Family Matters (Kureha Senkenzan)
| Family Matters (Kureha Senkenzan) | |
|---|---|
| Date of Cutscene: | 16 September 2023 |
| Location: | Senkenzan Family Estate |
| Synopsis: | Kureha visits the ancestral home of her mother's family, at the explicit summons of her grandmother. |
| Cast of Characters: | Kureha Senkenzan |
A clear blue sky hangs over Kyoto, and Mount Ooe looms over the Senkenzan estate in the distance. Situated on the west side of the city, the estate sits near the foothills, in just the right place that the hustle and bustle of Kyoto is more muted. It feels like stepping into a world that time forgot, Kureha muses. It's been so long since she came here that this might as well be the first time.
The young lady sits on a veranda, looking out over a garden near the back of the estate while drinking a cup of tea. For once, she's completely alone; Chisa has come with her for the trip, but even the attendant is not permitted to sit in on this meeting. This is a family dealing. She can only sit and wait in quiet contemplation for the head of the Senkenzan clan to join her.
She doesn't have to wait long before a nearby door slides open, and Kiyomi Senkenzan steps out. The elderly matriarch walks with a grace and vigor entirely unlike a woman in her early 90s, and has only little trouble settling down into a seat beside the girl. The silence stretches out for a good several seconds before Kureha can take the awkwardness no more. "...hello, grandmother," she greets, her voice soft, hesitant. "It's... it's been quite a while." The old woman turns her head and smiles with soft amusement. "Indeed it has. Not since your mother's funeral." Her voice is rich, her tone relaxed; it's one of the few things she remembers about her grandmother.
Kiyomi looks up at the peak of Ooe, and smiles a little wider. "And it's been even longer since you've been here, hasn't it? I think you were just about two when Naeka brought you to visit." Kureha nods her head, silently confirming it. That's about right, so far as she can recall. "Well, now that you're a little older, how do you like it? Your mother used to love the view." The young girl turns crimson eyes up to the mountain, and muses thoughtfully. "It's... calm. Quiet. Very different from Tokyo. Even father's estate feels less... relaxed." Her grandmother gives her a knowing look, still smiling for a moment or two more.
Another silence stretches out, and Kureha finds herself slowly inching towards the question she's been asking herself this entire time. But before she can voice it, Kiyomi speaks again, her tone more neutral. Not quite interrogative, but not quite conversational, either. "So, I'm given to understand you have your mother's magatama pendant back," she asks, and Kureha's eyes widen faintly in surprise, before narrowing defensively. And that's the reaction that draws a full-throated laugh from Kiyomi. "Hohoho! My, my, easy now, dear. I approve. That pendant was always yours. The nerve of that greedy brat, keeping it from you and putting it on display in a museum. Really." She utters a snort somewhere between irritation and amusement. "Serves him right, losing it. It's back where it belongs, Kureha, and you don't ever let it go. It's very special to the Senkenzan line."
Kureha blinks, then nods softly, her worries largely assuaged. She picks up her tea, looking into it thoughtfully, then asks, "Did Chisa tell you?" The elderly woman inclines her head. "Indeed. She was like a sister to your mother, you know. Certainly ate here like a member of the family." She chuckles, absently reaching up to brush a silvered strand of hair out of her face. Kureha isn't sure how she feels, knowing Chisa spilled a secret like that. She supposes there were much worse people to tell it to, but still. Absently, the young lady brings her tea up to sip at, lost in thought.
"So, my darling granddaughter. Was the river your first transformation?"
Kureha immediately sprays tea across the ground.
Her grandmother lets out another hearty laugh, and offers a handkerchief; but while the girl accepts it and dabs at her mouth a bit, she regards the elder Senkenzan with deep suspicion. "How?" This time, it's not a smile, but a grin, playful and just a tad smug. "That is who we are, Kureha Senkenzan. That's our blood. The tales of an oni at the start of our lineage aren't just bedtime stories. How do you think we have a family estate in Kyoto, a stone's throw from Mount Ooe?" Kureha's brow furrows, and she settles back, processing. The Senkenzan family head laces her fingers in her lap. "Your mother never believed the stories. I don't think anyone in this family does. But little Chisa... she always had this twinkle in her eye when I would tell her about the Youkai Musume families."
For a second time, Kureha's eyes widen. She whips her head around to look straight at the old woman. "That phrase. 'Youkai Musume.' The bakeneko at the museum called me that. What is it?" Kiyomi turns finally, shifting her seated position a bit to face Kureha directly. "It's what we are, dear. Youkai Musume. Daughters of monsters who joined hands with humanity. There's more of them out there than just the Senkenzan oni. All of them can trace their roots back here to Kyoto, if they go back far enough. Though I suppose if they haven't had anyone in generations who can transform, they might not know it anymore. It's a rare gift. Even I only managed it once, in my youth, and no one has since. Not until you."
It's a lot to take in; Kureha's mind whirls with all the information. It's enough for her to forget her posture, slumping a little where she sits. Frowning. Biting her lip. It's no longer a mysterious power; now it's legacy, history, an entire thing that's been dropped on her shoulders. After considering for a moment more, she reaches for the magatama pendant she carries, starting to pull it free of her kimono. "You can have this back. This whole thing is too much, I don't want to deal with this anym-"
For the first time, Kiyomi Senkenzan speaks sharply. "Yes, you do." It's enough to startle Kureha into silence. The woman's features soften a little, but her voice remains at least somewhat firm. "Or you'd never have been able to use it to begin with. To draw out the magic in our blood takes resolve. Need. A strong heart, and the desire to protect. Something worth fighting for, and the willingness to fight for it. If you've transformed more than once, Kureha Senkenzan, then you've got a protector's heart the likes of which this clan hasn't seen in generations. You keep that. No one in the world has more right to it than you." Her tone brooks no argument, and Kureha quietly deflates.
Then, an old, weathered hand rests atop her head. "Come now, you look as if you've swallowed a mouthful of bell pepper. If you don't want to become a Youkai Musume, then simply... don't. All I ask, my granddaughter, is that you trust your heart. Above all else, trust your heart, and follow whatever decision it makes." She finally moves to get up, the process taking a bit more effort than sitting down - but still coming to the elderly woman far easier than most her age. "Now, then. Let's have a room made up for you. You can at least spend the night here, away from Hozan Chikafuji." The name is spoken like a curse, and it's the first time Kureha feels herself relax even a little towards her grandmother.
