Fujishima's Maiden 17: Maiden's Growing Abilities

Sally

Fujishima Estate: Sawako’s Household

Sally shook her head when she heard her familiar looked totally amused over the strength of Sawako against the defender of the family of Fujishima. They fight like the others who knew combat skills yet the only difference that was added to it was the magical skills of Sawako due to her being a maiden with familiarity. Sally kept watching them fight as she hopes to get something in between but sadly she could not when Hiroshi was being thrown toward her way. Her familiar showed itself and stomped its paw on the earthly ground which made a strong wind throw him back to the ground. It was just a few feet away from Sawako’s position.

“How?” Hiroshi was totally dumbfounded seeing a twice-sized white tiger in front of him.

‘Save it human.’

“And you can speak?” he was being funny when he reacted naturally like an innocent yet frightened little kid.

‘Can I eat him?’

“What name are you called this time, Taiga? I mean white tigress soul beast.” Sawako speak before her husband made fool of himself in front of their guests. She even directly talked to the familiar than to Sally who was standing with her usual blank expression behind the white tiger soul beast.

‘You can still call me that, my lady maiden.’

“Sweet as always, I see.” Sawako smiled sweetly at the beast as she approached them.

“She’s you’re familiar?” Sally noticed that Sawako was talking to her and she quickly nodded. She watched her familiar let Sawako touch and even pet her.

“Yes, I called her Tyra.” Sally responded while she noticed that her familiar still loves how she was being touched with such familiarity with Sawako’s gentle hand.

“Not far from what I used to call her.” Sawako giggled before she pressed her forehead over Sally’s familiar.

‘You sensed me around her didn’t you?’

“Yes and no. I sensed more powerful than you.” Sawako pulled away and then shook her head when she heard that question from Tyra. She even looked at Sally who just shrugged her shoulders as if she does not know what they were talking about.

‘Ah, I see.’

Sawako turned and grabbed her husband’s collars since he was not in the right mind on talking with them because did something it affected Hiroshi like that. He seems so lost in something that Sally can’t figure out what Sawako did there.

‘You did not use it on your husband, Sawako.’

“I did since he kept insisting that’s why he was acting like a frightened little child right now.” Sawako threw her husband onto the porch of their house since they were already in the backyard when Sally came.

“Sorry, Sally. Talk to him later tonight or tomorrow. He was asking for his medicine that’s why here it is.” Sawako immediately apologized for the weird request of her husband that made him end up like that.

‘You’re human mate was totally weird even though he knew how it works already.’

“I know but I think he was preparing himself for some beasts that do it as well.” Sawako made herself clear when she was well surprised at the sudden request of her husband as soon as he woke up from his rest.

‘Double ganger?’

“I am not sure and that’s what I really wanted to talk to you about since it was classified and none in the family sensed it yet.” Sawako was totally serious when she turned to Sally with her hopeful gaze fixed on her guest before her.

“Crow, kept watching them.” Sally commanded her flock of crows to keep on watching Mikage and her siblings while they were at the shrine doing their training.

“First, let’s bring him back.” Sally turned to Hiroshi and put her index finger on his temple then it started to bleed which made him scream. He even slapped the hand of Sally and quickly grabbed her collar but she instantly detached herself from him.

“You’re indeed fast.” Hiroshi went back to his usual self after Sally snapped him from his daze.

“I’ve been told.” Sally shrugged her shoulders as if it was nothing at all before the two of them took seats on the porch while Sawako get them some tea.

Mikage

Being dragged to the Fujishima Inari Shrine, Mikage was totally not in the mood for anything as she really wanted to be with Sally and learn everything that she could learn from her. But her duty for being a newly shrine maiden of the family she has to train more before she started handling a task outside their shrine. Mikage released a sigh and stopped whining which surprised her siblings all of a sudden because the old Mikage will throw a fit when she does not want to do something that’s why their mother, Sawako was the one who keeps an eye on her. Mikage could not escape from her mother whenever they were having one on one training sessions. Recalling that and Sally, she released another sigh and take things in a different way – serious mode.

“How long it will take me to get things done here for today?” Mikage surprised her siblings when she asked them which made Toshi, her brother touch her forehead to check her temperature. But Mikage slapped his hand away from his forehead.

“Tosh, enough teasing her. You can only be done when you started understanding what you need to understand for the tasks outside our shrine.” Yumiko smiled genuinely at her little sister and even ruffled Mikage’s head.

“That’s a difficult task.” Mikage pouted but she already knew how difficult things already.

“Indeed it does but it does not mean that you can’t deal with it.” Toshi smirked knowingly at his baby sister who just rolled her eyes away from him.

“Are you going to teach me how to deal with it?” she wondered as they walked around their shrine and were greeted by newbie maidens around the shrine. Some of the new maidens around were sweeping the earthly ground and some were putting charm boxes to the selling booth for fortune telling.

“I am not going to teach you what I can do since performed my bidding differently yet I know to do what others can it's just that I’m not excellent at doing them. That’s why I took you here to watch them and learn from them so you can find what is best for you.” Yumiko answered as they just passed some shrine maidens doing their assigned task for the day.

“Every maiden has their own way of performing their own rituals whether it was for cleansing, exorcism or even seal or taming evil spirits. Yet they have similarities, there were rituals. But all of them had different levels to which you need to learn from basic to advance. That’s why familiar was allowed to stay beside the maidens but only those who were selected to have one.” Toshi reminded Mikage of what they’d been taught ever since they were young and she always recalled them.

“So, you dragged me here just to watch them perform their bidding? Don’t you think that my presence could ruin it because of the power that I had in me?” Mikage pointed out to her siblings and Toshi started laughing.

“You had a point there.” Toshi smiled from what Mikage just realized on her own that she was indeed different from them.

“Come over here and start meditating.” Yumiko headed to the backyard side of the shrine and there was a small pond with lotus flowers floating around and some other flowers making the space a serene garden.

“What should I meditate on then?” Mikage wondered why her sister wanted her to meditate at the shrine when she could do it at their house.

“What kind of shrine maiden are you?” Toshi suddenly asked her out of the blue which made her thought for a moment there.

“Don’t answer that. Find it for yourself.” But before she could even answer that, Yumiko already cut her off and smile encouragingly at her little sister.

Mikage have no slightest clue what her siblings were doing to her yet she felt that they mean no harm to her. She just released a sigh but she started on hopping at the pathway around the pond and each hop that she did was indeed quiet as she smoothly got to the top of the smoothened surface on the only rock formation at the center of the pond. Mikage settle herself there and with one deep breath, she slowly closed her eyes and let the inhaled air slowly be released as well.

‘Sis, Sally’s crow brought a flock of it.’

‘Be on guard and check cautiously the perimeter.’

‘On it.’

Due to the abilities that kept growing within Mikage, she could hear her siblings’ whispering voices even though they were a couple of feet away from them since they were at the same spot over the porch of the shrine while she was at the center of the pond. It made her curious about what they were talking about yet she did not open her eyes or even glance their way, she just sit still in her spot.

“What’s going on?” Mikage tried to ask her siblings what they were whispering was all about.

“You’re mate just wanted to protect you while you’re meditating, so, go on now. Find what kind of shrine maiden you would be.” Yumiko answered because Toshi began to be alert and started scanning everything around the shrine.

As that being said and heard clearly by Mikage, she made another calming breath to which she began letting a few of her energy to wrapped around her like an orb and her familiar was being summoned in its full form. It began with its guarding his maiden through her meditation and as she was taking her meditation deeply, she was taken into such a place where she was still young.