I woke up with a light sneeze, reaching up and pressing my sleeve over my nose to stifle another sneeze while I sat up. A familiar white cloth caught my eye as it partially fell off my chest and settled onto my lap, the darkened hem showing off the faint pattern of white flames along the bottom of the garb.

"You're quite the sound sleeper."

A voice caught my ear and turned my attention towards the man sitting against the closest wall, his head uncovered as his fingers pressed against the edge of the straw hat in his hands. The winter blue hues greeted me as I looked up to his eyes, instantly glancing away and shifting to gaze about the room I was in.

"He's picking up some supplies that were lost during the crossing," The man stated before he let out a short sigh, "I am sorry that we weren't able to keep the ferry safe from the isonade, (y/n)."

"No," I shook my head as I gathered up the white kimono in my hands, pulling it close to me as I shifted into a sitting position to face the man, the tengu mask still resting on his head, "I don't think anyone could've been prepared for it. I had thought that it would've been a sea monster, but I wasn't really expecting an isonade to show up. You and Ichimatsu came back alive and that's all that really matters to me, Choromatsu."

The third eldest brother's lips partially turned up into a smile at the mention of his name before the frown settled hard on his face, "Though not fast enough to dissuade Karamatsu from attacking you."

"I..." My voice trailed off at the memory of what happened, of what I now knew to be a limited time limit before he killed me, "You both heard what he had to say, right?"

"Are you referring to the threat that Karamatsu made towards you? I did hear that he was coming after you, but we already knew that, didn't we?"

"I think he's referring to what happens after the ghost stories are told," I gently bit my bottom lip, casting my eyes down onto the kimono wrapped around me, "Specifically, what will happen when...the last candle is blown out."

"Then we have time," Choromatsu sounded certain, "As long as you keep yourself from talking about what happened, then we have time to help you find what you're looking for."

"You know about it?"

"Ichimatsu filled me in a little as we waited for you to wake up," He admitted, "It wasn't very much, but enough for me to understand that you still harbor some guilt about what we've done to ourselves."

"It's what she wants, so you're more than welcome to leave if the destination troubles you," Ichimatsu's voice interrupted our conversation, drawing our attention to the doorway of the room as the kitsune walked in with his arms full of supplies. I could smell the wrapped salted meat before seeing the dried fruit stashed in marked bags, "It's a bit more crowded than what you're used to, birdbrain."

"I'm sure that I'll be able to handle the general populace, fox ears," Choromatsu scoffed, leaning back against the wall and focusing back on his straw hat, "Neither one of us are really able to handle the larger crowds, so I'll press on if you're so inclined to keep (y/n) company."

"Then it's settled," I cut in before they could pick up the argument, standing up and helping Ichimatsu sort the supplies before handing his kimono back to him, "We head to Nagoya when we're ready."

"Are you sure that you didn't want to rest for the day?" Ichimatsu barely turned to me, his right eyebrow arching in question, "It's just past the early morning and you did survive another yokai attack."

"I can't afford to slow down, Ichimatsu," I briefly touched his hand, our fingers intertwining, "With the winter settling around us, it's best if we try to stay ahead of the storms that would slow us down."

"Right," Choromatsu commented as he stood up, reaching to grab one of the supply bags and slinging it over his shoulders, "You're still human that's prone to the cold."

"Are you not?" I looked between both yokai with a confused look on my face.

"Not anymore..." Ichimatsu glanced away, his bright blue eyes dimming a little before turning to move through the door, "I'll go pay the remaining bill while you two gather our things outside."

----

The road was nicer to walk on than the previous paths, marking the main road with separate branches towards Osaka and Nagoya. Staying on the road leading to Nagoya, we slowly began to ascend the smaller mountain range that was settled between the two locations.

Ichimatsu and Choromatsu bickered back and forth about different things, filling the quiet space around us as I tried to focus on what they were talking about before eventually giving up and reflecting back on what I knew.

Karamatsu was an ao-andon, a fear-eating yokai that thrived on scary stories being told in a gathering. He must've found a way to twist the rules to grow stronger, only fueled by me telling others about what he did that scared me. If I didn't tell anyone about what happened, then there was a chance that he wouldn't succeed in killing me. However, if I kept quiet about what he was doing to me, then I wouldn't know what he'd try to do to get me to tattle on his actions. He was close to sexually assaulting me and I didn't want to know what was beyond that.

My ears perked up when the chattering had stopped between the two yokai walking behind me, turning to see an empty road at my back.

"Ichimatsu...? Choromatsu?" I took a few hesitant steps back the way I came, the thought of suddenly being alone unnerving, "Where are you?"

"(Y/n)?"

A new voice called out behind me, coming from where I had been heading towards. I quickly turned my head to see a young woman about my age calmly walk down the road, her brown hair tied behind her head as she rested a paper umbrella on her shoulder. The traditional miko outfit was bright under the sun as the red hakama caught the light. Her brown eyes widened a little when we looked at each other before narrowing them quickly.

"You're still carrying it."

"I...I'm sorry?" I was caught off-guard by the sudden change in the woman's demeanor, still thrown off by her knowing my name.

"You're still carrying that cursed fude brush," Her words sparked a distant memory as a much younger version of her slapped the white brush out of my smaller hand, the angry look in her eyes scalding, "I thought you were smart enough to get rid of it."

"Totoko--" I stumbled over her name, the word sounding foreign on my lips as I remembered who she was...and what family she came from, "Totoko, listen. I may have found the solution for it."

"It doesn't matter to me," She took longer strides towards me, "You're the one behind the disappearance of the Matsuno and (l/n) families. Anything you have to say to me is evil and wicked."

I was forced to move aside as Totoko made her path clear, taking a few steps back before she pushed me out of her way.

"The Matsuno brothers are still--!"

"Don't you dare say they're still alive!" The white sleeves flared out as she spun back towards me, the anger rising in her brown eyes as Totoko snarled out the words, "I know they're no longer human, (y/n), and it's all your fault! I should bind you where you stand for such inaction..."

"Totoko, I just want to fix my mistake!" I held my ground as my hands trembled, clutching the strap across my chest that held my traveling supplies, "I was a child when everything happened, so I want to heal it as an adult!"

"Then hunt them down yourself."

Totoko, my childhood friend, stared at me with unforgiving eyes. She reached deep into her left sleeve and brought out a small rectangular bundle that was neatly tied with a red string, holding the bundle out to me.

"You're not going to be able to find any other answer, (y/n)," She quickly took a step towards me and shoved the bundle into my chest, my hands fumbling to catch it in surprise, "They're not human anymore, so don't think of them as such."

"Totoko, I can't..."

"Then the burden falls to me again," Totoko turned on her heel towards Wakayama, "I'm heading towards where two of the yokai were last seen. If you're smart, you'll keep those ofuda close as defense."

"Two?" I looked from the bundle in my hands to her back, the white haiku partially obscured by the umbrella over her head to keep it protected from the sun, "Which two?"

"The daitengu and the ao-andon. They were seen in Awa only a few days ago."

"Awa...?" The town where Ichimatsu had brought me after the incident with Karamatsu and Todomatsu flashed in my head, confusion rising again as fear tried to take over. But Choromatsu had been seen there...with Karamatsu?

"The next time I see you, (y/n)," Totoko barely turned back towards me, her hardened brown hues glaring into my own, "It won't be on very friendly terms if those yokai auras are still clinging to you. Destroy them and move on with your pitiful life."

I had stayed standing, my feet rooted to the spot as Totoko vanished over the low hills. A faint rustling of fabric barely drew my attention to the yokai standing in front of me, his wide brimmed hat resting low over his face once more. The staff in his right hand was clutched tightly in his grip before he raised his left hand to push the hat back a little.

Questions burned in my mind as I slowly looked up at the daitengu, meeting his sardonic smile with a frown that was torn between betrayal and anger. I could feel heat radiating off of my back, but didn't pay any attention to it as I stared up into the pair of unfeeling blue eyes that seemed to mock me as they looked back at me.

"Tell me it's not true, Choromatsu..." My throat tightened as I clenched the paper ofuda bundle in my hands, "Tell me that you and Karamatsu aren't conspiring against me...!"

"I'll say that Karamatsu and I are having fun with this little rescue scheme you've concocted and it's such a shame that he isn't here to see your face," Choromatsu removed the hat completely, the straw hiding his face before it rested against his right shoulder. I cried out in surprise as the same blue eyes stared back at me, but the face had changed from Choromatsu's stern gaze to Todomatsu's playful smirk. The monk attire shifted around his body as the fabric became more loose and flowy, settling around his figure as a light laugh echoed in my ears.

"Todomatsu!" Ichimatsu's voice was dark behind me, taking a step forward to place himself as a barrier between me and the shapeshifting yokai, "Where is Choromatsu?"

"Oh, he was never here to begin with," Todomatsu's lilting voice was melodic, "Seems that my skills can even fool the cunning kitsune...not that it matters. I'm sure that our precious little (y/n) will be more than happy to tell you about how she felt during this, about how Karamatsu had outsmarted her into letting her guard down and actually trusting me with such juicy information."

My hands dropped the bundle as I pressed them into my cheeks in horror, knowing that I had divulged everything to the person I thought was Choromatsu. All of my plans, fears, and terror...everything.

"I'll be sure to tell Karamatsu every single detail, so you can be more than certain that I'll show him how you're reacting," The tanuki laughed again as he spun the paper umbrella against his shoulder, his eyelids partially closing over his victorious stare, "It's been fun, but I've got better places to be and more chaos to wreak."

In a flurry of little green leaves, I lost sight of Todomatsu as I reached out and clung to the back of Ichimatsu's kimono, pressing my face against it to keep from crying out. The next moment, I felt Ichimatsu's arms wrap around me before a large gust of wind enveloped both of us, my eyes barely registering the ground shrinking beneath us before I closed them.

I cried harshly into his chest, frustrated at myself for being so vulnerable and angry at what Todomatsu had done. I should've been more suspicious of the timing or of how 'Choromatsu' had found me, but I trusted him completely...

"Rest, (y/n)," Ichimatsu's voice was tense, holding a tone of fury underneath an attempt to be calm, "Close your eyes and rest. I'll carry us the rest of the way."

"But what about--?" His hands pressed me tighter against his chest, cutting off my words.

"Don't speak of it. We won't trust anyone else from now on."

My heart hurt as Ichimatsu spoke the words that had been on my mind, keeping my eyes closed as my fingers gripped onto his kimono tightly. I couldn't trust Totoko anymore since she had declared herself to be my enemy the next time we met, and now I couldn't trust anyone else besides Ichimatsu. The youngest brother was too good at shapeshifting, and he was more than an accomplice for the ao-andon.

I felt a warmth enveloping my body as I tried to do as Ichimatsu said, but the tanuki's laughter kept stirring me awake as we flew through the sky.