storyteller? You kept such a brave face while telling the others about your...close calls."

I swallowed my response before he ducked underneath Jyushimatsu's claws, the inugami's fangs enlarging while the ao andon parried another strike from Ichimatsu. With Karamatsu only paying attention to the other yokai, I cushioned my fall before I hurriedly fixed what I could of my clothing while I crawled towards the pouch.

Ichimatsu darted away from the fight, Jyushimatsu immediately covering his retreat as Karamatsu turned his full wrath onto the inugami. My fingers scrambled for a brush blindly, keeping my focus on the fight before the ao andon refocused his attention back to me. I could only gasp before he was back on top of me, a large gash cutting from his left forehead to his right cheek. His blood dripped down onto my face as a look of fury was exchanged between us.

"I've had enough, little storyteller," Karamatsu leaned close, his taloned hands ripping apart my kimono while I barely heard Ichimatsu's roar of anger over my thundering heartbeat, "You are mine."

I shouted out my protest, thrusting the brush against his skin.