A Curse and A Blessing

[Kaida]

After having received confirmation from Ichiro that Kaisui had been apprehended and would be executed at the upcoming festival, Miyuki made arrangements to travel to Whirlpool country. She had heard the gossip around town about a global taijutsu tournament where Shinji would be participating and she wanted to surprise him. And tell him about the apparent baby growing within her body that had been there for the last 6 weeks.

Arriving at the dock with her bags all packed, she bid Ichiro and Sumire a fond wave farewell from the ship, a genuine smile on her face as she thanked them for their kindness during her stay. Once she got settled into her cabin, she waited while the deckhands loaded up their cargo in preparation to leave. It took around an hour, during that time she made herself some tea to settle the nausea in her belly. Her mind still swirling from the events that had happened.

Her relationship with Shinjiro was far from conventional, she wasn't sure he knew what love was...or what to do with a baby. And she didn't want their child to go through what they had as children. But she knew that he cared for people close to him and that he took care of those he deemed important. He had other children that he seemed to associate with, perhaps this wouldn't be such a bad thing. Not that she could be sure either way, Miyuki had never considered becoming a mother. Her previous line of working making that impossible, and now that she was changing her approach, she didn't know how feasible it would be to have a baby. She had only just started with the HHD, to become preganant now would definitely cause some wrinkles.

And then there was Ichiro and Shinjiro's offers. Ichiro to help her disappear and leave Kiri behind her in time, and Shinji offering her a way to retire and leave the shinobi life behind her. Nothing was clear, and she really had no one around she could talk to. All she had was big feelings and a world of confusion as her mind tore itself apart looking for the answer.

The waters were rocky, a storm evident on the horizon as they travelled farther and farther from Heart. The waves raged against the cargo ship and the wind howled through the sails. Miyuki could hear the water sloshing overboard and beating against the glass covered port holes in her cabin. 'I never did like boats.' As she gazed out the window, a streak of lightning flashed in the sky, landing in the sea some 50 meters away. Close enough to make Miyuki shudder at the thought that it would be a storm that took her out. It was in this moment, she saw a flash of movement through the port hole, a shadowed alien figure shifting to the right and out of sight.

The hairs on the back of her neck stood on end, a niggling feeling that she was being watched. She stared for a few minutes longer before shaking her head. It was impossible for someone to be spying on her from that angle, they'd fall overboard. Her mind started to slow as the weight of her feelings and discomfort made her sleepy, her eyes growing heavy as she sat up in her bed clutching a pillow to her chest. In the back of her mind, she felt a pulling sensation, as if someone was casting a genjutsu on her before her eyes drifted closed and darkness over took her.

By the time she woke up, the skies were still dark but the water was eerily calm. No more raging waves or howling winds, though lightning and thunder still cracked in the distance. Her body felt heavy and she had a pounding headache, almost as if she had drank too much. She could tell something was wrong with her body, she felt less like herself than normal, but she couldn't place what was happening. It was as if her mind was not her own.

It was then she saw movement from the corner of her eye, an ethereal light next to an opened window. As her head lolled to the side, she saw bright and glowing golden eyes peering at her from the chair across the room. Grey blue skin pulled taught against a lean feminine frame, sharp fangs and high cheekbones with small nose and gills on the side of the neck. The body of this creature looked inhuman but human all the same, save for the scales across its skin and more gills along it's abdomen. Unusally long arms that ended with sharp claws and webbed feet, and slicked back wet white hair that looked knotted from where it sat. A chill washed over Miyuki as she found she was unable to move or make any sound as the creature held her gaze.

"Good, you're awake. I could feel your torment from leagues below. It was quite exquisite and I wanted to see for myself what kind of person carried that much pain. I wasn't surprised to find it was a woman with such a heavy heart and weighed down soul." The voice seemed to echo in the small space, though the words were whispered and carried by the wind to Miyuki's ears. A calm enveloped her as the apparent woman spoke, a knowing look in the golden slitted eyes. It was madness, she knew she should be afraid, she should be fighting. But she had no control of herself, the rational side of her battered against the walls in her mind trying to break free. To make a hand seal, channel chakra or reach for her weapon. But nothing worked.

"Now now dear, settle down. I won't hurt you. I merely want to talk." The creature crossed her glistening legs and folded her webbed hands into her lap, blinking once and breaking eye contact. Miyuki felt a shift in the air as her voice came back to her, though it trembled as she spoke. "Clearly you have my attention. What do you want?" Her own eyes radiated suspicion and fear at the lack of autonomy she currently possessed. Long past traumas resurfacing as a familiar feeling crawled it's way back to the shallows of her mind. "What a question indeed. There are many things that I want in this long life that I possess. But that is not what brought me to you Miyuki." Compassion wafted off the being in waves while an icy grip held Miyuki's gaze as her name was uttered.

It was clear whatever this thing was, had many abilities in order to capture and trap their prey. But that didn't make any of this make any sense. "I am the Siren Suiko, and it is the pain of those around me that draws me to the surface. As well as the evil that resides in the many hearts that travel my seas. For you see, I carry my own pain and I have lost many daughters to the surface dwellers and their ignorance. It is rare though, for someone to come into my domain with a such a resemblence to myself. I hope you don't mind, but I took the liberty of searching through your memories. I wanted to get to know you." Shame and disgust filtered through Miyuki's features, feeling violated at the thought of someone poking around where they shouldn't be. Where she herself barely had a map to make sense of it all. "You could have asked." She spat back, not caring for the game being played that she wasn't privy to.

"I could have, but people lie. And it would seem that you yourself have very little knowledge of where you stand. Torn between who you were, where you are and what you want to be." Suiko's eyes seemed softer than, as hr dulcet voice carried over to soothe Miyuki. The Siren had no intention of hurting the young girl, no she much preferred to understand her. To see where in life she might end up. The glimpses into her recent memories were pleasant enough, a lover, some new friends, a child on the horizon. It was the past that intrigued her so, how could someone bury and lock so much away to the point they no longer recognized the reflection in the mirror? It seemed like the perfect opportunity to make a deal, a blank canvas waiting for the right brushstroke to make a masterpiece.

"You didn't answer my question. What do you want?" Miyuki's voice was littered with fear as she spoke, the settling realization that this thing could be lying to her and she would be dead before she reached Whirlpool country...and the child that lay within her womb. Suiko tsked at her and shook her head. "I thought I told you I wouldn't hurt you? And being someone who has lost my own children, I would not do that to others. I may not be a good soul, but I'm not entirely wretched." Suiko rose then and walked closer to the still paralyzed Miyuki, the bed dipping as she took a seat and trailed a hand against the red headed kunoichi's face.

A wet and sticky residue was left behind on Miyuki's cheek, a grimace crossing her face at the slimy feel of it. The hand gripped her chin and forced eye contact as the Siren continued. "I can see a life for you, one that comes with great joy as well as struggle. One where you achieve your goal of a peaceful life full of laughter and warmth. But you need power to get there. I would like to give you that power." A disbelieving snort left the Kiri shinobi's mouth then. Her eyes narrowed and untrusting at the offer. "And at what cost to me would you grant this divine gift?" It was stupid to antagonize the creature, Miyuki knew that. But she was done selling her soul to those that just wanted to use her with no care to what she had to go through in the process.

"Nothing much, I would only ask that you continue my mission on land where I cannot go. On the water I am unstoppable, the weather is mine to command and those that cross into my borders are mine to cast judgment on. But on the hard rocky ground off the shore, there are more individuals with wicked hearts who would continue to harm women just like yourself. To rip daughters away from their mothers and cast their agony to the skies. Who take and take with no thought to the price being paid, because they are the ones inflicting it." A roiling rage had consumed the Siren's voice and facial features, thunder and lightning flashing across the sky in tandem with her monologue, seemingly coming closer to the ship. The boat began to rock once more as the waves picked up. It would seem, that at least that part of the Siren's story was true.

"In exchange for you continuing my purpose, I would grant you my Blessing. Something that would protect you and the child that you carry. As well as any other children you might have. You carry a gift within your womb, your son will do many great things in his life. Surpassing both you and his father, as long as he is given the chance to succeed." Shock rolled through Miyuki's body, electricity zapping in her mind. Son? She was to have a boy? She carried Shinji's son within her slight frame, happiness took over her fear momentarily as she imagined the joy her lover would experience knowing he was to have a son. But caution and skepticism prevailed once more. "How could you possibly know what I'm to have?"

Suiko laughed and paced the room, her floor length hair gliding across the wooden boards and leaving a trail of water behind. "I know many things child, and I can see many more. Your son will be a gift, treat him as such. Even if you reject my offer. You will have safe passage across the sea regardless." The factual way in which the Siren spoke had Miyuki actually believing her words, there was no ploy to be seen. She had been transparent with her rage and shared grief, and her request was not out of line. "What would happen to those that are killed by my hand?" A pensive gaze settled over Suiko's face then as she took the question in. Her voice oddly cheery and decisive as she spoke next. "Souls taken with my power and under my name will be sent to me in the afterlife to pay for their crimes. They will fuel me, adding to my own power as I keep my daughters safe and look after women like you."

Thoughts raced through Miyuki's mind as she contemplated the offer. It was true that she wanted a simpler and happier life, and being a citizen of Kiri meant that she needed power to get it. Even if she accepted Ichiro's offer one day, someone might still come looking for her. And she would need the strength to protect her family when that time came. Not to mention, even if she didn't accept it, she was carrying the child of Karagata Shinjiro, probably the first of many. And that man had no shortage of enemies. "In exchange for me helping you to keep balance and taking the lives of those you deem unworthy, you would bless me with your power?" A quiet curiosity took over as she was unable to think of any negatives to this situation. Her only real goal was to get to Whirpool unscathed.

"Correct, though I might call on you from time to time in order to allow me to walk the sands of your world. In which you would be expected to comply. Do we have a deal?" Suiko extended her hand and blinked once more, releasing Miyuki from whatever hold she had had on her. Her body felt stiff and sluggish, her mind still slow but catching up. Rising slowly from the bed, Miyuki took careful steps towards the center of the room where Suiko stook. Nodding her head, she stuck her hand out and clasped the creatures webbed fingers within her own. "Yes." The affirmation whispered into the empty space between them as Miyuki accepted the offered terms.

A bright light encompassed the hand shake, colors of silver, blue and white swirling around their physical connection linking them together. As they made eye contact, gold eyes searching the Kiri shinobi's baby blues, a wave of power washed over Miyuki. Her veins ringing painfully as sparks of electricity ran up and down her form. Various parts of her body ached and twitched as the Siren held her firmly in her grasp. The red headed woman's mind opening up and feeling varied emotions all around her as the crewmen's thoughts and feelings invaded hr space, causing a searing headache behind her eyes. She did not know how long the feeling raged on for, only that as it started to drift away, her knees gave out and the connection finally broke. Suiko knelt down in front of Miyuki then, a sharp and feral smile on her faces that contradicted the warmth in alien eyes. "I'll be seeing you soon, dear one. Don't forget about our deal. And make sure to put that Blessing to good use."

In the blink of an eye, Suiko was gone and Miyuki was left once more with her thoughts. As she crawled her way over to the bed, her skin feeling clamy and her brain on fire; she looked out the window. Nothing but clear skies and gentle waves for miles. It was almost as if the storm had never happened and that they would have clear sailing from here on out. As she lie down with her pillow under her head, she felt her eyes grow heavy again as she thought abot what she would tell Shinji when she saw him next. The mess she had been in before, even messier now.