Your own personal demon [darkfunnel/Ame]

Hanako’s eyes widened with surprise when suddenly Yuukinan’s face was right in front of hers, their noses almost touching. It was almost as if she had traded places with the Hollow, although she just had rushed through the dissolving spirit body. And suddenly she was there, absently staring right through Hanako. She moved her head ever so slightly and looked to her side. She felt her heart skip a beat. Yuukinan’s sword was only millimeters away from her head, driven with such force that it was sticking inside the rock behind Hanako. She sure hoped that the demon hadn’t missed by accident. If Yuukinan could muster such strength even when robbed of most of her conventional spiritual energies, it wouldn have made much of a difference if Hanako’s head had been between the blade and the rock. When Yuukinan slowly raised a hand, Hanako was expecting to get strangled right then and there.

Then a smile appeared on Yuukinan’s face and it was one of the most adorable ones Hanako had ever seen. Suddenly the person in front of her was someone totally different, like flipping a switch. The raised hand also didn’t try to strangle the shinigami, but patted her head. When Yuukinan thanked Hana for protecting Ikari, all fears finally melted away and she could return the smile.

“Of course.” she said finally and you could hear the relief in her voice.

But also the weight of the words. She hadn’t thought about what she did when she did it. If she was putting her life on the line didn’t matter in that moment. She just knew there was an enemy attacking, a desperate, ultimately futile attack, but a danger nonetheless. And she knew there was Ikari. She had no idea of the abilities of the fox girl, aside from her sense of smell and her shapeshifting abilities, didn’t know if she could defend herself. But that didn’t matter to Hanako either. She knew she could. So she did.

Now Ikari was hugging both women and they were standing together for a while. Hanako started softly patting Ikari and when she spoke she was surprised how soft and caring her voice was.

“It’s okay, Ikari. It’s my job to do that.”

She smiled at the kitsune.

“Not getting eaten, that is. I mean purifying Hollows. And I couldn’t let it get to you, now could I?”

It was heart-warming how much Ikari cared about her partner and that she included Hanako as well. It made for a strange mix of emotions in Hanako, with everything that happened.

When, after a while and some more gentle petting, Yuukinan asked about the spider’s web, Hanako was grateful for something practical to think about. She took a step back and held up her right hand, which up until she had held carefully away from her and the others. It still held her sword. She looked at the others and simply shrugged. What was there to lose?

She approached the web and took a look at it. The main strands were pretty thick but didn’t look too durable. So she raised her sword and swung it at one horizontal strand.

The sound it made was like a ‘twaang’. It was as hard as steel cable. Surprised Hanako looked at the web, then at her blade, then again at the web, closer this time. Ah, it was harder than it looked, but not hard enough. her sword was unscathed, but a little notch had appeared in the web strand. So...it could be done. Not fast and it would be strenuous, but it could be done. With a grunt, the meaning of which was hard to decipher, she positioned herself. She grabbed her sword properly with two hands, took a stable stance, raised the blade slowly over her head...and pulled it down with full strength in a wide slicing blow. And again. And again. And again.

It took a total of five hits to the same spot, with precise and powerful slicing moves, to cut one of the main strands. And there were many, since there were multiple layers of web. So many in fact that Hanako actively avoided counting them. It would only depress her.

It was hard work and it was slow work and soon sweat began to run down Hanako’s arms, her face and her neck, disappearing somewhere between her breasts. But they came forward steadily.
Panting Hanako cut and cut and cut. It was not bad as a training, but after a while Hanako began to think of a certain technique. Her work was so monotone that she could easily visualise what she would like to do if she only had access to her spiritual powers. She’d concentrate energy, channeled it through her arms and hands, into the blade and release it in the same moment she cut…

With an icy-blue flash a crescent shaped energy blade flew from Hanako’s sword and cut through the last strands.

“Oh...looks like I have my powers back.” said Hanako and walked into the open air, sheathing her sword satisfied. Absentmindedly she wiped sweat from her brow.