Chapter 52: Lady Yasaka

She’d known what she was getting into. Or rather, she should have known. After all, she’d been presented with all the information one could want. She’d known that the current Red Dragon Emperor was causing something of an uproar, all because he’d managed to make the Great Seraph Gabriel Fall. She should have easily recognized the implications of what that meant. And yet… she was nevertheless regretting sending that invitation over now. It had seemed like a good idea at the time. She would draw the Red Dragon Emperor in and come to an arrangement with him that would be mutually beneficial to both of them. Then, she would have secured the Kyoto Youkai Faction’s security, and more than that, silenced all those fools who wanted her to marry in order to shore up their defenses. Simple enough, right? Well… for some reason, Yasaka had not considered who might join Issei Hyoudou on his little excursion into Urakyoto. The invitation had technically been for Issei Hyoudou and Issei Hyoudou alone, but when a Fallen Seraph invites herself along as the plus one to the man who was behind her Fall, you don’t exactly say no to it, do you? Certainly, Yasaka did not blame the little three-tailed kitsune she’d sent as her messenger for not putting her foot down. Of course, said kitsune had had other things to tell Yasaka about Issei and Gabriel’s… appetites, as well as the sort of musings they’d brazenly spoken about in earshot of her. Indeed, the poor thing was half-traumatized… and half-quivering with arousal and delight as she’d given her report to the Daiyoukai. It was clear that the duo had left a lasting impression on the messenger. Frankly, Yasaka could see why, now that she was sat across from them. Sitting seiza, she rests her hands on her knees and uses a few of her tails as a cushion for her derriere, sitting primly and smiling softly as she hides her true feelings. Meanwhile, Issei and Gabriel both sit in seiza across from her, with Gabriel making no effort to hide her presence, nor her true power. It’s enough to make even Yasaka tremble, and it’s caused Yasaka’s court to flee entirely. She’s half-convinced that they all think she’s doomed to become the pair’s plaything and are likely already putting plans into motion to take over the Kyoto Youkai Faction when she’s gone, spirited off to be the fox pet to the current Red Dragon Emperor and his Fallen Seraph. Truth be told, Yasaka wouldn’t blame them. After the report by Tamamo-no-Mae’s far less powerful descendant, she’d honestly been expecting this entire thing to start with a challenge from Issei, a duel to see who would come up on top and who… would be forced to submit. If he HAD challenged her, Yasaka would have been forced to accept, and she wasn’t sure who would have won there. See, while Gabriel’s presence as a Fallen Seraph was enough to make even a Daiyoukai like Yasaka tremble from the sheer power wafting off of her… Issei Hyoudou seemed entirely unbothered. Either he was very good at hiding it, or he was already inured to it, or he was simply so strong that he didn’t feel it whatsoever. Yasaka couldn’t say which option it was, only that she was currently all alone with two very dangerous people, in more ways than one. And there wasn’t much she could truly do about that… save for forge onward and hope it all worked out for the best. “… Thank you, Red Dragon Emperor, for agreeing to meet with me.” Then, she bows her head to Gabriel. “Great Seraph. It is a pleasure.” The grin Gabriel gives her is rather chilling, her eyes flashing with a certain… promise. “I’m sure it is~” The way she purrs sends a tremble down Yasaka’s back. The blonde nine-tailed kitsune is used to being the most sexual being in a room. She’s used to commanding the attention of every male and female around her through sheer sultry, seductive presence. Right now, though, it’s just her, Issei Hyoudou, and the Fallen Gabriel… and to say Gabriel has become a sexual creature now that she’s Fallen from her Father’s Grace would be the understatement of the century. Swallowing thickly, Yasaka considers them both for a moment, before Issei finally speaks up. “It was my pleasure to agree to meet with you, Lady Yasaka. Your messenger was a treat, to say the least.” Yasaka doesn’t let it show on her face, but internally, she blushes at the innuendo. While her guests can probably guess that the three-tailed kitsune would tell her everything, it’s possible that they don’t think much of the pink-haired youkai’s loyalty and think she’s still in the dark about some things. Best to keep them on their toes, she needs every advantage she can get in this interaction. “Right. Well… I’m sure you’re both wondering why I, ah, invited you here. So… let’s get down to business, shall we?” “To defeat the Huns?” Yasaka blinks at the seeming non-sequitur from Gabriel. Even the Red Dragon Emperor gives his companion an odd look. “I’m… sorry?” Gabriel just smiles enigmatically and shakes her head. “Don’t mind me. Continue.” “… Very well. While I have no intention of drawing either of you into any battles, Huns or otherwise, I did ask you here because of the… hm, developing situation. Your Fall, Great Seraph, has rattled the Three Factions. And those reverberations and shockwaves have even reached here, in Urakyoto.” Gabriel inclines her head in acknowledgment of how important her descent into darkness has been. The world has seen nothing like the Fall of a Great Seraph in a long, long time. It’s a massive power-shift, and everyone, Yasaka’s faction included, is on the edge of their seat, waiting to see what will happen next. “Gabriel is with me. She’s not going to do anything untoward.” Yasaka can’t help but blink, as Issei Hyoudou spells it out so clearly. She’s a little surprised that he would take the lead here… after all, Gabriel is the more powerful of them, isn’t she? And yet, beyond a light giggle behind one of her hands, the Fallen Seraph makes no move to admonish him. “My beloved is right, actually. Since you were kind enough to send us that little tasty treat of a kitsune, I’ll let you in on a bit of a secret that I’m sure my brother Azazel is still desperately trying to keep under wraps. Put simply… I will not be joining the Grigori. I am Fallen… but I will not put myself under the control of Azazel or any other Fallen Angel. I am Issei’s, through and through… and he is Mine.” The capitalization on ‘Mine’ is not lost on Yasaka, who stiffens as Gabriel’s eyes become just that bit more… focused on her. The Fallen Seraph still smiles amicably enough, but it’s as if she can see right through Yasaka, to the core of her being. The Daiyoukai has never felt more pinned in place by another’s gaze then in that moment. It’s an unsettling sensation, especially when she’s usually the one doing the pinning, so to speak. “I… see. That is… not quite the good news you both might think it would be. While it is good to hear that the Fallen will not be getting a new Great Seraph in their ranks, and thus that the power shift between the Three Factions is not AS dramatic as it could have been… there is still some concern, isn’t there? After all, it seems, Issei Hyoudou, that you are creating your own faction instead, are you not?” The Red Dragon Emperor cocks his head to the side and looks at her for a long moment in silence. Then, to Yasaka’s mild shock, he shrugs. “I suppose you could take it like that, yeah. Honestly, I just want me and my girls to be left alone.” It takes every fiber of her being for Yasaka not to scoff openly at that. Ah yes. His girls. Issei’s harem, which consisted of Devil Heiresses and their Peerages, Fallen Angels, and Church Exorcists. Somehow, Yasaka didn’t think Issei, nor his girls would ever be ‘left alone’. But she can’t come out and just say that, can she? Only, before she can formulate a tactful response, Issei suddenly leans forward, a dark look spreading across his face as his lips turn down. “If we’re not… then we’ll handle that as it comes our way. I won’t let anyone hurt those under my protection.” In that moment, Yasaka sees the resolve that has led this iteration of the Red Dragon Emperor to this point. She sees the determination that has brought him as far as he’s gotten, and the inner strength that not only got him Gabriel the Fallen, but also many more women. To her absolute shock, Yasaka realizes she believes him, fully and wholeheartedly. It’s a strange sensation that runs through her then. Yasaka of the West Youkai Faction lets out a low breath, even as her heart tha-thumps in her chest. She licks her lips as suddenly; her priorities change yet again. Originally, when she’d invited Issei here, she had thought to seduce the boy and maybe take him as her mate. Then, when her subordinate had told her all about how dangerous Issei and Gabriel were, she had changed her mind, and been planning on keeping things strictly… platonic and professional. But now? Now she saw in Issei Hyoudou a future for her and her daughter. She saw safety in tying herself to him more than just politically. Unfortunately, for all that her desires had changed, Gabriel the Fallen was still in the room with them, and Yasaka needed to tread carefully. She- “Oh, Issei. Look at what you’ve done to her.” What? “Huh?” Issei’s reaction mirrors Yasaka’s thoughts as the blonde freezes in place, Gabriel suddenly grinning a truly wicked grin that promises nothing good. “She’s plotting how to get into your pants now, simply off of that one single statement. Your resolve is… intoxicating, to someone like her.” Looking from Gabriel back to Yasaka, Issei blinks. Now blushing, unable to keep the heat from her cheeks any longer, the Daiyoukai shifts in her seated position, and clears her throat. “I would not dare to presume to contradict you, Gabriel. That said… I am the leader of the Kyoto Youkai. I must remain… unattached.” “Oh?” Suddenly, Gabriel leans forward, looking to all the world like the predator she truly is. And Yasaka has never more felt like prey. “That’s not what Tam-Tam told us~” Wha-… the three-tailed kitsune she’d sent?! “She told us all about you and the pressure you’re under, Lady Ya-sa-ka~. How you wanted to meet with us, because your advisors are using the shockwaves we’ve made to try and get you to marry one of them.” No! Damn it, the kitsune had left this out of her report! And for good reason too, the little traitor was probably too embarrassed to admit that she was convinced to reveal her Mistress’ secrets, and likely hoped that Gabriel and Issei wouldn’t reveal them for her. “You want to marry my Issei instead, don’t you? You hoped to seduce him and take him as your mate in order to shut up not just your detractors, but your supporters as well. Don’t lie to me now… I wouldn’t appreciate it.” Gabriel keeps her tone light and fluffy, even as she admonishes Yasaka, but the undercurrent of tension, the Fallen Seraph’s insanely intimidating presence… all of it lets the Nine-Tailed Kitsune know she’s treading on thin ice. All the while, Issei just watches her curiously. Finally, Yasaka hangs her head. “The Great Seraph Gabriel is indisputably right, of course. Those were my original intentions. However, they were my intentions before I saw just how close the two of you were together. I understand now that I would in no way wish to come between the two of you. That’s why, I hope we can discuss a political alliance, even if a more intimate arrangement is not on the table. Please understand, my intentions were never to try and steal your beloved, Great Seraph.” Silence falls for a moment, as Yasaka waits with bated breath for her guests’ reaction. When it finally comes, Gabriel just giggles airily. “Oh, I don’t mind sharing.” Head snapping up, the kitsune blinks before realizing that the Fallen Seraph is looking at her with a hunger that is both familiar and not. Not, because this is Yasaka’s first time interacting with the Fallen version of Gabriel. At the same time, it’s a sort of second-hand familiarity… because it’s exactly the hunger that Tamamo-no-Mae’s descendant described directed at HER when Gabriel and Issei had… had their way with her. Swallowing thickly, Yasaka looks to Issei to find him smiling at her in a different way… almost sympathetically. The young man is new to having a partner like Gabriel, and Yasaka’s well-honed instinct for this sort of thing lets her know that he’s rather unused to being the straight man, unused to being the reasonable one. Gabriel though… Gabriel the Fallen is nothing like she was as a Ruler of Heaven. But is that necessarily a bad thing? Yasaka’s mouth is paradoxically both dry and watering as she looks between her two guests. It’s just the three of them, though she’s sure there are many spies trying to look in on their meeting. And yet… and yet, Issei and Gabriel represent something Yasaka has long strove for. Safety and security. Not for her… but for Kunou, her beloved, precious daughter. “Don’t let Gabriel browbeat you into anything you don’t want to do, Lady Yasaka. We’re just here as your guests. It’s fine.” When Issei Hyoudou finally makes his opinion heard, he speaks in a calm and casual tone. Comforting, even. His words, taken at face value, give Yasaka the perfect out. If she doesn’t want this to turn into anything untoward, he’s all but guaranteeing that he’ll protect her from Gabriel’s advances. It’s… completely the opposite of what she’s been told his personality is like. Except, judging by the way Gabriel gives Issei an approving glance, she can’t take his words at face value. Rather, his cool, collected attitude is in and of itself more teasing, isn’t it? She’s stuck between a hungry, lurid Fallen Seraph, and a horndog of a Red Dragon Emperor. She feels a small burst of sympathy towards her subordinate now. Because if this was what they did to tag team the three-tailed kitsune she’d sent to deliver her invitation to visit, Yasaka could understand how things had gotten out of hand for the other youkai so quickly. But she was different. She was not only a Daiyoukai, but the leader of the Kyoto Youkai Faction. She HAD to be more resolute. … Right?