Kny Swap Au Ramblings by itshauntedtoon, literature
Literature
Kny Swap Au Ramblings
(pic not mine found on Google) KNY Swap Au Ramblings I've seen a lot of others make their own versions of a swap au and I wanted to create one too just for fun. None of this is cannon, and not everyone will be swapped out and it'll have my own twists on things. And have some things added for new story elements. Most of the role swaps I've seen are usually with either Sanemi and Genya or Gyutaro and Ume replacing Nezuko and Tanjiro. Or the rolls are swapped with Tanjiro being the demon instead(personally my favorite interpretation of this is by yuramec on tumblr). But for this I'm swapping out the Kamado Siblings for the Tokito Twins. I won't go into depth about everyone but I will give important differences to the story. WARNINGS: Mentioning of killing, death, lose of a child, etc. EDIT: If you don't agree with any of the placements or head cannons that's fine. This is only my take on things. PROLOGUE: I'm swapping out Muzan for Kagaya for this purpose. Most of the story remains the same as it did in cannon with Muzan. Kagaya is born deathly ill, he's given the medicine made with the blue spider lily, however instead of killing said doctor out of anger Kagaya is completely overjoyed and taken by the doctor's success. He wants to make MORE medicine. He wants to give this to MORE people like himself! At first the doctor accepts this. He's excited for the success of his medical treatment. However something isn't right. Kagaya is twisted by the medicine and it's effects on his body. He begins to crave human flesh as Cannon Muzan (who I will refer to as CM), however he sees it as a greater mercy to the masses. Why live such miserable lives when you can join him? Be a part of him? Death is a mercy. Life isn't. The doctor is appalled at the way the medicine twisted Kagaya into a far worse person. (His mindset would be a similar one to Cannon Douma. Seeing it as a mercy or better fate to become a part of something bigger for the greater good overall not really seeing his twisted thinking is only harming hundreds of others and not really caring believing the end goal is worth all the bloodshed to get there.) In a fit of frustration, he attempts to turn the doctor into a demon in order to force him to make more medicine after the doctor refuses to do anymore research disgusted by the results, however as he was still fairly new to making other demons, the doctor instead dies from the infected blood. Frustrated Kagaya attempts to make the next hundreds of years perfecting his technique and turning people into demons as 'sharing his gift'. The first few demons was his beloved wife Amane and their five children. He attempted to turn the rest of his family into demons too but that did not go so well. (Apparently it's cannon that Kagaya used to have two younger brothers). As with the doctor his youngest brother's body didn't react to him changing and Kagaya accidentally ended up killing his youngest brother. His other younger brother and their father fled and went into hiding. His father later blamed himself heavily for all of the evil Kagaya does and takes his own life. Kagaya's brother later goes on to create the demon slayer corp in search of a way to stop him. Later down the line the Ubuyashiki name is lost and replaced by the last name Kibutsuji, their bloodline cursed due to creating the first demon progenitor. KAGAYA UBUYASHIKI AND FAMILY AS DEMONS: He sees his demons as 'beloved children' and as such sees what they do (eating humans, killing, etc) as nothing wrong and only as a means for survival and to spread his 'gift.' Don't underestimate him however. He may not rule by fear but his voice and mind is able to manipulate and soothe most demons into submission, and he is not afraid to use force if needed. Amane and their demon children are the ones that he allows to eat disobedient demons if they're hungry and he does so with a warm smile on his face. It puts the fear into anyone who sees it if they aren't already loyally following him. He is also crazily strong physically and mentally. Desperately looking for both the blue spider lily and the Kibutsuji family. He doesn't want to kill Muzan and his family per say. Merely to put a endless mercy to his beloved little brother's family's torment and free his own 'children' from theirs. Whether it be by turning them or by 'sending them to heaven' he hasn't decided yet. Created the Infinity Castle as a safe haven for his newly turned family and any demon deciding to live there. Amane is his beloved spouse and is actually the one who controls the Infinity Castle in place of Nakime, and constantly rotates it keeping track of their children. She usually just blinks and any demon her husband wants is immediately teleported to them. Their children are absolutely NOT allowed to leave the Infinity Castle. AT ALL.  He created the twelve Kizuki as a way to reward his most obedient 'children' and as extra protection for himself and his family. The lower three moons are usually killed off not by him but usually by Sanemi in anger or by slayers. Otherwise he has no problem with how the Kizuki interact. Although his favorite is Yoriichi who happens to be Upper Moon One, and his most loyal and powerful demon.  He usually doesn't have any trouble blending into society Thanks to his personality but he still eats, kills, and makes demons.  UPPER MOON ONE YORIICHI: This one's sorta obvious but also an idea I haven't seen explored too often also he's not as OP as he is in cannon. Essentially everything proceeds to happen with Yoriichi the same as in cannon. I mean everything is the same except for Uta's death. As Yoriichi is late to getting back to Uta and their unborn child, Uta unexpectedly went into early labor losing the child and her own life due to complications. Unfortunately Yoriichi arrived a little too late and was devastated by the discovery of his family, but as the causes of death was natural instead of by the hands of a demon, Yoriichi does not develop the hatred for demons he has within the normal timeline. Yoriichi still buries Uta in the mountains where the blue spider lily grows unknown to everyone, and leaves to wonder aimlessly until coming across one of the strongest demon slayers at the time battling a powerful demon. Being the kind person he is Yoriichi helps him with his own sword skills where afterwards the slayer is impressed with Yoriichi's skills and invites him to join the corps. Without the drive of hatred for demons, Yoriichi decides to join instead for a desire to help others and a place of belongings. From there everything also continues as in cannon. Yoriichi meets Tanjiro's ancestors saving them from a demon and becoming good enough friends to teach the Hinakami Kagura dance, and gifts them his earrings as a keepsake. He still comes across Michikatsu and everything continues as it was. Michikatsu's own story proceeds the same without much change. His entire backstory up to this point does not change in the slightest. His pride, his jealousy, his drive. All of it remains the same. The only real difference is when Yoriichi and Kagaya happens to accidentally come across face to face.  Because of the real driving hatred of demons Yoriichi would've previously had, and Kagaya's own nature, it would inevitably end up differently. Kagaya's compliments of his strength and the genuinity of his compliments and kindness has Yoriichi confused. He was different than all the regular blood thirsty demons that he usually killed, so why was this so.. Different. His hesitation and confusion leaves Kagaya with an opening to explain himself and to explain his twisted 'help' and Yoriichi finds himself entranced. Kagaya's talks leads the two to genuinely bond over their own personal losses and lives and Yoriichi finds himself oddly at peace listening to the Demon King's words. What if he was right? What if this new medicine could've prevented Uta from dying and had made it possible for their child to survive? What if his mother could've also been spared such a tragic fate? What if this entire tragedy could've been prevented?  Kagaya genuinely likes Yoriichi's personality and genuine drive of the same goals he has. Sure he manipulates him a little bit but in the end it's 'for the greater good for everyone'. So when he offers the haishira his blood, Yoriichi only needs a few minutes to think it over before accepting. Yoriichi as Upper Moon One is stoic, distant. Barely speaks. Somewhat twisted by the blood in his veins. He's been rejected and cast aside for so long and been dealt so much grief that it was easy for him to follow Kagaya. He has a place now, with a purpose. A GOOD purpose. He loves playing with the Ubuyashiki quintuplets and gets along with most of the other Kizuki, although during his long reign as a demon he's become numb to most feelings making him a ruthless asset on the battle field for Kagaya's purpose.  His one regret is Michikatsu.  Michikatsu's reaction to his brother ascension to a demon was rather mixed to say the least. He's angry. Enraged that his brother had not only gotten stronger, but was just handed that power essentially without even working for it as he had. (Context for that see lavenderdrxp's character analysis of Kokushibo/Michikatsu's work ethics and character drive for this next bit.)  Not to be out done, not to be bested by his brother anymore, not to allow his work to be undermined- He rejects Yoriichi's offer to join him in serving Kagaya disgusted by the thought of joining only to never surpass him for eternity and have the proof constantly living with him. So he rejects Yoriichi's offer, opting to try and kill his brother instead. It ends with Yoriichi killing his brother in battle. The death of his (for now) only remaining family member drives Yoriichi further into his emotionless state.  His prized possession is the flute Michikatsu gifted him which he carries with him. He fights using his sun breathing techniques and making six swords with his arms. After being changed into a demon, Yoriichi's body suffered some permanent damage from the side effects of Kagaya having problems creating demons. To make up for this, Kagaya gifted him six arms to replicate the movements he once originally had. In similarity to Yoriichi Type Zero. UPPER MOON TWO GYOMEI:  Most powerful Haishira becomes second most powerful demon. Gyomei runs a (cult-) refuge in the same way Cannon Douma does, the only difference is that he actually believes what he teaches, deeply believes in Kagaya, and believes sending the helpless people that flock to him to 'Eternal Paradise' actually helps them and spares them from their tragic lives. He fights using stone manipulation demon arts similar to Cannon Douma's ice manipulation abilities. UPPER MOON THREE MITSURI: Not much to say about upper three. She's very strong and flexible and uses the strength to claw her way up the ranks to just under Gyomei who she couldn't bring herself to challenge because he's too nice to fight for Upper Two. She was changed after running away from home and striking a friendship with a snake demon. Obanai changed Mitsuri out of greed and selfishness. Mitsuri clawed her way up the ranks because she heard that she could get more attention from demons and slayers if she was an upper rank. Originally joined Upper Ranks looking for a husband.... Obanai is still sitting in the sidelines trying to get her attention back on him. Her demon arts are similar to Akaza's that she fights using physical strength and reflexes, but she can also use a charming affect to lure in prey. UPPER MOON FOUR SANEMI: Scary. Very, very, VERY scary. But also very protective of his younger demon brother Genya whom doesn't remember his life before becoming a demon. Sanemi and Genya were the only survivors after their own mother was turned into a demon and slaughtered their own family. Their entire life was pretty much the same until Sanemi just so happened to run into the demon king Kagaya. The king felt sorry for the two brothers and forcibly turned them both so neither could be separated again. Sanemi doesn't remember much of his human life except for the love and protectiveness he feels for his brother. Extremely loyal to Kagaya and and hot tempered. Physically wrestled Tengen out of Upper Four and wouldn't let him go until he agreed to give him the placement of Upper Moon four. The only two people who he'll listen to is Kagaya and Gyomei. Although he respects Kanae. Constantly starting fights with the lower moons and weeding out the ones he doesn't think is worthy no matter how much Kagaya and Gyomei scold him. He uses Air blood demon arts in a similar fashion to Karaku. UPPER MOON FIVE TENGEN: Not much to say about him. Kagaya found him depressed after leaving his father and remaining brother after being forced to fight to the death with his other siblings.  It did not take much convincing to change him. Demon Tengen changed his three wives and forcibly changed his best friend Rengoku. Is scared of Sanemi after the air demon physically held him down and forced him to give up his previous place as Upper Moon Three. Best friends with Rengoku. Tengen fights in both numbers with his wives in ambush style attacks and by sound baced demon arts such as Urogi's screech abilities and using sounds to distract, destroy, or decoy his enemies. UPPER MOON SIX RENGOKU: Not much to say about this demon. He was actually forcibly turned by Tengen and doesn't remember too much about his previous life although he has glimpses of a woman who's kind with red eyes and a little flamed haired boy that looks like him sorta. Much of Rengokus positive attitude is still present but as a demon it's toxic positivity only contributing to Kagaya's toxic 'merciful' agenda. He currently is content with his place as Upper Five and gets along with most of the others. Although he has to stop Sanemi and Tengen from fighting a lot as Tengen likes to tease others.  His blood demon arts is fire based which is why he usually doesn't leave shelter if it rains or go places where water is present. Making his abilities limited. DEMON KANAE AND SHINOBU: The real powerful demon is Kanae who shares it with her sister Shinobu. To be honest no one is really sure where they came from or how Lord Kagaya found them. He just introduced the demonic butterfly duo one day to the rest of the Kizuki and placed them in with the others. Kanae is the much kinder of the two sisters and believes that not all slayers are bad. Shinobu heavily disagrees with that sentiment and prefers to poison her victims slowly with a smile. The sisters have two younger butterfly demons, Aoi and Kanao, and together the four of them run a laboratory for Lord Kagaya in his research of his specialized blood. They also have three small helper girls that they took in out of pity. The three butterfly girls often can be found playing with the Ubuyashiki quintuplets in the Infinity Castle. Similar to how Cannon Nakime didn't have an official number in the Kizuki ranks despite considered a part of it, the sisters are considered part of the official Kizuki despite having an official number. It's rare that they are in fights usually spending their time doing research, but the sisters can use flying attacks, poison, flying petals sharp enough to be blades. LOWER MOON ONE GIYUU: Like the sisters, not much is known about where the most powerful Lower Moon originated from. Lord Kagaya brought him back and he's been tailing after his approval since. His is mostly an outcast by choice being very quiet and reserved but Shinobu likes talking to him and Mitsuri, Gyomei, and Rengoku go out of their way to be polite to him unlike Obanai and Sanemi who openly detest his presence. Yoriichi likes him well enough though. Both are quiet and don't talk too much. He finds Giyuu's character and presence similar to his own and thus likes him. Giyuu's blood demon arts are water manipulation similar to Sanemi's wind manipulation but because of waters flexibility he's can do much more with it. A reason why Sanemi hates him and why Rengoku keeps his distance. DEMON OBANAI: Similar to the Butterfly sisters, Obanai doesn't really have an official number despite being considered a part of the Kizuki.  Is the one to forcibly turned Mitsuri. After meeting the girl and starting a friendship with her (at the time she was engaged and he respected that despite not liking her fiance) , he eventually fell in love with her and forcibly changed her after her deadbeat fiance dumped her later eating him in retaliation. Obanai himself was changed by the very snake demon that killed the rest of his human family although he really doesn't remember, however he has a general dislike for most women he can't explain. Usually he just lounges around waiting for prey to ambush. His blood arts are unique. He's able to fling sharpened scales from his serpent tail, contrict his victims, poison them, shoot darts of venom from his mouth, and a series of ambush snake strikes to take down his prey  LOWER MOON TWO RUI: One of the ones I didn't swap out. In a similar fashion to Muzan, Kagaya gave RUI some of his blood and allowed him to remake his own family out of pity from his own mortal life. Not really much changes  except for who kills Rui later. TAMAYO AND YUSHIRO: Again nothing really changes with them too much. Kagaya originally was interested in Tamayo's abilities as a doctor nevermind the fact her family tragically was killed by his own demons. Tamayo was one of the rare demons who remembered her human life and saw right through Kagaya's twisted justice agenda. She was able to mentally break free from his hold after Yoriichi's encounter with Michikatsu and witnessing the strength and driving force the Moon Haishira had endured to withstand against him. The story from there continues as normally. That's it for now. Might do a second drabble with the SWAP Haishira if anyone's interested in hearing more about this.
Waning Obsession Ch12 by itshauntedtoon, literature
Literature
Waning Obsession Ch12
(Warnings: mentions of killing, etc. Important Info here on our most of the rest of the chapters might be mostly in Kokushibo's pov. Also this chapter will also be a bit shorter than the others.) The rain showered down from above. The droplets hitting the trees. Seeping into the cracks in their bark and dripping from the leaves down to meet the wet ground. Usually rain was very peaceful. Sometimes even scary. But for now it was very cold. Both literally in temperature and in sorrow. He rarely if ever paid attention to the coldness of late autumn around him. He was far used to the sting of cold and the numbness of ice against his skin. His body had been hardened by years of brutal training to ensure that he never let it cross his mind as nothing but a passing thought and nothing more. Hands have gone numb in the cold. Calloused by hardened souls and minds.  'Forget. You must forget what pain feels to you. Forget about what makes you feel pain. Do not let cold freeze you. Do not dare let fire burn you. Tired is not but a state of mind. Push on. You must block out what makes you weak. Do you wish to fail?' A chestnut tree did not provide the best of shelters. The rain drip dropping from it's curling bars branches and running along golden brown leaves already about to fall. A single bead of water shined in the dim light and tumbled down down down from the rough bark. It's travel ended the moment it hit softened strands of mahogany hair. Running down the long strands going going going to the very ends. It's journey coming to a close as fabric swallowed it whole again. It's cold not getting to the one underneath the soft fabric.  'Block out emotions. You must make yourself invulnerable to any feelings. Emotions make you weak, Michikatsu. Fear causes hesitation. Anger irrational minds. Curiosity stupidity. Happiness creates distractions. Love..Love Is a liability. Liabilities are weaknesses. Weaknesses are FAILURES! You must learn nothing but rational thoughts. Use your mind to make decisions instead of emotions. Use everything you are taught to make the right choices. Only then will you truly be invincible.' Movements shifted underneath. Warm. It was warm. And safe. Eyes opened to peer in numbed bliss. Her warmth was like a dagger being stabbed into his chest and twisting until the outside was pierced through to the inner most deep depths and injected with warmth he never knew existed. It was.. A D D I C T I N G 'Do as you're told. Become the ultimate weapon. This is your fate. Your destiny. The entire reason you were placed here.' "..Fuck your destiny." A hand caressed her head against his chest. Her breaths soft but consistent. Curled against him now satisfied that shadowed monster inside him. Content whenever he got what he wanted. Finally. He had what he needed. All right in his grasp. Everything is completed. He sighed heavily gripping her close. His lips grazed the top of her head, placing a small but warm kiss to her head. HIS. This was his.  His life. His reason. His purpose. His love. His future wife. The woman who will be by his side. The one who will give him children. Y/n Tsugikuni. Haruhime was a name unworthy for her, but that was ok. It would be remedied soon enough. He loved her. 'Do you even know what love is?! You've never even experienced love! Your father treats you as nothing but the best option! He only values your strength and nothing more! Your mother barely knows her own son! And can your own twin really say he cares about you when you weren't even raised together?? Even your own people fear you! So how can you know what love is?!' The eyes closed pressing further into her warmth. "No. Stop it." 'How do you even know that she loves you?! You destroyed her entire life in a matter of seconds because you were selfish and greedy! Even if she stays with you it's not out of love! It's only because she has no where else to go because you ruined everything just as you always do!' "Your heart is beating irregular." He froze. There was movement under his form and something pressed on his chest. So soft. Heart hammering away from where the palm pressed onto the skin. So warm. Her essence was intoxicating. Her touch scorching but burnt in a good way. He sighed in content. The thoughts were becoming too much.  "Let go." "...What?" "Let me go." "It's cold. Your body needs warmth-" "Michikatsu, let me go." He flinched as her lips spoke his name. It wasn't so much her voice as it was her tone that had him flinch but the tone it was spoken with. It was demanding and blunt. Not suitable for a woman her size but it was one that demanded attention. One that convinced him to reluctantly release his hold and allow her to lean up and away from his hold. Her face rang all the emotions that he dreaded to see in her. Deep hidden anger. Regret. Guilt maybe?? But mostly exhaustion and sadness.  A small wind had her shivering and pulling that sorry excuse for a coat tighter around her. He hated that old garb she had to wear just to keep warm. He'd gladly hold her and shield her from the elements but if he attempted to do that again now that she was awake, she'd only become angry at  him again.  Turquoise eyes looked up at the dripping sky. "... It's raining. It sounds so.. peaceful." Her eyes did not again look back at him. "How long have we been traveling?" "Five days."  "Where are you taking me?" "There is a small campsite where my father is currently residing in. It's not proper for a woman, but I can arrange better accommodations for you from there." Now she did look at him. Wide eyed in fear and shock. "Lord Tsugikuni?! You never said anything about having to meet him!" "I must. By now he must be very angry with me." No doubt his father would be VERY angry indeed but he'd bare the anger for the long term results after. "I don't want to go anywhere near the Tsugikunis." "You can bare to be around me." "That was before you revealed yourself as Michikatsu Tsugikuni." Her eyes narrowed. If they were knives. He'd be dead. "You lied to me. You've lied to me the entire time I've known you!" "I've never lied!...I keep my true identity a secret for safety. Would it have made you see me differently if I had told you who I was?" She did not answer and that was the deadliest blow of all. "I see..My name usually comes in the form of hatred. Why must you hate my clan name so?" "Your family is ruthless in ruling, and cruel in nature." "My father's rule yes, but his actions are not my own." Please don't compare him to his father. Please do not hate him. Please don't leave him! She CANT leave him!! "You did not seem to believe me to be like him before." "Perhaps I could have believed that you were not the same before you took the lives of two men in the same night you shared my home and my bedside." This again. He never regretted his actions but he was regretting the hastiness of his actions. "I do not regret that night with you. In fact my time with you only solidified my fondness in having you." Her frown deepened. "Do you regret your other actions then? Taking those mens' lives." His answer was simple, blunt, quick. "No. I don't. If given the chance I'd do it over the chance." A single knuckle pressed to her cheek taking her by surprised. "If they had not threatened you then they would have survived." ..Her head turned and she leaned away. "You did not have to kill them." "..One made you clean his home like a pig and cut your hand. The other threatened to harm you and could have killed you if that knife had been stabbed into your cheek." If that disgusting pig had stabbed forward instead of swiping right with that knife, then she could've died and been taken from him! "If I hadn't what else would they do to you?" The hand lowered. "Everything I do is for survival Whether it be survival for myself or someone else." He slowly stood up and she almost forgot about how tall and imposing he was. "Come. We should be there within a few hours shortly." "And if I refuse to go?" Her pout was as adorable as it was annoying. Lips purses in a way that he wanted to taste their sweetness on him again. "Then what will you do." "I'll carry you." "You wouldn't dare. What if I don't want you anymore?" She should not have challenged him. It took no effort to lift her up by the back of her kimono and toss her up bridal style within his arms. Her squeals and shocked face afterwards while settled in his arms. "I'm afraid that is no longer an option. If our union did not already seal us then fate has." You somehow managed to convince Koku-.. Michikatsu to put you down on your own feet, but somehow that didn't make things better. At some point he dropped the haori coat over your shoulders as the rain picked up like that was supposed to make it better. Five days. You both had been traveling on foot for five days at most counting today. Most of it had been spent in a numb blurry state. You'd lost how many hours you've walked and how many you actually slept. But you haven't been treated badly by him. Many times you were given water collected from a stream, and you hadn't gone hungry. Michikatsu as it turns out was quite the skilled hunter and was able to skewer a quail flying through the air with ease just by throwing his sword in the air and standing still in the water long and silent enough to snatch fish out of the water with his bare hands cooking everything his hands caught over a homemade fire. You got the impression that he does this a lot. Was that why he always took so well to your food? The charm of the stoic but shy demon you liked was shattered along with your life all in one night. And you were a numb unsure mess just wondering aimlessly after him for now- You blinked out of whatever stupor you were in when he suddenly stopped and you ended up bumping into his back. Blinking you stared at his bare back before looking up to his head. He didn't say anything but stood still. For second there was nothing but the rain still dripping down from the sky with the occasional thunder clap, it had picked up a little bit while you both walked. Then he spoke. "You have to listen to what I'm about to say very carefully." The blunt and deep tone in which he spoke sent a shiver down your spine. "There is a camp just past these trees. You are to stay by my side and not leave it. Do not speak to anyone. Do not look at anyone. And do not acknowledge they're there. The only reason you're here is because I have business and then we're leaving. Don't speak to my father unless he directly acknowledges you first which is unlikely. Am I clear?" You gulped. "I-..Y-Yes." "Good. ..I promise you once this is over we will discuss your situation more properly. For now do as your told."
Illumi x Fem reader. It's my literal first ever time trying to write for this guy so he's probably ooc here. **************************""""" If someone had told him a couple months ago that he would fall in love with the MOST unlikely girl that had ever graced his life...He'd have told you to never speak such nonsense to him again, probably would have scoffed, told them they were insane, and dismissed it from memory bank forever. Him, a driven force, a killer even, with a girl like her?? HA! What nonsense... Or was it? Not to him right now it wasn't as she kissed him and held his hands and he found himself not fighting against it. What was wrong with him!? It felt like a two part problem in his mind. On one hand it was as if he was betraying his loyalty to his duties and everything that it stood for, for falling for such a girl. While on the other hand it was a betrayal of his own emotions for denying his affection for her in the first place. He grew weaker by the day, losing sleep over his inner turmoil. It wasn't long before people started to notice, dark circles appearing under his eyes and his usual scowl deepening as his mood worsened. No one dared to actually ask him what was the matter, but he could feel their concerned stares and worried glances. Even so, he held out, pushing thoughts of her away as he tried to go on with his life. Just ignore her, he told himself. He would feel better once he forgot about her. But no matter what she wouldn't leave his mind or him alone. Oh WHY did he have to be plague his existence. He once tried yelling at her to just GO AWAY!! To leave him alone because she didn't need to be anywhere near him....It ended up with him breaking down in the middle of the hallway crying and all those sleepless nights catching up to him finally. His acts were slipping, he was acting like a baby, and it was ALL her fault. She wouldn't listen and go away like some stalker. After that he had passed out from his yelling fit and woken up in her lap due to exhaustion.....And to her crying and holding his hand. Ironic wasn't it. And he made a noble effort to ever forget about that incident, but it was all for naught. He reached his tipping point about a month into his rejection to the monster. He was exhausted, eyes sore and bloodshot, and his work still wavering concerning all their superiors. Lost in his thoughts on the way to lunch, he heard a single word. His name. That made him stop in his tracks. His head snapping up in recognition, eyes widening. No! Not her! Not now! The last thing he wanted was the taller she demon to back him against the wall and talk her pretty little head off. He felt like he was suffocating. He barely slept for days. He couldn't take it- The voices were becoming so much his head was going to explode- "Illumi? You don't look so good." That was the last thing he heard before he passed out for a second time that month. She had carried him. CARRIED HIM!! HIM!! All the way back home filled with worry. Don't ask him why she didn't just leave him there. If the assassin was just found passed out against the wall it would've been less humiliating than a girl to carry him all the way to his bed where he remained when he woke up and numbly laid there as she went off chattering again. He didn't know what he was thinking when he suddenly exploded at her letting everything out. Maybe it was his frustration? The stress and strain he was feeling from her relentless presence? Maybe the days of little to no sleep? His mind zoned out as he mindlessly yelled at her but he certainly wasn't expecting it to end up with her kissing him and him being compliant to her affections. Leaning into her warmth and all around easing the stress he was always. Good grief what did he say? At one point she pulled away and he attempted to kiss her again which ended embarrassingly thanks to his lesser height laying down which ended up with himself missing her lips and pecking her jawline which sent her beautiful face into giggles and the soft hands cupping his already crying and red face rubbed away at the stressful tears. "You shouldn't beat yourself over like a little crush. I would've been happy to know either way.Oh. Please don't cry." He wasn't sure why he felt so assured or comforted right now, but for now he leaned into those soft hands holding him up with the pretty angelic face of his relief.
(Warnings: mentions of kidnapping, selling of mers, the bad conditions they endured, mistreatment of the wives, and mermen sinking ships and harming people. Yn gets a cut on her palm. Mentioning of blood.  To which Y/n learns that her kind act has come with work but others also learn that they can appreciate the work put into the kindness. If you need a refresher on what fish I based their tails on take a look at the links. HINATSURU: Strawberry Peacock  https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=LuxbTrkNcBw&pp=ygUXU3RyYXdiZXJyeSBwZWFjb2NrIGZpc2g%3D MAKIO:  Golden Dragon Koi  https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=hlTWPxuY9WY&pp=ygUWR29sZGVuIGRyYWdvbiBrb2kgZmlzaA%3D%3D SUMA:  (all blue) Halfmoon Betta Fish  https://images.app.goo.gl/UPrG3tsSCBhoYzaV8) You know..It all seemed like just a bad dream when you woke up sprawled out on the cold floor instead of your bed. F/c eyes slowly blinked open and you found yourself staring at the ceiling. You stared at it for a long time allowing your brain to process the sleepiness away, at least enough for you to groan and sit up with a hand rubbing your face. Autopilot kicked in as you did the usual morning routine of making your bed, mentally cursing yourself for rolling out of it, and going about your business making breakfast, combing your hair, and getting dressed. It wasn't until you were tying the belt around your waist did the events of last night suddenly flew right back into memory harder than someone hitting you with a boulder. Mermaids. ...You stole three mermaids from the Henyas' property and stashed them in your bathhouse!! The last events of the night before hit you straight away- You had just returned back home, sneaking between the shadows on high alert not normal for a human. You'd done your best to dry the back of the wagon with a couple towels before sneaking the horse back to the flower shop and tying the pony back to it's post. Leaving it in the original spot you found it in since it might look suspicious if you left a horse and buggy that didn't belong to you outside your home. Someone might think you were trying to see it. You didn't need that on your head too. Thankfully no one seemed to notice anything either sound asleep or too afraid to come outside because of the rumor of monsters. You sighed once safely inside your home and the first thing you did was head straight for the guest room. It was a Smaller room barely bigger than the pantry used mainly to just house the occasional guest, but it had a small bath too and you were tired of running around soaked by dirty smelling water. So you didn't return to your unsuspecting guests until you took the time to thoroughly bath and put on a clean dress. "You three look and smell a whole lot better." You had barely given the three half fish women a second glance. Too busy rinsing the tub out after draining the soapy water before again filling it with clean water. This time filling it up all the way instead of halfway this time. The three mermaids in question were lying in various poses on the tiles bathroom floor, and honestly they DID look better. Their hair was now shiny instead of greasy, their skin looked slightly red from scrubbing hard but it looked less dirty, and their tails looked shinier but you barely noticed being too tired and just wanting to get this over with so you can sleep. "Yes. Thank you very much for lending us your clothing," Pink smiled at you. Orange looked a mixture of tired and bored while Blue gushed about how pretty your flower print dress looked on her. Pink seemed to be the only one who talked to you calmly and happily. The clothes they had previously been wearing was in a pile by the door along with the towels they used. You'd deep clean them all before you went to sleep. That way they'd be dry by morning. "It's not a problem. Those old clothes were disgusting to say the least. ..There. That should be enough water for you all to sleep comfortably in. Better than the nasty tank you were in at least." "Again thank you. I doubt we would've been able to even leave at all if you hadn't taken us into consideration." "Yeah..Well I would've felt bad about leaving you behind like that." "You look tired. You should get some rest and sleep." It was kinda a blur after that. You briefly remember the scent of freshly clean clothes and the darkness as you hung up wet laundry and the feeling of laying down but that was it. No. None of that could've been real could it?  It was just a fever dream after being paranoid all night and staying up late! Yeah! That was it! You had a wild dream due to your fear and your tired mind. Why if you walked into your bathroom right now then you wouldn't see anything! That's why now in the present you were standing in front of the door that lead into the main family bathroom. Hesitantly you inhaled before quietly reaching a hand out. Grabbed the doorknob. And then opened it to see.. Absolutely nothing. You blinked. There was... nothing. It looked the same as it did yesterday morning when you left for work. Towels and soaps neatly placed on the shelf. Room fully clean without a single drop on the floor. Spotless. The only thing out of place was the tub full of water, but you probably just forgot to drain it out. With a sigh you leaned against the door frame. "It was just a dream." SLASH!! "HI!!" "AAAHH!!"  You ended up falling backwards onto your behind as a spray of droplets rained everywhere. Staring shocked at the edge of the tub as a pair of eyes stared back to you. "Uh... Oops. Sorry." "Great going. Are you going to make her fall into the water and an encore?" Orange popped her head up as Blue whipped to her. "I didn't mean to!! I was just saying hi!!" "Well you sure did a good job!" "....Oh good gods. It wasn't a dream." You mumbled shakily reaching out and pulling yourself off the floor.  Soon three heads were now poking out of the water and staring at you in a mix of emotions. Ggggrreeaaattt. Looks like you really weren't dreaming. The reality made you sigh and reach out a hand to rub your forehead.  "Good morning!," Blue called out again as cheery as a little kid with candy waving a full arm. "Did you sleep well?" "Hardly. I'm still tired and sore." Your body wasn't as tired and sore as you were last night but you were still feeling like taking a nap. "Are you alright?" "We're fine," Pink confirmed with a smile at you. "Were you cooking food? There's a smell in the air." "You means eggs and bacon?" You glanced at the three of them in curiosity. "Can mermaids eat eggs and bacon?" It was a genuine question. "Depends. What animal are the eggs from and what's bacon?" "Um. They're chicken eggs and bacon comes from pigs. Y'know. Pork." All three seemed to light up at the mentions of meats and protein.  "Oh! Oh! Do you have claims? I love claims!" "We're not in the ocean! There wouldn't be claims in here!!" You ignored the other two in favor of giving Pink a deadpanned look. "Are they always like this?" Pink sighed. "Unfortunately." "...Are you three hungry?" Well that got Blue and Orange to stop arguing and whip around to you so fast and wide eyed it had you jumping. "I'll take that as a yes. I'm gonna go cook some for you guys, just STOP arguing. You'll make the neighbors angry and I don't think I can explain why three mermaids are in my bathhouse." Never thought you'd be cooking bacon and eggs for three mermaids but here you were. Cooking enough food for you to open up a buffet for breakfast. How much did mermaids eat? They were bigger than you- Or should you say longer? You suspected if they were actually human, they'd be about as tall as you. But their tales made it to where they had longer bodies than you, so you guessed that they must've needed more food. Bigger bodies means more food needed right? Like how bigger plants needed more water than smaller plants. It was only a guess and if there was anything left over you'd just store it away for later.  You ended up having to carry everything in on a tray, and from the moment you entered there was a clear shift in both the air and their bodies. You paused when meeting their gaze. Dilated pupils and enlarged irises stared you down. Stiff movements akin to a cat rolling back their shoulders. A predator staring down it's prey. A shiver ran down through your body as you cautiously approached and set down the tray just within arm's distance of them. "Here. Wait a second and I'll get you some utensils-" They lunged at you. You shrieked arms flying up to shield yourself from the upcoming assault. This was it! This is how you died! Torn apart by a mermaid feeding frenzy! A metal clattering sound filled the air followed by a splash. You'd be next to meet the watery grave. Your body would feel hands on you any moment ready to drag you down- "KYYYAA!! THIS IS SO GOOD!!" ...WOT- F/c eyes slowly opened up as your arms lowered just enough to peek out. "Hm. This is pretty good..Not as tasty as lobster but it's good." You stared dumbfounded as the three of them grabbed random amounts of eggs and bacon in their hands and was tearing the food apart with sharp teeth before swallowing them down like it was nothing. Rip. Tear. Swallow. Rip. Tear. Swallow. Over and over they frenzied grabbing the spilt food across the tiled floor and the food floating in the water. Diving in and splashing around sending water droplets spraying everywhere and water sloshing over the sides getting the floor wet. Every piece devoured like a trio of piranhas on their last meal before they died. Eventually it calmed down with the three of them licking their fangs clean and seeming content.  "That was the best meal we've had in weeks!," Blue gushed before looking at you absolutely beaming. "Can we have some more?!" ...You blinked. "Uh. Sure. I can see what else I have but w-what the heck?" You gestured in shock at your now wet floor and slightly wet dress. "It looks like a wave crashed in my bathroom." "Sorry." You looked up in even more slight surprise at Orange. That..was the first thing she said around you that wasn't a shout or insult or complaint as she looked slightly away. "It's just...W-We haven't eaten a good meal in a while, and we were hungry." You stood back up lightly shaking your wet foot. "I can tell..How often were you fed?" "A couple fish every few days? I think." Her expression squinted to one of deep thought. "We were lucky to get that. The dam food wasn't in any condition to eat-" "Maki." Orange snapped a raged scowl at Pink. "Well it was eat that or starve! Did you want to give them the satisfaction of dying?!" "Can mermaids eat plants?" You waved a hand to gain their attention. "Y'know like apples and cucumbers and stuff." "Huh? I mean yes but it's not as good tasting as meat. Why?" "Because currently all I have in my pantry is potatoes and other fruits and vegetables. It might not be as tasty but you'll have to eat it until I can get back from work." "Work?! But why are you leaving?!" "Because I need money for the meat you guys like, and I need to work because I like my job. But I'll give you guys more food before I go. Is there anything else you want?" The three of them looked at one another in shocked silence. "If it wouldn't be too much trouble, maybe a comb?" "A comb? I can do that but do me one thing first. Can you give me back my tray? It's not supposed to be in the bath." ************* The front door to the flower shop opened right up as you pushed it open and stepped inside. Your voice calling out into the space for boss, but the old woman didn't answer you back. Not very strange. Sometimes you'd show up long before your boss did and that's alright. It was also relieving because then no one would know that you showed up and hour and a half late to work making it look less suspicious. You really didn't want to explain why you were late today, even if you were sure you could easily say you just slept in and lost track of time as an excuse. With Mrs. Satoshi no where to be seen, you quickly went about your duties and just did what you normally do around here. Take care of the many flowers that called this tiny shop home. The normalcy of the routine helped to calm your spiked nerves being so familiar. It almost made you forget about the three women in your home.. Almost. You'd left the three with a large bag of random fruits and vegetables you just threw in there to fill up your stomachs and a comb for you guessed their hair. Made sense they'd want to properly take care of themselves after everything they suffered. You didn't know what it was like being shoved into a cramped space with three people to share it with, stuck in filthy grime and water never being changed and barely fed for weeks. It made you feel both angry and sorry for them. You were still unsure of what you were going to do with them. Obviously you weren't going to toss them at anyone. You might've still been weary around them but you weren't a cruel person. .. Maybe you could release them into the river nearby? Yeah! That could work! You could just release them into the river and everything would be fixed. They'd be free, you'd be free from them, and no one would ever know! Perfect! Your life would go right back to how it was before this entire mess dropped into your lap.  You were happily lost in thought smiling at nothing when the door suddenly opened up causing you to jump and turn around eyes wids as a man entered the shop. He was tall with dark eyes and grey hair. He gave a look around before landing on you and he smiled a familiar kind smile. You recognized him easily. "Niko." You were surprised to see him but smiled and turned to him. "What are you doing here?" You knew instantly who he was. After all he looked exactly like his mother would if she was younger and a man. He smiled wider. "Hi, Y/n! I'm surprised to see you working with Ma not around." "Well someone has to take care of the shop. What are you doing here?," you asked again raising a brow. "I thought you were supposed to be here yesterday." "Ah! A-About that!" He tiredly reached up a hand to rub his neck and it was only then that you noticed the bags under his eyes and how disheveled he looked. Was he ok? "My wife unexpectedly went into labor the other day. Guess the babies didn't wanna wait." His wife had""  their children? ....Well THAT explained everything. You couldn't help but smile. "Congratulations, Niko! That's amazing! Are they girls or boys?" "Two boys and a little girl." He smiled fondly. "I can already picture her begging for another sister once she's bigger. Haha." "That's wonderful! You're so lucky! Is your wife ok?" He nodded. "Yeah. Ma's with her right now while I take care of a few things." Ah. That's why she wasn't here. "I was told there was some pots here for me to deliver-" he looked around again. "B-But I don't see any." You froze. "I guess Ma got someone else to do it." "Uh..Well you shouldn't worry about that since you don't have to do it." You said quickly with a forced smile. "You should just head on home and make sure your wife has you by her side." "I guess you're right." He sighed in relief. "That's just one less thing I gotta do. I'll be taking my horse back though. I hope you guys didn't need him for anything else." "Oh no no. He's probably bored staying in the SAME SPOT all day and night not at ALL moving an inch since yesterday." You stressed but he didn't seem to notice in his tired state. "You go right ahead and take him home." "Y-Yeah. I'll do that. Thanks, Y/n. Hey. Can I buy some carnations while I'm here? I'm sure she'd love them after everything she went through yesterday." "Of course!" You had gotten some money from Niko buying a rather large bouquet for his wife and to your relief he had ended up taking the horse and wagon away. It was like the last piece of evidence that connected the shop to the crime of last night, but now you'd have to figure out another way to transport them to the river. You'd worry about that later. You'd just be rest assured for now that you had found the solution to the problem.  The rest of the day was uneventful as it had always usually been. You happily skipped home with a smile on your face and a basket of fish in your hands. It wasn't a lot but the butcher gave them to you for a decent prize with what money you had and you were sure the others would appreciate it. The door to your home opened and closed behind you as you stepped inside. Relief flooding into your veins as soon as you approached the familiar route leading out to the bathroom. Mouth opening to call out to the three- "How are we going to get them back?"  Your feet stopped blinking at the sudden question. That..sounded like Orange's voice. "I-..*sigh* I don't know. Maybe it's better that we just leave them behind." Pink eyes glanced over at her oranged eyed counterpart lazily floating around the water bobbing like a leaf with a hard scowl on her features. "There is absolutely NO fucking way I'm leaving anything behind for them!! They can't have it! It's-..." Her face slowly melted into one a mix of silent longing. And.. fear. "It's the only thing we have left of him. We could never see him again." Her mouth opened reaching out for her but slowly her mouth closed and her arm lowered back into the water. "I know. But you know as well as us that there's no physical way we can get back there." "Why can't we just ask her to get them for us?" Their third counterpart finally decided to pipe up between her rare quietness. ...Then again her silence was probably chalked up to feasting on whatever she could grab from the giant bag. Currently she was holding it in one hand while digging he arm around inside. "No. Absolutely not." Her pink eyes narrowed as she held up a hand and shut that down quickly. "We can't ask her to do that. She's already done enough without even asking for anything more in return." "And we don't know if she'll stab us in the back and make off with the jewels! And don't pretend like she wouldn't! All humans are selfish and greedy if you dangle riches in their faces!" Her arms crossed and her scowl pierced the water. "It's always been like that." "That's a very rude assumption you'd make about me."  The mermaid holding the bag squealed and ended up falling off the edge colliding with the scowling one who's curse was cut off as both were forced underwater with a massive splash. There was a sputter of water sloshing and more splashing before three wide pairs of eyes stared at you in the doorway. You stared at them deadpanned or more specifically at Orange. "Ok. Look, You!" You pointed at Orange and frowned stepping into the bathroom. "I'm not going to pretend to know everything about what you three went through because I don't, and I won't pretend to know how you three must feel because again I obviously don't! But I didn't ask for this!" You gestured to the three of them. "I didn't ask to be taking care of three mermaids who I don't even know and could probably put me in danger but y'know what?"  You stopped just in front of the large bath, firmly putting the basket down and staring right at Orange. Pointing a finger directly at her to make her know exactly WHO you were speaking to. "You don't have to like me! I'm not asking you to like me but the least you can do is not be rude to me! I don't WANT to be in this situation anymore than you do! That's why I was going to leave when I first saw you! I just want a normal life like everyone else here!" ..She scowled again. "Then why did you help us if you were so worried about your perfect normal life?!" "I DON'T KNOW!" You shouted at her making her lose the scowl on her face. "WHAT?! You think I know why?! No! For all I know I could be the next meal you put into your stomachs! I'm terrified of you.. But-" F/c eyes closed. Body deflated. Sigh escaping your lips. "But if I just abandoned you then I would be no better than the people who put you in there in the first place." There was a good long silence as the three just looked at one another for a long moment. Unsure. Shocked. Stunned. Maybe guilty. When it was obviously they weren't going to say anything, you sighed again and nudged the basket towards them with your foot.  "Here. I thought you might enjoy something a bit more to your taste." Again hesitance but eventually Blue reached out to grab the basket and peek inside- "IT'S SALMON!!!" You winced at the sudden shift in volume and the sudden one eighty switch from unsure and shocked to absolutely happiness. Her eyes sparkles and a hint of drool covered her mouth as she looked inside- "Gimme that!" Orange ignored the loud 'HEY' Blue gave her snatching the basket out of her hands to look inside, becoming surprised at the sight of fresh salmon staring up at her. A hand reached inside and pulled one out examining it around in a cartwheel motion before sniffing it. "It's fresh." Her tone was surprised. "Well actually they're two days old," you corrected a bit embarrassed, "That's why they were on sale, but they're still good to eat. If you give me a few minutes I'll cook-" You paused as without hesitation Orange opened her mouth wide and with sharp fangs completely bit off the head of the fish she holding with a crunch sound. "Uh...Or not I guess. Your welcome?" Blue whined at Orange for 'being mean' and grabbed the basket back leading to the both of them hissing at one another and tugging the basket in a game of tug of war. Pink only sighed again and turned to you again. "That was very considerate of you." You shrugged. "I mean you guys live in water, and what else would there be for you to eat down there? It was kinda obvious..No offense." She giggled and smiled brightly. Wow. She did look really pretty when she smiled. "None taken. But I do have to ask." Her slight frown came back. "How much did you overhear?" F/c eyes stared into pink ones before you sighed. "A little bit of it. You guys were talking pretty loudly." It felt a bit bad to confessing to eavesdropping but it's true. They were loud enough for you to hear them from the front door..Hm. that's a problem. "But I'm serious! You guys really need to be more quiet. Anyone could've heard you, and I don't think that'll be good for any of us. So could you please try to stop these two from yelling?" You gestured to the two that were still fighting over the basket. Pink sighed again. "I'll try. It's not exactly easy." "What were you guys talking about anyways?" She hummed. "I heard you yelling about leaving something behind." Blue and Orange stopped fighting long enough to snap at you with Blue holding up the basket and pushing Orange's reaching form away from it. That got their attention. "Are there more of you back there?" Pink shook her head slowly humming. "No. Not really. At least not in the barn we were kept in. Some..things of ours are still back there is all. You shouldn't worry yourself about it." She quickly held up a hand. "It's all replaceable in the end and the risk of going back there is just not worth it." A brow rose confused. "You lost something?" "More like something was stolen from us." Orange once again scowled and crossed her arms. "What was stolen?" You weren't sure what a mermaid could have that could be stolen. You didn't think they had backpacks or anything like that in the water. "Mak-" "Hey! Doesn't she have a right to know?," Orange countered cutting Pink off, "It's not like we're going anywhere anyways." You stared at the two of them confused. What were they talking about? Orange looked directly at you sizing you up for three seconds. "It's treasure." Well you weren't expecting that. You blinked surprised. "Treasure?" "It's not exactly treasure. It's just some jewelry like bracelets and a few strands of gold is all. They were forcibly taken off of us after we got caught." Jewelry huh? Granted you know a lot about mermaids but with this being a mostly fishing community, you've heard your fair bit about mermaid stories. Mostly the bad ones only. How they'd sing to attract people to their watery deaths. Making ships sink. Some attacking humans only to drown them and eat their corpses- A shiver ran through you. But there was the occasional not so bad ones. Like how these creatures always hoarded treasure from ships they sunk. Guess that rumor was true, at least for these three.  "I-.. Didn't see anything like that in the barn." "Because it's hidden." Pink made a rectangle shape with her hands. "They're in an old chest about this big." She then held out her hands about a width of two feet apart. "I think they used to use it as an old bait box because it smelled like old fish."  An old box? "I still didn't see anything like that there. Hm. Although it was dark. I could've missed it I guess." "It's hidden under the stack of hay. I don't think they've done anything with them yet," Pink hummed in thought. "It would probably look rather suspicious to suddenly spend a large amount of treasure in a short amount of time." "I'm sorry for that." Your head tilted and your brow rose. "I hope you don't mind me asking but is that stuff really important? I mean I guess it's really valuable but couldn't you just replace it?" Pink jolted but was quick to nod in agreement. "Y-Yes! You're absolutely right! Everything can be replaced! We shouldn't worry about it! Neither should you-" "They were gifts from someone really important to us." Pink snapped a glare at Orange who shrugged. "What? She asked." "We're not going to ask her to get them and THAT'S final!" You were a bit taken aback by Pink's shout. You hadn't seen her calm self get angry before now. "We're lucky to have gotten out of there! And we are not taking anymore risks!" Orange huffed but seemed to drop the subject. Pink sighed and looked at you. "I'm sorry. Please forget anything about this. You've already gotten into enough trouble helping us." "Will do!" You agreed quickly with a thumbs up! "If I'm honest, I don't plan on going back there even if I was offered all the treasures in the sea." Orange gave a look.. before turning away, giving a look at the water below. "Now you three better eat up and get some rest. It's getting late...I think your old clothes might be dry now. I'm betting you'd want them back." Pink clapped her hands together. "Yes, please! You'd probably want your own dresses back." "Sure."....Your gaze glanced over to Orange who still floated curled up and saddened. ".. Actually. There's some holes in the fabric I need to sew up for you. Why don't you three get some rest and we'll deal with that tomorrow?" Pink nodded. "Sounds good! You also must be tired still! Go rest yourself!" You nodded turning to leave the three behind as you slowly walked out. Blue starting up another crying fit as Pink took her share away from her hands. Orange remained silent in the same curled up position as before. F/c eyes gave her another look.. before turning away and leaving. You didn't think any of them heard the front door opening and closing shut again. ************************** The lull of water is calm. The movement of it's nature unpredictable. The comfort of home made any dangers worth while. The only thing needed was the ones surrounding the warm body. Keeping her safe and comforted against the unpredictable waters. A look up beheld a sight. Sunlight bedazzled from up above safely lighting up the cavern so deep below. A few jellyfish and fish lazily swimming by. A perfect meal for a quick breakfast. If she could move that was. The soft sand only held her weighed down body as a burlier one napped away by her left side with an arm thrown around her pulling her against his chest as two smaller figures were curled literally on top of them one snoring obnoxiously loud. Couldn't be helped she was the only one here that was awake ...But one of their pod was missing.  "Makio." Her eyes looked up. A smile who's warmth could challenge the sun overshadowed any beautiful sights above her. Fuchsia eyes crinkled up in adoration at her own.  "Shh. Don't wake up anyone. I got a present for you." "For me? Just me?" "But of course! I spoil all my wives individually and this turn is yours. Look." It was beautiful shining in the light. Golden strands holding up amber cut into small pieces and smoothed to perfection. "I found this and was instantly reminded of you. Here. Try it on. It'll make your beautiful face all that much more flamboyant." "Lord Tengen, it's beautiful. I-I don't know what to say." A hand tilted the woman's face up to meet his eyes. "How about I love you? I love you, Makio.~" THUD!! A snort of bubbles escaped from her lungs floating up to the surface of the water. Where was she? It was cold and hard. Nothing like their seafloor home. A loud snore next to her brought her tired brain back to reality. Oh right. She was stuck in a random bath miles away from her home and sleeping on cold hard tiles instead of her soft home surrounded by her family..Well all of her family. She nudged her shoulder until the snoring ox that was her wife floated onto the bottom instead without waking. She swore she could sleep through a hurricane- Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud. Her eyes looked up at the surface of the water. Footsteps? At this time of night? Who'd be up in the middle of the night like this? Suspicions provoked curiosity which sparked actions as she rose up. Up, up, up. Pushing up from the surface to poke her head out- "Good morning!" You smiled down at Orange holding a stack of clean towels you were going to place on the shelf. She blinked at you in surprise before you turned to place said towels back on the shelf. "I hope I didn't wake you up." Orange blinked some more before yawning and reaching a wet hand up to wipe her eyes. "What are you doing up in the middle of the night?! Don't you humans get any sleep?" "Actually I was asleep most of the night, and it's not 'in the middle of the night.' It's six in the morning. I just woke up and figured I should put all the laundry away. I'm done repairing you three's clothes by the way." You gestured to a pile of neatly folded dresses and a rather large bowl of apples near the edge of the pool. "I also brought you all something to eat. It's not much but it'll help fill you." Her response was to just look at it blankly. "...Thanks." You nodded and there was a moment of silence before you spoke again. "I'm sorry." Her eyes blinked at you. "What?" "I said I'm sorry. I shouldn't have yelled at you earlier. I mean you've been through a lot and I probably wasn't helping with your stress. So.." You made a motion with your hand. "Sorry about that." "...It's fine." She muttered looking away again frowning. "Just forget that ever happened if it makes you feel better." "This isn't about me. It's about how you all feel. Can't imagine how you all must feel but I think I have something that might cheer you up!" Her brow rose. "I doubt that." You smiled. "Oh I think it will considering if it's the right box." Box? Her eyes snapped back up watching intently as you walked on over to the open doorway and stepped partially out leaning to the right of the doorframe. A metal jingling filled the air as you grunted and turned back around smiling. Orange's jaw dropped and her eyes nearly popped out of her skull as she stared at the box. Then at you. Then at the box. Then at you. Then she repeated the actions mouth opening and closing for a solid minute before finally coughing up one word. "HOW?!" Well it wasn't easy. You still mentally cursed yourself for being stupid enough to actually go back there in the middle of the NIGHT no less. You were EXTREMELY lucky you weren't caught the first time you were there! But you supposed you were foolish enough to sneak back through town and back to that barn. You were half hoping for the window to be locked this time since the door still was, but you were filled with dread when the window once again slipped open. "Wasn't easy. Have you ever tried digging through a massive pile of hay with no light? And then trying to be sneaky with a giant jingling box? I'm honestly surprised that no one heard me fall out the window." Good thing you remembered to close it behind you. "But-..I-.." Orange shook her head harder. "You didn't have to!!" "I know but I wanted to and no offense but don't expect me to go crawling through anymore windows for you guys. It's a pain in the neck." You plopped down the box onto the floor which made a loud jingling noise.  Orange didn't say anything. Only stared wide eyed at the box before reaching out shaking hands and pulling it towards her. It was an old box, starting to rot away but still too hard for you to break in. A rusty metal latch was on the front and an old lock kept it from opening. You had tried to pick the lock and pull it off to no avail. You smiled watching Orange shake the box which jingled. You guessed you got the right bo- SPLASH!!  Orange blinked. One minute you were standing there, and then the next minute you were gone. What the-? "She's hurt!!"  Her head turned. You spat out a stream of water completely soaked from being yanked into the water, and was being death hugged by a sniveling, crying mermaid. "Good morning to you, Blue," you deadpanned looking at Orange who seemed just as surprised as you were. "Hey! What's the big idea?!" "AAAAHHH. She's gonna ddiiiieeee!!" Blue wailed planting her head on your shoulder. "I'm not dying!" "She's not gonna die you loudmouthed bass!" You both yelled out. All the commotion must've woke up Pink because a moment later she took popped up. "What is going on here?!" ..She blinked seeing you deadpanned patting the sobbing mermaid's shoulder. "What happened?" "She's gonna die! WWAAAAHHH!!" Orange groaned again. "Oh for the love of- SHE'S NOT DYING SNAIL FOR BRAINS!!" "BUT SHE'S BLEEDING!!" You yelped and shouted out as Blue without a problem forced one of your hands into the air revealing the red stained bandage wrapped around it. She was a lot stronger than she looked! The other two stared in stunned silence before Pink grabbed your arm and with more surprising strength pulled you towards her looking at your hand in horror. "What happened?" "I tried to pick the lock using the top of one of my knives. My hands slipped and I ended up cutting myself. I'm fine." You tugged on your arm but it was like you were held by pure concrete. "I swear it's fine! It's not even that deep. I'm just mad I couldn't get the stupid box open." Pink looked up. Uh oh- "Box?" Her head snapped to Orange and stared at the old box in her hands. Before her anger snapped to you. Double uh oh- "What is THAT doing here?!" She demanded to you. "I thought I told you to forget about it!" "You did." "And you went back putting yourself in danger!" "Yeah. That one's on me I admit." "Then why did you?" "Because I wanted to," you answered honestly, "And it wasn't fair to leave behind something so important to you guys. Sorry I couldn't get it open. I tried everything I co-" C R A C K!! You three looked over and was stunned by Orange literally ripping the top right off of the box, nail and all. "You know what? That works too." Y'know you knew these three were really pretty. Obviously they were a lot prettier than most of the women you've met in your small town. You guessed that's normal for mermaids. But you weren't expecting to see just how beautiful they really were. "Come on and get get out of there." You motioned for them to get out after you had wrestled yourself out of Blue's grip with Orange's help and crawled out of the tub to get changed. This was the second time you had gotten soaked because of these Three. "I have a rinse out the bath and clean the place today. You guys got water everywhere." On second thought you'd  clean up the floors first and then rinse the tub after. The three sure were curious watching you mip the tiled floors before motioning for them to crawl themselves out of there. You watched as the three of them used their arms to pull themselves out of the water, and you finally saw their tails. Well you've seen them before but you either only saw them briefly, they were covered in dirt, or you weren't really paying attention because of other factors. But as you ran the water to rinse out the tub to fill it up again for them but you happened to look up during that time and paused. Your jaw dropped. Eyes going wide. Holy cow! They were all absolutely beautiful! They're tails looked so pretty! Colorful, vibrant, and absolutely GLOWING in the light as the three absolutely frenzied upon the box in a similar fashion to how they dove upon every meal you've given them. You never got a chance to see what was inside but watched in awe as a small pile of jewelry piled onto the floor. ..And you did mean small. For such a big box, there was only a few pieces that can tumbling out. A few necklaces, bracelets, and one long golden strand of studded blue sapphires. Each took to them like dogs to prime steak. Each of them slapping the dazzling accessories onto each other. But you weren't paying too much attention to the jewelry.  You were too busy admiring the beautiful mermaids. Each one has a tail that matched their eyes. Pink's was red where her waist met her scales but quickly faded to a pretty magenta pink with a semi spotted pattern along her fins. Orange didn't really have an orange tail, but her scales shines so golden that you were sure that it was made of actual gold for a second. Blue's was pretty plain at first compared to the fanciness of the others, but her fins were much much longer and ruffled up big and large. It reminded you of very fancy fabric. The three were finished changing back into their original clothes (your poor dresses left in a wet soggy pile on the floor) and they were all practically beaming to the nines decked out back in their belongings. Smiling and happy. They were very beautiful. No wonder sailors always warned others about their dangerous allure.  You shook you head. "Alright. The tub should be back full in a minute." The three looked up at you. "Then you all can get back in. I'll get you all some food too. You all seem a little thin." That wasn't good. You'd noticed that the three of them seemed to be a little bit thin probably from the fact that they hadn't been treated well. You wanted to be sure that they were in good health before you freed them, if anything bad happened...You didn't want to think about that. They could stay for a little while longer and recover a bit more. You'd have to increase the size of their meals but you also didn't want to have them here for too long.. You'd let them stay for the rest of this month and next month and increase the amount of food you gave them. They seemed to like protein and meat based foods, so you'd have to put an increase in those above fruits and vegetables. Sigh..This wasn't going to be easy. "Hm?" You blinked as a hand grabbed your wrist and pulled you to sit down- More like trip to until you fell sideways onto your bottom and was then dragged over to sit in the middle of the three. "Hey!" "THANK YOU SO MUUUUUUCH!!"  Not surprising that Blue was sobbing and hugging one of your arms again as Orange forced your injured palm into her own hands tearing up the bandages to look at it. You decided to not fight this time and allow the two to satisfy their need for touch. "It's fine. Really. I'm just happy you're happy, Blue." "*sniffle*...Blue?" Blue finally pulled away to look at you in question. Her body had quite a few golden bracelets along her arms, and a necklace of tiny shells sat neatly over her shoulders. But what must've been the most prominent piece of jewelry was a rather large gold chain with sapphires embedded into it. It was so long she had to wrap it around her waist multiple times like a belt. You shrugged as Orange scowled at the not so deep cut on your palm. "Well I don't know your name. I've just kinda been calling you all by your eye color. It'd be rude and confusing to just call you three 'Mermaid' all the time." "That's right." You turned to Pink who smiled at you, she was now adorned in a silver choker studded with shiny red rubies. A matching pair of ruby earrings dangled from her ears as her head tilted.  She also wore a few silver bracelets although not as many as Blue. Her hand placed itself on her chest. "My name is Hinatsuru. Hinatsuru Uzui." She then pointed at Blue. "This is Suma Uzui, and that's Makio Uzui." She gestured to Orange who was busy rubbing a sleeve of one of your wet dresses on your palm to 'clean' it (nevermind you had ALREADY cleaned it this morning before bandaging it). Orange-..Makio as she was called, wore the most gold jewelry. A necklace shaped In a triangle on her chest studded with...Amber? You thought those pretty stones were amber. A few things gold chains wrapped around her tail almost blending in with her gold scales, and you thought you spotted a pair of golden hoop earrings behind her bangs.  "My name's Y/n. Y/n L/n."  "" Uzui huh? They all had the same last name. Did that mean they were related? You looked at them all again. They.. didn't exactly look alike. All had different eye colors, very different tails, and their facial features all had slight differences. We're they sisters? Cousins maybe? They all had the same colored hair minus Makio's golden bangs and they all looked around the same age. So maybe??? "Are you three sisters?" You asked curiously. Hinatsuru blinked a moment before smiling again. "Oh no! Not at all. We're wives!" ...You blinked. Taking a moment to process what you heard. "Wait. Wives? As in...you three are married?" You gestured the hand Makio wasn't still looking over at the three of them. "To each other?" "Well its not just us! Our husbands are probably worried sick about us by now." You stared at her wider. "Husbands?! As in..Two of them?!" "Yes! You'd like them! They're both so doting!" Your mouth only opened up in shocked disbelief- RRRRRRIIIIIPPPPP!! Your gaze snapped back to Makio who ripped a long strand of fabric out of your wet dress with her fangs before proceeding to wrap said wet strand around your palm. "....My dress."
(Warnings for mistreatment of the mers by the sideshow owner and some of the other people, Buying and selling of mers, mentions of mermen sinking ships and hurting people, the mers are in bad shape, etc. To which Y/n makes a decision that will change her life forever.) The sun beamed brightly on the world. Bright, big, beautiful, warm, and good enough to chase away the darkness away. Leaving behind a world filled with wonder to be explored and sights to see. The rainbow kaleidescope of colors kissing the light good morning bloomed widely. The rainbow of soft petals were only highlighted by dew drops sparkling bright like a gift from heaven. A sight drawing over many buyers. To hold their beauty. Smell their heavenly fragrance. Present them as gorgeous gifts for loved ones or use to decorate for symbolic occasions.  Fingertips gently slid under the delicate pink of a primrose, tilting  it's gorgeous head up to a beautiful smiling face before gentle water rained down onto its delicate body but not hard enough to harm its delicate frame.  "You grew up so pretty. You'll be even prettier once you get to your new home later today, all planted in the soft dirt and being taken cared of by nice people. Such pretty colors too. I envy your simple life." "You always compliment those buds like real children." F/c eyes looked up and over at kind black ones crinkled up in a smile.  Her boss was standing up and above a table with a secondary teapot in her hands, water flowed freely from the spout and ran into a number of giant pots filled with soft dirt and blooming rose bushes. Blooming with life and ready to be hauled away to their forever home. A place to belong and live out the rest of their lives in peace and quiet. The elderly woman smiled at them fondly as if they were her own children and treated them with as much care and kindness as a mother should. She admired her for that. Her wise demeanor was just a shell hiding her much kinder demeanor. An old hand reached out to nudge between the small branches to pull off a dead leaf free from the overall plant before just letting it fall into the pot to naturally become fertilizer.  "Well they say plants like it when you talk to them. I don't know if that's true but it wouldn't hurt, and I don't think they really mind."  Your smile turned back to the tiny bud that hasn't bloomed yet. Today was the day. After two weeks of caring for the rose bushes, they were going to be delivered to their final forever home. This evening your boss's son would be stopping by to take these potted plants back towards their home on the very far end of town. The horse and cart was already provided for being left outside all ready to go. All the owner needed was for her son to get here, load the six heavy pots into the cart, and then take them to the Henya residence which was on the very edge of town. But you did have a problem with that you hadn't asked yet- Your boss chuckled. "I suppose so. You'd be surprised by the facts in those rumors." "Isn't the Henya family gonna be gone for the next month? I thought they were attending a funeral." The older woman nodded still smiling. "Yes. But Mrs. Henya is staying behind to care for their business in her husband's absence." That was the second biggest news you've ever heard around here in the past three weeks other than that one day Akira came prancing about through town throwing around fliers advertising the 'grand opening' which now had to be put on hold due to some personal family drama. Being a small town the gossip spread quickly and, according to the rumors, Akira's great grandfather and patriarch of the Henya family passed away a few days ago. So Akira, his parents, and Uncle would all be leaving to travel a few towns over for the funeral and to take care of the family's assets. That'd take a while considering so you were unsure if anyone would be even there to accept the order, but apparently not.  "Will she even be there when he delivers it?" "Last I heard she's seeing them off as far as the beach but she'll be there when the delivery's made." She smiled assuringly. "So don't worry." Well you were unsure about that, but this wasn't your business and you didn't run it. You were only paid to help care for the flowers, not give your opinion on how to run your boss's business. And right now you were just paid to water these beauties before they had to leave the shop.  So it was your morning was just bliss. Quiet, serene, and happy as you hummed away doing your normal rounds. Uninterrupted other than the occasional humming and comment between the both of you. Another normal day in anyone's opinion.  "Y/n." You had stopped hours later in the middle of moving one of the pots towards the door in order to make it's journey to the wagon outside easier and shorter for Mrs. Satoshi's son. However your boss had other ideas when she held up a tray of fruit and small tea set. "Come take a break and have lunch with me. You must be tired from lugging around those heavy pots so much." You were glad for the break after setting the third to last heavy pot near the door and gladly taking the break to eat and take a breather before having to move the last two pots. Thank goodness that the bushes were still relatively small, had they been fully grown then they'd weigh a LOT more. But for now the tired mouth would enjoy her feast of apples and green tea with honey. A nice snack for her efforts. The sweet fruit tasted delicious to your tongue and the tea was just as sweet but a little bitter. Mrs. Satoshi only smiled at you as you ate.  "It's always good to build up a healthy appetite after a hard day's work. Keeps the body strong," she spoke while pouring a second cup of tea for herself. You hummed in agreement. "Oh. Did you hear what happened to a ship in the Seabound River?" You blinked confused before swallowing the food in your mouth. "Seabound River? Isn't that the giant river that connects to the ocean a few miles away from here?" You didn't know about that rive but you knew that the small river near your woods connected to the bigger river that lead to the bigger one that connected to the ocean. She nodded again. "There's been a few ships that's been getting attacked and sunk by a siren." You paused mid bite staring. "Sirens?" "Or mermaids. I honestly can't tell the difference." She shrugged holding the warm cup to her face. "I just know there's been reports of two of them running..or I should say swimming ramped along the beach and near the entrance of the Seabound River. Attacks any ship leaving or trying to enter port." You stared stunned at her blinking. "Really? Why would they do that?" "I'm not entirely sure. Usually they wouldn't be near humans at all let alone sinking ships. Who knows what strange things those creatures get up to?" Huh. That WAS strange. Granted you didn't know that much about sirens and mermaids, but it was strange two of them would suddenly start sinking ships. Maybe they were trying to claim new territory for themselves? Maybe the fishermen made them angry? Well it didn't really affect you, so you didn't worry about it too much and you weren't going to be going near any big bodies of water anytime soon so you shouldn't be worried about it. You just needed to concentrate yourself with taking care of your own needs and wants.  A few more hours passed by leisurely. You finished moving the pots by the door, helped trim away some other plants, and had just finished selling a handful of carnations to a customer who had just walked in last minute as evening approached. "Thanks for coming! Have a nice day!," you called out to the retreating customer waving, "Come back soon!" Your boss quietly came out from the back with a small bag of fertilizer. The smell hit you before you saw her crinkling your nose up from the foul smell. "Was that Niko just now?" Her son? You shook your head snorting the smell away. A slightly worried look passed over her face before looking towards the open door. "It's gotten very late in the day. I wonder where he could be?" "I'm sure he'll be here before the day's over. He's probably just running late tending to someone." She hummed. "I suppose so. He does run his own farm..Oh I do hope nothing bad happened." "He's probably just busy tending to his crops and lost track of time. There's nothing to worry about, Mrs. Satoshi." "I .. suppose you're right. But it's getting late, and I need to start getting home to my husband before dark. You know how he hates the thought of me staying out after dark especially with the recent disappearance of those poor Kocho girls. I also can't just stay all day waiting for Niko." Ah. That's right. People were still on edge about that happening. You honestly felt bad for the old woman and her husband. They were some of the kindest people in your town. "I'm sure he'll be here before it gets dark. He knows how important this is to you." "Important is an understatement. I have a lot of money invested into this delivery. I'd hate to lose business with so much involved." She gently plopped the bag over by some empty pots so be used in them later you supposed. You hummed. "...Why don't I close for you?" She turned to you surprised. "You shouldn't worry your husband like that. I can stay until Niko arrives and close up for you." "Oh no, Dear. I couldn't ask you to do that." "It's not a problem. I'd be happy to help."  "Well if you're sure you don't mind." "I'm positive! You go on home before you worry someone. I'll be fine." And that's how you found yourself sweeping the dirt out of the front door a few hours later and looking up at the sky. It looked like sunset had just started making the sky change different colors and people were already starting to head home to lock their doors until morning in fear of the monsters roaming around the dark. However f/c eyes wondered from the sky to just in front of the small shop only to widen seeing a small brown and white horse tied to a post, where it had been staying almost all day hooked up to a cart and ready to be taken out. Except that the man that was supposed to be here loading up all of the pots into the cart and taking them away wasn't here. STILL. Niko still hasn't arrived yet? But it'd be dark just in an hour or so. Where was he? You took a look back inside at all six pots still sitting there waiting to be taken away. By the time Niko got here, if he even bothered to show up,  it'd be too dark to do anything. The order would be late, and there would be money lost. You felt a pit form in your guts. This was a big order with lots of money. A lost order would mean lost money for your sweet boss but more importantly it'd also mean a lost bonus for you too! You could use the extra money for repairs to your family house. Or to save for your retirement. Or for the future family you eventually wanted. Or literally anything else. It'd be putting a lot in jeapordy if they weren't delivered as promised but yhrtr wasn't anyone else to... You again looked between the pots and pony.  ..No. This was a bad idea. It was almost dark. Creatures lurked in the dark. You could be the next one to be snatched away never to be seen again! ...but then again this WAS a lot of money. And you'd be in town surrounded by people who could help if you were in danger. If you hurried maybe you'd even get home before the moon was fully out..Your mind heavily weighed the options as you already made for the pots and struggled to lift the first heavy one into your arms and half waddled from the weight out the door and over to the cart, struggling to lift it high enough to place it in the back. The pony briefly looked up at the jostling of the cart but quickly lost interest. One by one all six were placed in the back, and the shop closed. The only movements the pony made was walking where hands pulled it after the reigns were untied from the post.  "Come on. We're gonna go on a little adventure. Ok? It's only going to be twenty minutes tops." Your choice had been made. Convincing yourself that this would only be a quick visit. Ordinary and nothing would happen. Oh how naive you were. The wheels on the cart squeaked and rattled from the weight of the pots. The hooves of the horse clip clipped noisily echoing down the dark streets- Alright. They weren't that noisy or loud but with the quietness of the practically deserted streets devoid of human life. Every small noise felt like it was as loud as a thunder clap. Maybe it was just the paranoia and fear of the dark that got you thinking this way but you couldn't help it. The sun had completely set within a few minutes of you walking down the dirt roads, pulling the horse along slowly to avoid jostling the pots in the back in case you hit a pothole. Leaving you encased in darkness. Everyone had slowly made their way into the safety of the dark homes hidden away until the next morning. Like you should be doing, and you were starting to regret your choice but it was too late now.  The shadows danced as moonlight shown down along the dark homes you passed. Dancing with the stars and laughing in glee with the darkness on the ground as the moon and stars above shined down watching their sinister dances as an audience would a beautiful ballet. It was very pretty in a way but your mind only focused on high alert with the possible dangers within the shadows. Every alleyway felt like a hiding place for a monster. Every shadow a trap. And the light not much of a beacon of hope. A shudder ran down your spine with your only companion being a horse that could care less about anything around it. Yeah. What a great way to spend your night. However luck seemed to be on your side. You knew exactly where you had to go. The very last house on the far right side of town. All you had to do was drop them off and then head home. Perfect. Now only if you could hurry up a bit faster. Home after home passed. All completely dark or have one last light on in the window that would soon be out. Looked more friendly in the daylight. The cart and it's cargo walked past silently like the lone figure in the town slowly but surely a small opening  at the end gave way and a house farther away from the rest of the others could be seen.  You've never been here before but it must've been the right place. A lone house like the others in town was nestled about twenty feet away from the others. A few feet away from the home was a rather large barn and next to that was a large smokehouse. Ah right. Akira's family was made of mostly fishermen. So it made sense to have a smokehouse and a large barn for storage. The home was already very dark as you slowly approached making it look creepy and sent a shudder through your body. You Willed yourself to approach the empty home pulling the horse with you until you stopped just a few yards away from the door. Looking at the home, it was entirely pitch black on the inside and completely silent. Hesitantly you left the cart giving the horse a few pats on its neck. Slow steps brought your form to the front door where you stared at it for a long moment before with a inhale you reached out to loudly but gently knock on the door. The knocks creepily echoed throughout the dark home but it was surely loud enough for anyone to hear.  "Hello? Mrs. Henya!," you called out gently wincing at how much louder your voice was in the silence. "Special delivery!" No one answered. Not surprising since Akira's family was supposed to be out of town for a funeral but wasn't his aunt still supposed to be home? You slowly found yourself drawn to a nearby window where you cupped your eyes to peek in. It might've been wrong but you wanted to see if anyone else was home. In the darkness you saw the typical living room. A giant rug, fireplace, a few paintings on the walls, and a table with a vase in the left corner but no living person. The place was empty, and dark without any lights or fire in the fireplace. Looked deserted. Either no one was home or Mrs. Henya was ignoring you or was a very deep sleeper. Well..Niko was going to just leave the plants here for her anyways right? You'd just leave them somewhere easy to find. But just in case- You went back to Knock just a little louder on the door. "I'm just going to leave the pots outside! Ok?!" You of course never got an answer from the most likely empty home, but you figured it was best to let it be known that the delivery was made just in case. F/c eyes scanned around the dark area squinting with the limited light. You supposed you could just leave them right here by the house but they'd be right in the walk way. ...You decided the best place to leave them was a few feet away from the door off to the side to avoid anyone tripping over them. All you had to do was to just place the pots on the ground and leave. Easy. The hard part would only be to take the pots out of said cart. With a sigh, you approached the cart again reaching inside and lifting out the first pot with some difficulty. The pot was heavy on your arms, making you curse Niko for not doing this himself and eventually somehow managing to pull it out, nearly dropping it, and half struggled to get it the few feet over to plop it down with the grass.  One down. Five more to go. With a sigh your hands rubbed your sore back before you repeated the process again a second time. In the struggle of removing the third from the back you first heard it. A loud sound that shook you to the core- "AAAAHHH!!" It made the horse jostle and move back hitting your chest hard enough with the cart to make you let go of the pot. A loud THUD sound echoed throughout the night from the heavy pot being dropped back into the wagon. The wailing sounds carried along the air dying out as quickly as it came. Leaving behind nothing but a spooked pony and a pair of f/c looking up at the sky. ....What. Was. THAT?! SNORT!! The horse stepped a little moving the cart backwards until you grabbed it quickly.  "D-Don't do that! I still have a job to do! B-B-Besides that's just the w-wind. O-Or a bobcat." It was a failed attempt to assure yourself. Wind. It was just the wind and your paranoia. Third pot was taken out. Just three more. Another wail desperately clawed the wind. Just your imagination. Fourth pot out and placed out. Another wail- JUST THE WIND!! Fifth pot out . Silence. Oooook? Last pot- You struggled to get it out tired from the last five, but somehow managed to get it out and onto the ground with the others. Your body was exhausted. Her body collapsed to the ground back resting again the wheel of the cart panting and catching your breath. There. It was done. You didn't have to worry about anything except how sore you'd be tomorrow. "S-See? N-Nothing happened," you spoke out to no one in particular. Of course no one answered back and certainly not the horse. The animal did nothing as the woman pulled herself from the ground like a fly in a glue trap. Rubbing her sore body all over with one hand while reaching out the other to pat it's neck before taking it's reigns. Time to go home and get some rest. You coaxed the pony forward again slowly walking on sore feet back towards the town and passing by the large barn on the way- "AAAAAAHHHHHH HAHAHAAAAAAA!!!!!" The horse reared up nearly pulling you forward with it, but luckily your dead weight and sudden tight grip on the reigns kept it from running off. You froze solid. Body freezing up like solid ice as a loud wail echoed throughout the air and this time- And it didn't stop. Wailing echoed out in the air and was followed by sounds of louder more sorrowful screams. You stared silently not really processing the noise filtering through for a long while. Until slowly, slowly. Your head slowly turned up to the big barn. It's shadow falling over you. That sounded like... Crying??? Sobs. Loud and heavy. Echoed out from inside the barn. You stood there dumbfounded and numbly processing the realization until another one hit you. That.. That sounded like a woman. The thought stunned you. Why would there be a woman crying in the Henya's barn? Was someone hurt? Did they need help? Should you go get help? A bad feeling settled in your guts. Something WAS wrong here. And you didn't like it. You should leave it alone. It wasn't your business. This wasn't your problem. You shouldn't involve yourself..But what if someone WAS hurt? They could be in danger. They could die. What if by the time you got help it was too late?  You should leave Hands found themselves of the door handles leading into the barn. "H-Hello? Mrs. Henya!?" No one answered. You gently pulled the door only to be surprised when you met resistance. "... It's Locked?" You rattled the door harder and then noticed the giant lock and thick chains wrapped around the handles from their rattling noise. Why was the barn locked with chains thick enough to hold a grown bull? You let go of the door and briefly pressed your head to the door. The crying was still present. Was someone locked up in there? That thought startled you. Why would someone be locked up inside the barn? This was only more confusing than scary now. But if someone still needed help then you should at least make sure they were ok. Right? F/c eyes spotted a window just on the other side of the door. Wouldn't hurt to just look would it? Slowly you approached the glass bracing yourself for the worst in case you'd see something awful. You poked your head into the window seeing your reflection in the moonlight, before cupping your face against the glass and straining to look in. There was something that got your brows raising but it wasn't someone hurt or dying on the ground. The dark barn was full of typical things. Hay piked against the far right wall. A couple farming tools lining another wall. A few buckets and other random objects randomly tossed across the floor. Nothing really out of the ordinary for a barn. Except for the giant curtain dangling from the rafters effectively blocking the back of the barn from sight. ...Why was that there? That didn't make any sense. The 'curtains' looked like a bad mesh of dirty old tarps and fish nets clumped together nailed from the rafters halfhazardly. Now that wasn't typical for a barn. What was it blocking?....F/c eyes traveled down to the edge of the window. It was one of those giant sideways sliding ones. It was big enough for you to climb through if it opened. ...This was a bad idea. You shouldn't do this. But- Hands slowly grabbed the window and tugged, and to your surprise it slid open without resistance. It opened a little.. Before you slowly slid it all the way open wide enough for you to lift your leg up and push it quietly through the frame before grabbing the side and quietly pulling the rest of the way in. You quietly swung your other leg in to sit on the windowsill before sliding off. Your feet landed on the dirt floor with a soft thud. Not that anyone seemed to notice. The crying continued. It was still present. And now that you were in the barn, you could hear it much, much more clearly. Sobbing. Hard sobbing and crying coming from the back of the barn. That... wasn't the wind. Or a bobcat. It sounded like a young woman. Slowly your feet softly approached the curtain. "I-I..*GGGAAAASSSPPP* I w-want to go h-hooooooome!!! AAAAHHH!!" You jumped startled at the sudden voice. Now THAT really sounded like a young woman. You almost jumped again as a second voice groaned out admist the crying and ugly sobs. "Will. You. Give it a dam rest already?!," a second voice shouted out. This one sounded like another woman but it sounded different from the other still sobbing woman. "That's all you've been doing for days on end!! You don't think the rest of us want to get out of this hellhole?!" "H-Hey. Calm down. Ok?" Another new voice??? This one sounded different than the first two. So..three women?! You blinked confused before slowly approaching. "Fighting... isn't going to make a-any of this better." "It's easy for you to say!! Maybe you can stand being stuck for days on end on a tiny space with her crying your ears off but I've had it!!! I can't stand it anymore than I can stand this stupid, stupid dam tub!!" "AAAHH- S-STOP IT!! Y-Y-YOU'RE BEING MEEEAAANNN!!" "IM BEING MEAN!? OH I'LL SHOW YOU MEAN!!" Your hands gently grabbed the makeshift curtains and pulled back- "Makio, stop-!!" S P L A S H!!! You weren't sure what happened. One moment you were pushing yourself in- And then a squeal left your throat as at least three barrels worth of water came raining down on you. The weight of the water as well as your surprise made you fall to the ground face first. A cross between a SPLAT sound, a THUD sound, and a massive pile of water being spilt sounded out through the barn as you felt to the ground...And silence resumed. COUGH COUGH?!?! You pushed yourself off of the floor coughing and spitting out the vile taste of dirty water from your mouth as you spit and sputtered. Soaked. In just one second your body was ninety none percent soaked through your dress as if you had jumped into a lake. Coughing and spitting out water your hands reached out to push away the long hair over your face. Narrowed eyes glaring at whoever was responsible for this..Only to once again pause. You did see someone. You. No. A reflection of you. A reflection of your soggy poor self was barely illuminated in the dark by the limited moonlight in the dark. It was..A block of dirty glass?? Upon further inspection you saw it wasn't dirt ON the glass but dirty water BEHIND the glass. It was a large...Box of dirty water? You blinked staring at it longer before hearing a sniffle sound and snapping your head up. Three pairs of eyes stared back down at you. There. Was. Three. Women. Staring at you from the inside of the...glass box full of dirty water?? You could only stare in shock. The faces also stared back at you in shock. Wha-..That.. Wasn't Mrs. Henya. The three faces staring at you were all strikingly beautiful young women around your age. The first one had dark blue eyes and long black hair that went past her shoulders, and judging by redness on her face you guessed she was the one crying. The second one was a bit stranger. She also had black hair but shorter pulled back into a ponytail. But what made her look so strange was the long orange-yellow bangs framing her face and orangish eyes. The third one like the first two also had black hair she wore tied back in a longer ponytail. Only her eyes her a pretty pink color. They stared down at you. You stared up at them. Silence other than the blue eyed ones sniffles filled the space. ....You. Blinked. "...Who are you?!" "Us?," the orange eyed one scowled now pointing a wet hand out of the strange box accusingly at you. "Who the hell are you?!" "I asked you first!" "Well we're not answering until you answer first!" "I'm a florist!" The three women blinked at you before staring at one another. "What's a florist?" "I sell flowers!" You slowly stood up now shaking your hands out annoyed before pushing your hair back. They looked back to you. "How do you not know what a florist is? And what's the big idea soaking me?!" This was the thanks you get for trying to be a good person?! Last time you ever got nosey. You should've stuck to your first thought and minded your own business! "Flowers??..Why would a flower seller be here?! Are you lying?! I know she's lying-" "I was delivering rose bushes!", you shouted at the other scowling woman now annoyed.  "In the middle of the night? A likely story!" "I had to make a late delivery because the man who was supposed to deliver them never showed up! And who are you to judge!?" "Who delivers flowers in the middle of the night?!" "It literally JUST turned dark! And I'm not the weird one here!" You gestured to the giant..Tank?? Thing?? "I'm not the people deciding to bathe in disgusting water inside a barn! Who the hell does THAT!? That's not normal!" It was then Ms. Orange Eyes lost her scowl and again all three looked surprised at you. "Wait..so you-" ..Her hand raised looking you up and down. "You're not- ..I mean you're-..You aren't involved in this?" "Why would I be involved with people who decide to skinnydip in disgusting water?!" You angrily grabbed your dress and wrung it out making water droplets spray to the dirty ground as they again looked at one another. "Then..what are you doing here?" "I told you! I'm making a delivery! I heard someone crying and apparently me being a good person means I'm going to be soaked to the bone!" You again scowled at them. "So thanks for that! I was feeling a little dehydrated actually!" You sarcastic spat. Maybe it was a bit mean but you were the one attacked by water here! Ms. Blue Eyes And Sniffles looked at Ms. Orange Eyes and both looked unsure of what to do. However the third one- "I apologize for that on all of our behalves." She spoke gaining your attention. "We didn't know we'd be having a visitor." "...Hmph. Clearly. Well since I know no one's dying, I'm gonna leave now and leave you three to.. Whatever it is you're doing." "WAIT!!" You jumped at the loud wail. Water sloshing off the side of the tank thing. You hadn't even taken half a step away before Ms. Blue Eyes yelled. "YOU CAN'T JUST LEAVE!!" "Uh..YES. I can actually. I shouldn't even be in here." You paused. ..You didn't know these three. But they weren't from your town. You knew that. "You three shouldn't be here either. If I were you, I'd leave before the Henyas come back." "That.. would be preferable," Ms. Pink Eyes spoke but shook her head sadly, "Unfortunately that's not an option for us." You stared at her, then at the other two, then at the tank thing. "...Do you need clothing? I'm sure I can find some towels or something around here." "No. Not that. We're not able to get out of this tank." So it was a tank? Again why would they stay in something so filthy? "What do you mean you can't get out? The tanks just a few feet taller than me. It's not that big a fall, even if you sleep and fall it would hardly be fatal...What are you doing in there anyways? It looks like the water hasn't been changed in weeks! It's GROSS!" You stressed with a grimace of disgust. Ms. Pink Eyes looked a bit hesitant- "Whelp. That settles it then." The one with orange bangs slumped against the side holding her head in a hand. "She literally has no idea about us. I don't know if that's a good or bad thing." "A GOOD THING OBVIOUSLY!!," Ms. Blue Eyes shrieked. "THAT MEANS SHE'S NOT WITH THOSE OTHER BAD GUYS!!" You looked at her. "Bad guys?? What are you talking about now?" "WE-"  A smack sound went off as the other covered the loud one's mouth. "Don't tell her you loudmouth!! We don't even know if we can even trust her! How do we know that she's not trucking us? Or even worse than they are?!" "Do we really have a choice?" Both were stopped by Ms. Pink Eyes again and just stopped.. eventually she looked back to you. "We were brought here three.. maybe four weeks ago. Not by choice either. You can say we're being held prisoner." "Say? We ARE being held prisoner!" Prisoner?! They were being held hostage!? Good gods what did you even walk into?! "Hostage?!..Wait." You pointed a suspicious look at them. "If you were really being held hostage, how come you haven't tried escaping yet? The door's locked but the window isn't. You three could've just walked on out that way." Again the three exchanged looks again. Before silent Ms. Pink Eyes grabbed hold of the edge of the tank and pushed herself up and lifting her body from the water. You saw she was wearing a pink top soaked from the water but you fell silent as something else was lifted up from the water as well. Something large, reddish pink in color, and covered in scales. If anyone saw it, they'd just assume it was part of a giant fish.  However the top wasn't connected to any fish. IT WAS FREAKING CONNECTED TO THE WAIST OF THE WOMAN!! You looked on in shock and awe at where pale soft skin transitioned into red scales before it disappeared sinking back into the murky water. Again silence resumed and you stared at the three of them in shock and sudden horror. "Y-Y-You're not human.." You stepped back on instinct and in horror. "You're not human!!" You shouldn't be here! Danger! Creatures! Unsafe! Get away! "I- ..I c-cant stay here! I'm sorry but I need to leave!" "WAIT!! COME BACK!!" You panicked nearly slipping on the wet ground to get away. Tangled curtains and nets rushed and pushed away like arms trying to ensnare your body as you ran away from the inhuman creatures behind you. Footfalls echoing throughout the silent barn. Back towards the open window. Your escape route. Your sanctuary outside! You had just made it to the window throwing up a leg onto the windowsill and grabbing the frame- T H U D-!! What sounded like a giant sack of potatoes being dropped into the ground hard had echoed throughout the barn followed by the sounds of sloshing and splashing water! Making you jump and snap your head around back to the curta- "SUMA!!" "YOU CLUMSY CRAB!! ARE YOU OK?!" "AAAAAHH HAHAHAAAAAA!!!" Loud sobs and crying filled the air once again as you just stood there... before proceeding to start climbing again- "I-I-It's no- not FFFFAAAAIIIRRR!! I D-DONT WANT TO BE SO- SOLD TO A CARNIVAL!! W-WHY CAN'T WE JU-JUST G-GO HOOOOMMMEEE!?"  The ugly crying and wails started up once more. "I D-DONT WANT TO LOSE YOU G-GUUUUYYYS!!! WWAAAAHHH!!!" You stopped... slowly looking back from your place sitting on the window. "Suma, calm down. W-We're going to be alright-" "WILL YOU STOP PRETENDING EVERYTHING'S OK!? For once she's right! Nothing about this is ok! We're going to be stuck here for the rest of our lives unless they decide to kill us for some mounted trophy on the wall! Face it! We're never going to get out of here! It's-.... It's hopeless. We're hopeless." You looked outside. The pony and cart was still there waiting for you to take it home. Safe. Warm home. Where you never had to worry about trapped mermaids which was truly none of your business....F/c eyes slowly looked back to the cries... "Dam foul fish smelling beasts!" Old hands held up a lantern shaking with old age. One hand reached out with a rusted key to insert into the lock turning until it clicked. Noisily a lock thudded to the ground as chains rattled from their place to join it on the soft dirt. The lantern lit up the way as the old grizzled woman grabbed the doorknob before looking behind her with narrowed eyes into the darkness. No one was out this time of night. Good. Quietly. The door creaked open allowing the old woman to hobble quietly inside.  "Alright you stupid fish smelling water bugs! I got your feeding!" Silence answered her as she hobbled towards the back of the barn. The fish in her hands was dirty and old but she didn't care. They ate worse in the ocean. "Silent huh? Hmph. It's about time you shut the hell up! The constant shrieking is driving me mad!" The curtains were pulled back and the lantern shined upon the still tank. Filthy from weeks of neglect. With a toss, she threw the single fish into the top of the tank. It floated up onto the surface before sinking down into the murky water. A weak kick given to the glass. "Wake up and eat it! Try not to cry about how hungry you are this time or else you'll go the rest of the week hungry!" Nothing answered not that the grizzled old woman cared leaving. The old fish uselessly sinking to the bottom of the tank completely empty except for dirty water and a single old fish- SPLASH!! You stood still completely soaked and hand on a lever as you watched the giant pool like tub in the center of your family's bathhouse start to fill up from the opening allowing water to quickly rush into the tub until it was partially full. You stopped then and went back to slip out the back door. The night was still silent without anyone lurking around in the dark minus a horse and a cart connecting to it's back hidden in the shadows of your house. You carefully looked around, spotted no one, and then sighed.  "Alright. Coast is clear." ... Slowly three heads popped up from the back of the cart. Thank goodness for the dark cloaking their bodies. The cart was too small to fully hide their tails. You couldn't believe this was happening! You literally kidnapped already kidnapped mermaids! They were dangerous! You were helping nonhuman creatures and....Sigh. It was only temporary. You'd be rid of them soon enough. But for now, you'd help them. Firstly by taking a bath. They were dirty and spelt of old moldy clothes. They seemed on edge looking around as you approached them. "This isn't the beach," Orange commented annoyed. You decided to nickname them by the colors of their eyes in your mind for now. "Because the beach is literally a months travel by foot, and two weeks travel by horse. I need time to think of what to do, and I'm certainly not going to be traveling soaking wet in the middle of the night."  You held out your arms to Blue. She had thankfully stopped crying after Orange hissed at her that they'd be caught again if she didn't shut up. Orange's words not yours. She seemed to get the drill and reached out to wrap her arms around your shoulders as you quietly pulled her long body out of the cart and shifted her in your arms until you were able to carry her still sniffling form into the back door and gently heaved her into the giant tub. This repeated a second time with pink. And again with Orange, although Orange was a little more reluctant than her friends. It was harder dragging them through the window honestly. Your body was REALLY going to be sore in the morning and there was still evidence you had to get rid of. You would NOT allow anyone to know that you harboured these creatures.  You eventually semi dropped Orange into the large tub with the other two. "There. It's not as deep as the tank but it is wider. That should give you three more room at least." Blue was already happily pushing her head underwater and blowing bubbles in the completely clean water as Pink smiled at you. "Thank you. You don't know how much we appreciate it." "Well...If I was in your situation, I'd want some help too. But I'm going to need you three to do something." Pink and Orange blinked as you walked away to a nearby shelf, and proceeded to grab a few bottles and a scrub brush. Returning to the three mermaids and just plopping them on the side of the pool. "Here. It's soap. No offense but you three reek of mold and old dirt. Wash yourselves and I'll replace the water again when you're done." They were in pretty bad shape from the dirty water, especially their hair. You paused looking at them again. "...Also give me your clothes. They're completely filthy. I can let you borrow some of my dresses until I get them clean. You..do know what soap is right?" "We can handle it from here," Pink confirmed already grabbing a bottle of shampoo and handing it to Orange who curiously opened it up to smell the sweet flower scent. "I'll call you when we're finished but don't you want to dry off?" "I have a small bathroom in the guestroom. I'll use that and give you three some privacy. Just..let me know when you're finished. And try not to be loud and wake up anyone. I have to go take care of a few things." Orange looked up at you. "What things?" "I have to dry the wagon and then go tie the horse back on its post. Otherwise people will know I used it and get suspicious, and I don't feel like having an angry mob after me on top of getting soaked and sore."
((Warnings for mistreatment of the mers by the sideshow owner and some of the other people, Buying and selling of mers, mistreatment of animals briefly shown, etc.  typed in random anime man into Google and this is the first photo that popped up so I'm using this as reference to what Akira looks like. https://images.app.goo.gl/Kxk9rU7mkMZRiRXbA) It was a beautiful day today.  That's usually what the default positive thing you thought was whenever something went wrong or you were feeling bad. You'd look outside and even if it was raining, you'd still find something outside to think about. The clouds looked like funny bunnies today. The next the sky would be a beautiful blue. Those flowers look wonderful. The snow looked sparkly in the sunlight.  Anything to stay positive in the crazy world ruled by creatures unseen and more powerful than the average human. You've never seen one personally thank the gods, but you knew something must've been going on with all of the disappearances that's happened for hundreds of years. Whether it's some humans, natural accidents, runaways, or something else you didn't know but you weren't going to be one of the ones that ended up disappearing. You had a plan for your life.  You wanted to work on yourself and maybe find someone to settle down with, and then maybe have a few children later down the line when your career was solid and you knew you'd be secure enough. Maybe even adopt a few animals! You've always wanted a small pony! Maybe a big dog you could roughhouse and snuggle with. That'd be nice. Just you and a domestic life. But for now you were just content with just working at the local florist shop and putting your life together.  It wasn't bad. You got to help with lots of pretty flowers all year round, there was always the pleasant smell of flowers in the air, it earnt you a decent living, it wasn't too far from your house, and your boss was a very kind old lady who's been doing this for years. You were lucky to have found such a good job.  "Thank you for coming by. It's always so nice to see you again, Akira."  You briefly looked up from where you were watering a pot of begonias with an old teapot. One of the local men was in today buying a small bouquet of peonies for whatever reason he wanted them. Being a decently big town, you kinda knew him but with the town still being big you also didn't. You knew this man, Akira, was the son of one of the fishermen families while his mother's family were glass blowers. You only knew that because your boss mentioned that Akira's mother's family were the ones that made the giant glass greenhouse connected to her house, she used it to grow all her flowers year round. But outside of that and just seeing him around every so often, you didn't personally know Akira. But he also had a reputation for being handsome.  He certainly has the looks to back that up. Greyish-white soft hair. Silver eyes. A tall muscular physic. And a handsome face that looked like it was sculpted by an excellent artist. You only gave a brief look over your shoulder as the two spoke.. before going back to work. It'd be rude to stare while they spoke and you had a job to do which was to finish watering these plants.  "You too, Mrs. Satoshi. And may I say you don't look a day over forty." A strong of chuckles that had you rolling your eyes and inwardly groaning. "Oh, stop. You always say the sweetest things to people." "I can't help it if I wear my heart on my sleeve.~ But while I'm here, I might as well give you this." You heard a distant sound of rustling paper and a moment later Akira spoke again. "Here! I've been handing these out for everyone to see." There was a pause of silence before your boss hummed again. "Your uncle finally gotten that display up has he?" "Absolutely! He calls it an 'ocean viewing through glass' and he's planning on showing it off at the end of this month!" "Having a small tank of pet fish is one thing, but who's ever heard of people keeping giant tanks full of fish just for people to gawk at? Anyone can just go down to the beach and see most of the critters in the water." Akira gave a deep chuckle in return. "Oh it's going to be be so much more than 'just fish's, Mrs. Satoshi. The opening night is free to everyone who shows up, and there's going to be plenty to see." "I'll certainly think about it. Tell your family I said hi." "I certainly will." Footsteps carried away the man from the counter before they slowly came to a stop right behind you. The sudden feeling on eyes on your back had you pausing before turning over your shoulder and finding Akira staring at you with a half lidded smiling face. "I can't forget about your lovely assistant now!" You blinked and a second later a hand held up a piece of paper to you. F/c eyes glanced at the parchment and noticed that he must've pulled it out of the bag slung over his right shoulder since a few more corners of paper were sticking out and the top opening. The paper made some crinkle sounds when he waggled it at you pulling your attention back to it, and slowly you reached out to take it from him. Your eyes gazed over it and it became pretty apparent that it was a flyer advertising the opening of a new business. Hand written too, detailing the opening date and time and other things.  "Oh...Thank you," you remained polite. He smiled maybe a bit too widely but only turned to start walking away with the flowers in his hands. "I hope to see you there." You watched as he left through the front door and slowly looked back to the flier in your hands.. before just putting it away and carrying on with your business. The roses were in need of the water and the flowers weren't going to water themselves. "You know I think he likes you." "...What?" Your head turned to the smiling older lady. "He passed by here practically every day and he always gives a look at you through the window," she teased, "He's a rather handsome young man, and his family has such a profitable business." You grimaced. "That's just really creepy. If he likes me then he can be a man and talk to me about it, and I don't even know him. We're strangers. Besides-" You turned back to the flowers pouring more water from the large teapot in your hands. "-he's not my type." You just wasn't feeling like getting close to Akira. He gave you a bad feeling, and genuinely he really was not you type. He looked really handsome but it was more than good looks that counts. What about personality and character? Nah. The other girls could have him for all you cared. The older woman only hummed in thought before shrugging. "If you say so, Dear. Just remember you're only young once. It wouldn't hurt to find someone nice to settle down with before it's too late." "I also have my whole life ahead of me so I have plenty of time to settle down and find someone if I even wanted to. I don't want to rush into anything that I'll just regret later."  You didn't want to end up like so many unhappy couples you've seen over the years. Fighting and yelling and having affairs- No. You didn't want that. You were going to take your time and if someone comes along then it'll happen. If not- Well you can always get that pony or dog you've always wanted to keep you company. You didn't need to be married or have children to have a good fulfilling life.  Besides you were perfectly content right now with how things were. You didn't need anything changing or any surprises. Everything was just fine how they were. Not a single thing needs to be added.  "Are you going to his uncle's grand opening? I think it would be quite interesting to see what all of the excitements about." "I don't think so. It's just going to be a bunch of fish in giant tanks. If you ask me, that's too much work to maintain. Not to mention that the amount of cleaning the tanks and constantly hauling new water to replace the old sea water-..." You shook your head. "No. Not worth it if you ask me." She hummed turning to grab a pair of tweezers and cut away the dead leaves off a miniature rose bush. "Well you never know. It might be fun to just go and look. It is going to be free after all. " "Maybe." You both left the conversation at that and didn't bring it up again. There was no point. You didn't want to go and really you shouldn't to not give Akira any more encouragement for his creepy behavior. It made a shudder run through your spine and you cringe in disgust. You'd definitely be avoiding him from now on. You'd just ignore him and everything would be fine again. With a sigh of relief, you just went on about your day and ignored the feeling in the back of your mind. It was nothing. You hadn't heard anything else for the next three days, and it was just business as usual around here. You were having a peaceful time with your work and had all but forgotten about the encounter with Akira or his uncle's 'grand opening' except for the occasional old flier on the ground or the occasional topic of it being brought up in conversation, but it wasn't very often and you'd forget about it quickly after anyways. But there was one strange thing that happened to at the end of the week. It was really a spectacle. Really it was. Not really a thing you'd usually see around these parts. You hadn't even noticed it really, with your back towards the roads. You were too busy helping your elderly boss pick up big plant pots outside that her frail body was too weak to lift. You'd be needing these for an upcoming big delivery for (ironically) Akira's Aunt Linna as you were informed by your boss. Apparently she was planning on adding a whole lot of giant rose bushes around her home and these heavy pots were gonna be used to transport the bushes over once they were ready in one of two weeks. Unfortunately your work was interrupted by your boss when the kind lady looked over her shoulder and gasped catching your attention. "My oh my." She looked surprised with a hand to her chin. You followed her gaze and paused surprised as well as a few other people on the streets around you. Coming from up the road was two giant stallions being pulled along by a strong looking middle aged man. He was cursing at the animals straining to pull along their cargo and angrily whipping the reigns with each curse. "That's sick!" The words escaped you before you could even think. A nasiating disgusted feeling churned about in your stomach as you watched as the poor animals strained and slowly came up the road and past you both. The sounds those poor ponies were making made you want to grab a whip and swing it at the gruff looking man as they slowly walked by you. The cargo they were straining to pull was...Well you couldn't tell what it was. It was BIG. At least six feet high, ten feet long, very rectangular, and covered by old wet tarps tied together by ropes. Your eyes widened looking up at the thing as it slowly pulled past you with the man yelling at the struggling ponies, briefly a shadow fell over you both and you froze solid as it continued to be pulled by you both.  "It ..seems like they had come up from the beach. That's probably one of the tanks Akira's uncle wanted for his opening," your boss eventually broke the silence and pointed out the size of the presumed tank. You didn't say anything about it for you were frozen in shock. For your eyes could have SWORN they saw the brief sight of a hand and half a face peeking out at you from a gap in the tarps..The light. You told yourself. It was just the light playing tricks on you. There's no way a human was under that tarp. You were seeing things. You shouldn't involve yourself in this. Forget it. Don't get involved in this. It wasn't worth it. Nothing good would ever come out of sticking your nose into other people's business anyways. You turned away from the sight of the cart disappearing and the distant cries of the man's cussing to place another heavy pot down off to the side, the last thing you needed was unnecessary drama in your life.  Besides it's not like whatever Akira's family was doing would affect you.
In a world where inhuman and human creatures lives side by side, sometimes it was difficult to navigate where things were. So there was rules EVERY human followed. Don't engage. If you left them alone then they almost always left you alone... Unfortunately it's difficult when a whole pod happens to be under the impression that you belong to them. IMPORTANT WORLD INFO: This is set in a fantasy world with very little tech. Think Howl's Moving Castle kinda tech world. Also more Bride concept cuz I like it. This is heavily inspired by firelilys's on Tumblr merfolk au. Please support all artists linked/mentioned here with their own works!  I'll be providing important info for our mer cast and leave links for a better image of what they look like. I wanted to pick pretty fish for them all so some of the original fish ideas were scrapped from the first drabble. KYOJURO: Kyojuro would be a lionfish such as the one drawn by Yuki2sksksk on Tumblr linked below. https://www.tumblr.com/yuki2sksksk/729990049783021568/lionfish-based-merman-kyojuro-and-betta-fish-based?source=share TENGEN: Tengen would be a white butterfly koi fish and would look like the linked post below except less eel and more butterfly koi also below. Merman Tengen (minus the eel like features) https://x.com/littlegao_gao/status/1527621514123681793 his tail would be more like this instead  https://images.app.goo.gl/4Y3V2LkbRWKEua5v9 HINATSURU: Hinatsura would have a tail that starts out red then fade to pink and would have sorta spotted like patterned semi flowing fins being a Strawberry Peacock mer. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=LuxbTrkNcBw&pp=ygUXU3RyYXdiZXJyeSBwZWFjb2NrIGZpc2g%3D MAKIO: Makio would have an orange-gold tail with flowing fins being a Golden Dragon Koi mer. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=hlTWPxuY9WY&pp=ygUWR29sZGVuIGRyYWdvbiBrb2kgZmlzaA%3D%3D SUMA: Suma would have a blue tail with more ruffled fins compared to everyone else being a (all blue) Halfmoon Betta fish mer. https://images.app.goo.gl/UPrG3tsSCBhoYzaV8 With this out of the way let's get onto the chapter. ***************************************** In a world where inhuman and human creatures lived side by side, sometimes it was difficult to navigate where the danger lied. No where was safe.  The fae ruled the forests. Fairies and elves. Pixies and gnomes. Pans. Mischief makers. If not careful they'd whisk you away. Never to be seen again.  The dwarves and dragons claimed the mountains. Proud and strong. If insulted they'd be incredible does to crush you. The skies were never safe either. Run amok with harpies. The plains ran with herds of centaur. The night plagued with vampires, werewolves, and demons. The day ran with fauns and tieflings and shape shifters. So many dangers and so many things to look out for. Especially when it came to courting a mate. As they say "Beware the monsters who lurk and live amongst the world. Beware of those who seek courtship from maidens. Do not engage. If you ignore and leave them alone then they'll almost always leave you alone." You must learn to learn their language and not be tricked by anything. Stay alert. Stay aware. Always stay vigilant. And never let your unmarried daughters near them alone- The sky was beautiful today. That's all really you could think to yourself. The fresh scent of flowers filling your sense of smell as dead flower petals was swept away with the dirt and dust. With each step you took the sounds of distant crying was heard. F/c eyes only stared at the floor where bristles met the ground and pushed them all away... Eventually you did spare a look briefly over your shoulder and felt your heart sink.  The Kocho family stood there. Or..what was left of the family. The man hugged his wife tightly to his chest as she sobbed uncontrollably into his shirt. It was the most recent travesty really. Two months ago their youngest daughter, Kanao, had gone down to the river just down the old dirt road and through the woods a bit, to gather more herbs which they sold alongside the medicines in their family shop but she hadn't returned for a few hours. Then when their two older daughters went to go look for her, they two never came back. Panicked, a group of men including Mr. Kocho and the girls' grandfathers had gone out on a wide man hunt searching deep into the nearby woods and combing the long beach nearby for any trace of the missing sisters. Nothing ever came up. No footprints or scraps of fabric. It's like they've never even existed! Some say that they were claimed by fairies. Others say a ghost spirited them away. One person whispered that a flock of harpies might've flown them away. Whatever the case, they were gone and it's unlikely that they were coming back. The parents had already accepted that their girls were probably not coming back and was here to make flower arrangements for a memorial service the family was hosting in their honor and memory. Your boss was standing in front of them holding a few sample petals for them to choose from. In the middle of their talk, Mrs. Kocho had burst into tears, so the older woman gave the couple a moment to process their own emotions. This wasn't the first time a young girl disappeared into thin air.  When you were a little girl, your next door neighbor was a beautiful woman named Rei. Her pretty brown eyes and kind personality made her a favorite person to everyone. She loved going on night walks, but one night she didn't return from her walks. Her father moved his entire business three towns away a little after that. Another case was a girl your age who disappeared last year, Mitsuri. According to her brother, she ran into the woods to be alone after her fiance brutally broke up with her. As he went to find her, he saw her being carried away by a giant black and white naga, the boy had fled as fast as he could back but by then it was too late. Then later that same year, you heard rumors about a girl named Koyuki and her father disappearing from a boat ride near the river but since that didn't happen in your town, you didn't know if that one was true. It wasn't always young women either. Sometimes it was young men that went missing. A famous case from up the mountains was the disappearance of Kagaya Ubuyashiki. The last anyone had seen of him was he was walking along a patch of birch trees. Witnesses said he was last seen speaking to a white haired woman before he vanished. People say she was a white bitch spirit. Another famous case was Tokito. Again not in your town, but he was a lumberjack that often went into the mountains for wood but one day never returned. Nevertheless it was both scary and tragic.  Which was why there was a few unspoken rules your parents always taught you before they passed away. Never go anywhere alone. Never trust mysteries strangers. ALWAYS carry protection with you. Never go out late at night. Stay away from deep woods. But above all else- NEVER TRUST ANYONE WHO WASN'T HUMAN. They were all bad and will try to trick you. Don't trust a single one. Do not engage. Like clockwork you've always taken them to heart. Always looking over your shoulder. Keeping your guard up. Keeping a dagger on you at all times. Never going out at night for any reason. You weren't gonna be carried away by some lovestruck creature! It helped a bit that you loved in the middle of town and rarely went into the woods for any reason.  "It's an excellent choice. These flowers are very beautiful. I'm sure your service will be beautiful." Your eyes finally turned away from the sight. Your sweeping resuming as your boss politely escorted the couple to the door. "Don't worry about the delivery. It's on the house. ...You both have my up most condolences." She bowed one last time to the retreating couple. A sigh escaping from your lips. "It happened again..Why does this happen so much?" "Because there are creatures who have become so fascinated by the easy prey of our kind. A human is seen as a trophy of sorts. A thing to show off what you have but others can't have..." The old woman slowly closed the door. "We must remember that as humans, there are those who will hunt us."...Old black eyes turned to yours. "You're a young, beautiful woman. Possibly the most beautiful woman in town now. I wouldn't forget to be careful during these times." "Don't worry. I'm not allowing myself to be trapped by anything."
Waning Obsession Ch11 by itshauntedtoon, literature
Literature
Waning Obsession Ch11
(Warnings: Mentioned killing, yandere themes, Koku having a panic attack, etc. Apologies for short chapter. Will be more in Kokushibo's pov.) The first scream rang into the air.  Terror. Fear. Danger. Get away. Get away! All the emotions scream. Like an accident, terrible yet one couldn't look away from the incoming storm of tragedy. He was so used to such actions as he came with the reputation. The woman who continued to shriek in his hands meant nothing to him. She was merely just an obstacle. An annoying hindrance to what he wanted-..No. What he N E E D E D. And he always dealt away with obstacles. The old body was easily chuckled to the side, he not caring about where it landed or how the other ended up. Screaming. A true testimony to his being. Power. Force behind it and he knew that as screams filled out his eardrums and killed him into the comfortable lullaby of chaos incarnate. Arms rising and head tilted back in display for the passionate dance of bodies scattering blurred to his vision footfalls thundering like a rain dance of nature. A true place a demon would find peace. Eyelids fluttered shut as the sounds blurred out around him until he heard nothing. Saw nothing. Felt nothing. But- P E A C E A shaking breath exhaled. Arms lowering head lulled back comfortably. B L I S S Eyelids slowly opened. The sky was beautiful. Greying clouds opening up to scattered light that shines on the temporary eternal numbness he felt. Is this what Yoriichi felt when he looked at the sky? Peace and beauty and light? If yes then for once he finally understood what he saw in the sun. It was beautiful...But despite this peaceful bliss it was nothing like that happiness that the moon would shower him in. The mother of the night bringing him quiet and sparing his person from the presence of others who wish to hurt him. Akeno was his mother but the Moon was his guardian. It was what guided him to now. To his happiness and he would thank her every night for gifting him this feeling until his dying breath. For guiding him to her. To his- Head lulled back more twisting around at unnatural angles until the visage of beauty stared back to him.  L O V E Body turned and eyes opened full. An arm extended. 'Join me.'  It said. 'Come here and embrace. Join me in the world I hail. You were meant to be mine. I am all that you need. You are all that I need. Let us transcend this plain of existence and carve our destiny in blood. You cut open my soul and yet came back to bandage it while leaving it to bleed out and fill his heart.' "You killed them." A knife entered his heart. Reality shattered around his carefully held up foundation. Hands  squeezing down and around his heart and threatening to tear away all he had ever come to have and hold dear. A visage of anger, disbelief, betrayal, fear, sorrow, shock, confusion- All at once the face held- No- "You lied to me." No, no, no- "You tricked me. What have you done?" PLEASE GODS NO!! "Get away from me!" Shaking. A happiness so powerful yet a fear so wrong settled in where calmness did not. Worlds collided. Hell rejecting his still tender heart while heaven rebuked his tainted soul, living his torn numbed body in some sickened joked limbo. Pathetic. Denial. Denials all his life.  'You will never get anything you desire.' Fate taunted him pulling his by the strings of fate like the pathetic puppet he was. 'Your father sees you as his only choice for an heir and you're only useful to him for your strength. Your mother barely knows her own son. Your brother is the only one people love since he isn't hideous like you. Your own kind rejects you while everyone else will always fear you. Even the ones who care about you most will eventually come to see the demon over all.' ...N-No... 'Yes.' N-No... 'Yes.' N O 'YES! ALWAYS AND FOREVER YES!' "NO" Claws dug into fabric. Knees hit ground. Desperation. Formed between agony and pain.   F E A R "Don't leave me!" Worlds collided and evaporated. Taking all rational thoughts with it.  Please clouding judgement, pride be damned. "Youcantleavemeyoucantleavemeyoucantleaveme!! Please I beg of you do not leave me! I can't lose you!" Lungs burnt in panic beyond comprehension. He couldn't think clearly. He felt like he was burning in a fire while also frozen so numb in ice he lost all feeling. "I have nothing else. I don't want to lose this. I can't lose you! PLEASE! You're the only good thing I've ever felt!" She was the only thing he could love. He didn't want to lose the light that had finally shined into his heart. "I only wanted you safe! I swear...I'm sorry. Imsorryimsorryimsorryimsorry! Forgive me. Please don't leave me!" Please don't leave him. Please don't leave him like so many others had before. "I LOVE YOU! I love you, I love you, I love you so much you don't understand!" Don't reject him. Please accept him for him. Please don't abandon him. "I want you. ONLY YOU! I've never felt this way before in my entire existence! I want to be by your side as your husband! I want to raise children with you! I want to be with you until time collapses!" He wanted to marry her! To lay beside her as they grew old together. Watching as their children grew. He wanted that. A family. He never realized that he wanted one so much until he met someone he could be vulnerable with.  "Please. Anything...Just don't leave me alone." Pathetic. Utterly pathetic. The demon wept for the second time ever since he was a babe in his mother's arms. The weight of how he looked now did not matter. The fabric clutched in his hands and buried into his face would be enough for shielding for now.  "Kokushibo.....Get up." He couldn't! Hecouldnthecouldnthecouldnt- He did not want to see the rejection. The disgust. The anger. "If you don't someone might come kill you." A fate he didn't care about in this moment. ".....Please."  A gentle touch to his shivering pathetic head. "Let's go. Alright? I don't want you to get hurt." "I don't want to lose you to them. The- they'll kill you because..." Because of YOU. YOUR CURSED BIRTH. "Then I'll go with you. Alright? But you must move." "...Thank you."
Waning Obsession Ch10 by itshauntedtoon, literature
Literature
Waning Obsession Ch10
Warning: Referenced spicy-ish stuff, death mentioned, death threats, Kokushibo being yandere, etc, Yns boss tries to harm her.) Cold. The bed felt colder when you awoken. The warmth you felt only came from the blanket that covered your body and the dim embers in the fireplace as your eyes slowly opened up. Delicate turquoise blinked awake at nothing before you realized that your back was cold. Twisting around, you flipped onto your back head turned but paused seeing that the other side of the futon was barren. Nothing but the cold air hitting your body. Your eyes blinked at the empty space before slowly sitting up. "Kokushibo?" A hand reached up to rub your face as you looked around the space of your home. The sunlight cascaded down through the windows and lit up the entire place however not one trace of the demon could be seen. "Kokushibo?," you called again a bit louder in case he was in the bathroom and didn't hear you. "You are awake." You nearly jumped out of your skin seeing the demon sitting right above your head. His stoic, calm aura was as unchanging as another other time they both interacted but there was something else added now. Something more..focused. More serious as the six eyes focused on you, an unusual small smile on his face. It sent an involuntary shiver down your spine before you shook it off and smiled at him.. "You're still here. I thought you were going to leave as soon as day broke." She stifled another yawn as she gently covered her mouth and tiredly blinked.  B E A U T I F U L "Hardly. I'm afraid I have not yet had my fill of this place...Or you."  She gave the most attractive squeak as a strong hand found itself suddenly holding her hand. A deep hum escaped the demon as he pressed a closed eyed kiss to the delicate skin. Strong calloused fingers slipping between smaller delicate ones covered in scars. Warm breath sending goosebumps along the soft flesh giving way to a shiver as he smiled wider against the flesh. Again. Again. His lips were pressed against the hand until eyes opened and found themselves  Goosebumps spread under his touch as a hand gently placed itself under her chin, claws gently dragging along the skin as he directed her head too him. A shiver from her body, warmth caressing her face as orbs shrouded by deepened desire and half lidded by selfish want.  "You'll forgive me for being so bold today." Warmth enveloped in a deeper raspier tone wafted over her face. "But I have become quite addicted to the honeyed taste of your lips." Your face reddened to a shade that rivaled that of an apple, he leaned forward enough to kiss your lips- Before his head changed direction and instead went upwards to place a kiss just above your brow.  "Although I do find your flushed face just as pleasing.~" "Y-YOU JERK!," Your voice was an embarrassed pitch way too high for your liking. A hand reached up to push away the demon away from your face. All that accomplished was a chuckle from him as he didn't even budge. "Y-Y-You can't just tease me like that!" "Oh I can and I fully intend to do that again."  "EEP!" An embarrassed squeal left your throat as strong arms enveloped you and pulled you back against him, his chin resting on top your head. "Your body is so much warmer compared to the harsh outside.  A fire in the midst of the cold war." A red still coated your face but gave a shaky sigh and settled into his hold. It's clear you would not be getting away anytime soon. "Shouldn't you be getting back then?" He hummed. "To the war." His smile vanished. The arms around you tightened up slightly. "Yes..But I fear that I don't want to go back empty handed." "Oh?" Your brow rose as your eyes looked up at him. "I'm feeling that's it's not candles or soaps you were hoping to receive." "What gave it away?" His lips found themselves kissing the top of her head. "I want you to return with me. You'd be treated like the lady you are with enough gold to fill endless pockets and fine silks adorning your body." He hummed deeply pulling her further into him. Her body radiated a warmth that was comforting to his senses.  Turquoise eyes blinked as they looked upward. "Return with you? You're asking me to leave my home." "Isn't that obvious? You'd be taken cared of for the rest of your life, and I'd fill whatever wish or desire you would ever ask of me. Whatever you want. Silks, precious jewels, ..Me." Her head pulled away from his, bed head still present as her eyes turned to meet his own. "You know I can't. I've built my entire life here. I've worked very hard to get to where I'm at and I don't want to throw it all away for nothing-" She stopped as a much larger hand grabbed her cheek gently. Dangerous golden red orbs half lidded stared at her, like gold coins having fallen into a pool of blood. The imagery should've been a cautionary tale but instead she found herself leaning into the look.  "You wouldn't be throwing anything away. You'd just be moving up in life. I want to be that turning point for that moment."  "I.. don't know." Her voice softened unsure but she was in his grasp. All she needed was persuasion. "I still don't know so much about you. Your life outside of our interactions are still a mystery, your family a bigger blank." "You would learn all of that. Marry me and become my wife." Warmth spread across her face and a moment later lips melted into a kiss. He made no comment back. Embracing the woman against his chest tightly and deepening the kiss, his embrace increasing slightly. Smaller hands found themselves gripping the front of his haori. Everything blurring and unimportant, the only thing that mattered was this woman in his grip. Her everything. H I S   E V E R Y T H I N G. Her sweet lips. Her beautiful smile. Her shining eyes. Her soft touch- A shiver ran through her under his hands when one hand found the small of her back, a rumble from his chest showed amusement much to her embarrassment. He had her right where she was supposed to be, in his arms and his own- Until a distant woman's scream sounded out. You turned away from the warmth slightly to peer up startled at the window although that didn't deter the demon who continued trailing kisses from the corner of your lips to the bottom of your left cheek, burgundy bangs tickling the left side of your face.  "Did you hear that?" He hummed in question trailing another strong of kissed back up your cheek. "I thought I heard someone screaming." "Ignore it." A hand gently tugged your face back towards him and once again your lips met- Until another scream pierced the air making you turn away from him again as he trailed after you but stopped when you placed a hand over his mouth. "Kokushibo, wait. There's clearly something wrong." He didn't fight her when she removed herself from his embrace even as he exhaled annoyed mentally cursing the person who took her attention from him. It was a rather quick job to get yourself presentable enough to go out. She grabbed a homemade coat to throw over her shoulders but paused when she noticed Kokushibo standing up and placing the familiar hat om his head.  "What are you doing?" "Obviously I'm not about to let you go alone out there where wails persist. If danger is about, then you'll be needing protection. I won't be taking a no for an answer." You decided not to argue with him and instead just turned back to the door, the sounds of a door sliding open and closed echoed throughout the silence. A shudder ran down your body as you pulled the coat tighter around your shoulders. Fall was starting to come to a close and soon winter will be here. You never did like the cold weather all that much. The cold wind wafting over you and making you shiver and shake. It was one reason why you liked working at the fragrance store. The constant making of soaps and candles made the building warm a lot of the time and it was an ideal place to work in winter. Your legs carried your shuddering from down the path with the tall demon following right next to you before turning the first corner to get to your workplace but slowly came to a stop once you saw a curious sight. A decently sized crowd had gathered in front of a house. Not just any house. The undertaker's residence. A small crowd of about ten to sixteen people were gathered silently staring at the home and whispering to one another in hushed tones. Being a small village, there was little excitement in the town and one of the only times any excitement happened was whenever one of the residents passed away. You guessed one of the elders had passed away and now there was the usual temporary buzz of limited gossip around it. Curiosity got you to walk forward slowly until you got near enough to merge into the crowd and stop by to stare into the house's window. Inside you could sorta make out the forms of a man and woman with their backs to you. The man had an arm around presumably his wife and the woman looked to be shaking in sobs. Another person, the undertaker, remained calm and stood still. The family of the deceased no doubt making burial arrangements for whoever had passed away. Eventually you turned to a girl next to you and asked, "What happened?" She looked at you wide eyed and blinked. "You didn't hear? Nori was killed." You stiffened. "A hunting party went out for deer last night, and one was mauled by a bear or wolf. Tore him completely to shreds. His body was brought back early this morning." Shock littered your body like leaves on the ground. "N-Nori was..." Stiffly your head slowly turned back to the grieving family in the window. Nori was...DEAD?! HOW?! WHY?! A wide range of emotions hit you all at once. Shock, fear, doubt, confusion, and guiltily enough relief hidden under all of that. And he had been killed by a...bear?? Or w-would?! But...there hasn't been any giant predators near your town for the last five years! And someone was mauled by one last night?! That... didn't make any sense at all. Nori was an asshole but he was genuinely a good hunter. You remembered seeing him dragging back fat deers and large rabbits and once the beautiful hide of a single wolf he caught raiding a neighbor's barn but that was over five years ago. There hasn't been any big predators since then and the thought of one killing him was.... shocking to say the least. You briefly wondered if that's what you saw in your yard a few days ago before Kokushibo arrived. The girl nodded. "A group of men went out to try and track it down. If you ask me, I bet this cold has made the beast hungry and desperate for a big meal! You certainly won't catch me out in the woods now." You opened your mouth to question further but jolted when a large hand grabbed onto your shoulder. Turquoise eyes looked up at the disguised demon. "We should move. It is... disrespectful to view the mourning family as a spectacle." You gulped down and nodded before giving one last look at the window- And then leaving quickly with the demon ushering you forward casting his own internally satisfied look at the mourning parents before taking his leave. He was right. It was disrespectful to watch the family mourn Nori despite your own opinion about him, you only hoped that the beast was caught or moved on from here now. Your hands shook lightly and your body felt light,  Thoughts swimming like a single fish in an endless ocean.  "You're trembling." You jumped looking up at the demon. "I thought you would've been happy after hearing of his death." We're you trembling? Trembling hands gripped the coat around your body and squeezed down to force the trembling away. "I-...I just.. I-It's unbelievable is all. He was so good at hunting.." You shook your head at nothing. "How could this have happened?" He stared at you brain calculating something in his mind before he spoke again carefully. "I did break his hand." Her head snapped to him wide eyed so fast. "During our confrontation a while ago, back when he gave you that cut on your cheek." She shivered when a hand reached up to run across the healing small cut on her face. "That could greatly weaken him against a great beast like a wolf, and he is-.. WAS very overconfident. Fool probably thought he could take it on regardless." "I...I guess that makes sense." To some extent it did. Nori WAS overconfident but he genuinely (you hated to admit it) had the impressive skills to boast about. He WAS an excellent hunter. Possibly the best hunter your village has ever had...but it still seemed so bizarre. Even if he only had one good hand, couldn't he have taken the wolf down?? "...Do you smell smoke?" You stopped dead in the middle of the road making the demon stop by proxy. "Smoke? Many of your town's houses have chimneys with fire or smokehouses making use of the jerkied meats." "No. It smells much stronger.." Furrowing a brow, her head looked up and saw smoke. ..Wait. That couldn't be right. Why was there smoke billowing in the air?! Your eyes followed the pattern where it came from and a pit formed in your stomach when you realized the direction it was coming from. Worried you broke away from the demon's hold who blinked, quickened your pass and made it to your boss's home only to not find her there. Instead of asking questions, you squeezed through the alleyway between two homes to follow the smoke in the sky, the smell got stronger than before. Coming to the other side you immediately froze. A much bigger crowd than the one at the undertaker was there covering the streets. What was going on here?! After a moment you pushed your way through this crowd and stopped once you caught sight of it. Frozen and jaw dropped. Sabo's house was burnt to a crisp. There was nothing left but half a burnt shell of a house blackened by fire. Men were still going back and forth passing each other buckets of water and double pouring over everything despite the fire being long since burnt out. And there in front of the crowd was your boss and her family. The old woman was on her knees face buried in her hands sobbing uncontrollably. Sabo's parents were right behind her. His mother just... staring with this absolute shocked expression as if she couldn't process what she was seeing. While his father could only silently look stone faced continuously shaking his head in disappointment. Whisps of thin smoke trails still rose as the men still hurried to pour as much water as they could on everything...but no Sabo could be found. After a moment you turned to a man next to you dread filling your mind and body. Stomach feeling like you'd vomit your dinner from last night any minute.  "What... happened here?" He blinked looking at you but then sighed. "The house caught fire in the middle of the night. Apparently during the night he got cold and placed his bed closer to the fireplace, but his bed caught on fire and burnt down the entire home with him in it." Your eyes widened. Sabo was...deceased? You supposed you shouldn't be surprised Sabo was the soft to not heed the warnings of a fire..but..shock enveloped your body in a way you've never experienced. You had to clutch your stomach and turn away, breathing in cold autumn air in attempts to not vomit.  Head spinning. Everything suddenly blurred out until a ringing formed in the eardrums and grew in high pitch. The world dizzy and watering with salt tears. The ringing growing higher and higher in pitch. Knees felt weak about to give away. Ringing getting higher and higher almost like a woman shrieking, writhing in absolutely agony right next to your face. Time seemed to slow as you looked up, and the feral image of the grieving grandmother lunged herself at you- A large angry hand clamped itself down around her neck stopping the woman of knashing teeth and lashing arms. Turquoise eyes frozen in shock and fright. "It's your fault!!" A shriek aligned with that of a banshee out for blood came forth from the old croaked up maw. A rabbid dog in place of the elder. "If you had just taken your place under him this wouldn't have happened!! IT'S YOUR FAULT HE'S DEAD!!" The weight of a thousand eyes turned onto you. A thousand thoughts of judgement. A thousand mixed looks. "T-...T-That's not t-t-true." Your voice was small and shaking in the hole all the eyes and stares dug for you. "I didn't-" "YOU'LL NEVER BE ANYTHING BUT A WALKING GOOD FOR NOTHING BI-" "Finish that sentence and I will kill you." A threat. A warning. A promise. All three rolled up all into one. A voice that commended attention less the unfortunate be ended for their crimes. The rapid thrashing woman screeched in rage, agony, contempt despite the clear danger against her skin. "You vile bastard!! You did this!! You did this!! I know you had a hand in this somehow!! How dare you come here and insinuate yourself in our lives!! Who do you think you are to do such things!?" There was a tilt of a head. "My name?..I go by many names. My enemies know me as Death. Strangers as Kokushibo. My men as their Lord." A straw hat built with care for specific deception needs dropped. A feeble weak thud lined in the silence of the woman's own. Contorting from rage and wrath to fear and frozen with each lid raised to reveal each individual or on the face of silent ending. "Widely accepted as Michikatsu Tsugikuni."
Waning Obsession Ch9 by itshauntedtoon, literature
Literature
Waning Obsession Ch9
WARNINGS: Kokushibo is in pretty rough shape with bad wounds and some blood loss, mentioned blood, Kokushibo murders two rivals later, koku gets stabbed, mentioned killing/attempted murder, Y/n gets cut when someone tries to attack Kokushibo, Kokushibo breaks someone's hand, mentioning of a corpse, someone gets burnt to death in a house fire, yandere possessive themes, etc. Again I don't support toxic relationships this is pure fiction. The song Y/n sings is A Thousand Years (Lullaby Version) by Christina Perri. MAJOR EDIT: Spelling errors have been all fixed and I got rid of the spicyish bits instead Koku Reader just share a kiss. From here on our the story will be completely different and more Yandere will be added to Kokushibo so be warned.) Your breath hitched in your throat. Quietly you stepped closer as and closer and CLOSER to the bush silently. Slowly behind the henhouse you went and stopped right in front of the bush. The wind blew swaying it's branches creepily and looked like thrashing arms. You grabbed a handful and silently and slowly pulled them back. And you froze at what you saw- The winds howled as the darkness crept across the skies. The darkness behind the bush shielded your form from the moonlight which cascaded down between the trees and clouds in the sky. The shadows danced and branches creaked as the wind blew them about. Like arms beckoning you closer to grab you away in their rough grip. Drag you into the shadows never to be seen again. You cracked an opening in the branches and looked out. The darkened sky looked out over the entire area. Tree branches swayed and night fell upon the ground. However you froze as your eyes met a sickening sight. R E D. The coldness of the air bit down hard on your skin, like painful bee stings pricking your skin. The terror far greater than seeing a thousand wolves sunk in. A hand flew to cover your mouth as a foul urge to vomit rose and a sickening copper smell filtered through the air. RED!! That was the color painted everywhere on the ground displayed before you. And there...lying face down slumped over was a man's body. A canvas for the color. Your eyes shrank in terror and your ears gained a ringing sound all on their own drowning out any noise. A DEAD BODY. In your backyard and lying right in front of your face. How-...How did this happen?! Where did it come from?! You wretched yourself away from the bush in shock and leaned over slightly. The urge to vomit riding as you did everything you could to keep it down. The bush branches snapping back into place hiding the sight from you. Automatically you gave a few coughs and gulped down air in an attempt to calm yourself head spinning. There was a dead man on your property! Oh gods! What if someone thought you were responsible for this!? You could be tried for murders- Wait... How did you know he was actually dead? That one thought made you freeze in your tracks instantly. That's right...How did you know for certain that he was dead? You just merely saw him covered in blood with a gash on his back. Your head turned back to the bush. He...he could've been hurt and tried reaching your house for help. What if he was laying there suffering?! That thought perked you back up into going back to the bush and cautiously reaching out to slightly pull the branches again. The body was still there unmoving. It...sure LOOKED dead but you couldn't tell in the dark. If he was still alive..you had to help him. You couldn't just leave someone to bleed out. The unmoving form still remained unmoving even as you noisily pushed through the bush and stood right next to the head....It was definitely a man. You could tell by how Large the body was and how muscular the exposed skin was. In the limited moonlight you were able to make out long hair and bangs that mostly covered his face and he laid in a position that suggested that he'd collapsed by himself. But the question still remained...Was he still alive? You hesitated again ...but slowly you reached over to the face laying on its side and touched the long bangs covering his eyes. It was .. surprisingly soft and silky to the touch and you slowly pulled it away from the face to examine it. The right side of a man's face greeted you. You nearly jumped back at what you saw. "Oh my gods...KOKUSHIBO!!" The demon that you had seen many times before, who had been patient despite the stigma and rudeness of the people who hated his kind, was before you. Splayed out on the cold unforgivable ground unmoving. His right eyes exposed from pulling his bangs back was closed obviously either unconscious or dead, and read streaks ran down his face in water dripping patterns from a cut on his forehead. However...that wasn't the strangest bit. Your hand instead went to almost touch his lips and flinched back feeling a weak warm breath blow across your fingertips. You reeled back in shock, hand to your chest, and jumping HE WAS ALIVE!! Hands grabbed his right shoulder and HEAVED. Barely moving an inch, but slowly the body turned, and with a thud he was collapsed onto his back. A shocked gasp escaped from your throat upon turquoise eyes seeing his front body. Oh gods...So much blood. His body was practically DRENCHED in the red color! And you found out why. He had the front of his shirt ripped to pieces to where it was barely hanging on over his shoulders. A large gash across his front from his left shoulder and ending just above his right hip was exposed to you. Definitely bigger than the gash along his back. And there was a third smaller gash along his right collar bone ending near his bicep. There was so much blood..How was he even still alive!? Wha-..What happened to him?! What caused him to get like this?! You reached out to touch it his neck for a pulse- But froze as a strong hand snatched you hand. Six eyes opened up and gazed up at the blurry figure above him. Not making any sense of the blurry, spinning vision. Until the eyes rolled up into the back of his head and the last thing he saw was a glimpse of turquoise. ************************************************** Warm. Everything was warm once feeling returned to his body. Which was odd. He was lying on the cold hard ground last he remembered. Logic was of course the first thing to return to him. His thinking was always faster than his reflexes. Then the feeling of his body settled in. Warmth...but incredible aching, throbbing soreness. It throbbed and pained his body. Hmm..So he wasn't dead after all. It was too painful to be heaven and not painful enough to be hell, and too annoying to be purgatory. So he was still alive but had passed out for a short while. An acceptable fate. Now...where was he? Eyes slowly opened themselves up to the world blinking rapidly at the light and his vision blurred until he could see...A one roomed house? It was mostly empty. A coffee table square in the middle, a picture frame or two holding a painting of someone on the walls, a basket in the corner, a shelf full of dishes and other small items, a fireplace with a fire currently going, and a few other bland things. Nothing that really stood out as anything important to him. But who lived here? Why was he inside? How did he get here? And who touched him? Wait...This place looked familiar but his throbbing head couldn't pinpoint why or how. His question was answered when the door opened and the figure of a woman in a blue kimono walked in. The smell of wood drew his attention to the logs she was carrying. Silently he watched as she slid the sliding door back closed with a foot before continuing on to the fireplace and proceeding to feed the fire the wood. He laid there silently staring at her legs as she worked, feeling too weak to look up just yet and not wanting to give himself away just yet. The sounds of a metal poker scraping against the fire appeared for a little while before it too went away and the legs turned to face him. They didn't move again for a long moment before he felt a hand touch his blanketed shoulder- Faster than either expected his left hand shot up to tightly grip a much smaller wrist and squeezed down just enough to get the other body to freeze. "Who are you and where am I?" His eyes turned upwards slowly tilting his head...and he gave pause at the shocked face staring at him. The soft features looking as if sculpted by an angel. Soft, warm, and very beautiful. Definitely a woman. Wait a minute. He knew this troublesome woman. You stared at him in shock at how fast the man moved despite the fact that he was still extremely hurt and had blood loss. He was extremely trained if he could react this fast. You jumped as he lightly squeezed your wrist. It didn't hurt, not at all, but you couldn't move. This man was obviously serious and probably still on edge from whatever happened to him. So taking a breath..you exhaled slowly to calm yourself. "Calm yourself," you spoke holding up your free hand despite his face already being an odd calm, "Relax back. You might reopen your wounds-" "Must we always meet at such ridiculous times?," he asked annoyed slightly, "How did you even move me?" "This is my home. I found you unconscious outside last night and brought you in here, and let me tell you it wasn't easy. You're very heavy and I had to drag you foot by foot. I was so scared I'd open your wounds more." You watched his eyes looking you up and down.. before he slowly let go of your wrist and lowered his arm back down but paused when he saw the white wrapped around his palm and held his hand out to look at the bandages wrapped around it. Before his eyes slowly looked down at his now uncovered torso and saw even more bandages snuggly wrapped around his entire upper body, over his right shoulder, and part of his upper right arm. A hand reached up to feel his head and again found more bandages wrapped around his forehead. The throbbing soreness he's been feeling throbbed from most of the bandaged spots. And a deep inhale made him aware of some kind of ointment or herbal treatment under them. "...You have treated my wounds." You nodded finally smiling at him. "I did." He slowly looked back to you and blinked. "I wasn't aware that you had medical training." "I don't. I only know so much because I accidentally cut my hands a lot when I carve soaps and candles." You held up your palms displaying the years worth of scars from cuts of all sizes you've gotten over the years from your job. He hummed. "My sword. Where is it?" "It's by the table. You were passed out so I didn't know what to do with it otherwise." He looked back to you. "Your shirt was also ruined but I managed to save your other clothes. They're washed and drying outside so you should be able to get them back soon." "I see." Again he looked back to his body. "What of the state of my injuries?" "You have a few large gashes across your back, chest, and shoulder here," you gestured to his torso. "But they're not deep at all and should heal rather quickly. You have a few cuts also but they're even smaller and should heal faster." You then frowned. "However I am worried about how much blood you managed to lose. There was so much. I honestly thought you were dead when I first saw you." "I'll live," he said simply before sighing through his nose. "Is there anyone else that lives here?" You shook your head. "No. Just me-" "Where does that door there lead?" He pointed out the Smaller sliding door near the shelf. Oh right. You never told him that whenever he was here. "Oh. That leads into my bathroom." You blinked before looking at him. "My house isn't that-" You blinked at the man who was sitting up. ... Kokushibo was .. sitting up. The man was sitting up despite his blood loss- He sighed through his nose before pulling the blanket to drap around his shoulders and slowly struggled to stand up. Your jaw dropped in disbelief as he was able to stand up and turned keeping the blanket draped over himself. Eventually you shook you head and snapped after him. "Hey! W-Wait a minute!" He stopped when you grabbed the blanket around him and tugged back. "Where do you think you're going?!" "To bathe." He turned his head back to you. "Please bring me my clothes." He then tugged the blanket out of your hands and continued on his way. Grabbing a towel from the shelf and entering your bathroom. You stood there stunned for a very long time opening and closing your mouth like a fish before you looked at the empty futon and then back to the door as the faint sounds of running water started up. ....HOW WAS HE ABLE TO STAND AND WALK RIGHT NOW?! HE SHOUDN'T EVEN BE ABLE TO SIT UP!! But there he was. You were absolutely stunned to say the least, but did as he asked and got the clothes you cleaned from the line. You ended up just quickly shoving them inside closing your eyes and slamming the door back shut to give him respect of privacy. He still took his sweet time however and the next time he opened the door he was fully clothed minus a shirt. Steam escaped from the room behind him as he approached your sitting form at the table but he didn't even acknowledge you. Just reaching out to grab the sword off the table. He stood there examining the sheath of the blade with a calm face... before he paused. His eyes went wide as his arm flew to clutch his stomach as a wave of pain and dizzying nausea came over him. He stumbled two steps to the right before something grabbed onto him barely able to lift him up. "I TOLD you! You're body's too weak to stand yet. C'mon. Come lay back down." You some how managed to hold up his heavy body just enough to make it back to the futon and help him sit down but he refused to lay down no matter how hard you pushed him to lay back so you gave up and just looked at him breathing heavily. "There. Now don't try that again. You need to recover." His hair was down now completely cascading down his body and slightly wet covering most of his back but he still turned to you peeking through his hair. "It seems...so. I must take some time to recover." "I also need you to remove your coat." He raised a brow at you. "To replace the bandages you removed. It'd be better if I treated them properly." He remained silent but placed the sword on his lap and reached up to silently remove his black and purple checkered coat. You blinked but quickly looked away with red rising to your cheeks. Right! You'd better get those bandages. You were surprised at how silent and calm he was. Not once did he flinch or make a hurt face when you retreated his injuries. Only silently raising his arms and moving his hair when you wrapped new clean bandages around his torso red faced. He was...very physically fit. When you were finished he just silently pulled the coat back over his shoulders. "You should be fine now but you should rest." He hummed in response. ".... Why were you behind my house?" "Why do you need to know?" You rose a brow. "Well considering I found a demon bleeding near my home and treated him without asking for payment in return I think an explanation would be the least you could give me." "I owe nothing." "Maybe not but it would be polite." There was silence again before he said one word. "Fine." You blinked before smiling. "Well good. Now-..Would you tell me what you were doing outside my home?'' He hummed again cracking an eye open at you. "Nosey aren't you?" "Concerned is more like it. You'd be too if you found a bloodied man outside your home." You then glanced at the sword on his lap. "...Were you fighting?" A large hand clasped around the sword in an instant. "....Yes." He settled on saying carefully after studying your face for a long moment. "I was engaged in battle before coming here." Your brow rose. "Combat in the middle of the woods?" "I prefer traveling without trouble following. The forest provides a peaceful cover. However I miscalculated an ambush. I will not make the same mistake." Who attacked him? Other samurai? You've seen these men a few times while in town from the waring clans but never spoke to one until Kokushibo. "....But do I have to worry about trouble coming here?" "...No. I have already assured that I wouldn't be dealing with them again." You decided not to delve further into that. Wasn't your business anyways. At least you didn't have to worry about trouble showing up on your doorstep. You slowly closed the box containing your medical kit. "I'll have to buy some more supplies in town. ...Are you hungry? A full stomach would help you feel better." He hummed again. " You're cooking beef stew in the fireplace." He nodded. "I will take it." "And water." He again looked at you. "You lost a lot of blood. You need fluids and get rehydrated fast or else something bad might happen." You stood up and turned away from him. "I'd rather not have my guest collapsing on me again." Walking over to the shelf, you placed the box back. "You can stay here until you recover, but I think it might be a good idea if I had the village's doctor come look at you-" "NO." You turned around blinking at him as he narrowed his eyes at you. "I won't have anyone else seeing me or knowing I am here. I will stay until I am well enough to walk within a week but until then no one else will know I'm here." The intensity of the state he was giving you reminded you of a wolf staring at a rabbit. ..And you suddenly had a thought that perhaps you had better stay out of whatever business Kokushkbo had. So you nodded and he relaxed back but still stared at you. Watching as you set about getting him a plate stuffed full of rice and beef and whatever else you decided to give him. "Thank you." He said plainly before just grabbing a pair of chopsticks to start eating. "I hope you don't mind such a meager meal. I don't have exactly have access to top meat." "This will be enough for now but I will need more later to fuel my body's regeneration rate." He said before just silently putting a chunk of the food in his mouth...and pausing before just looking at the food. You noticed that and tilted your head. "Is something wrong? It's too hot isn't it?" He was slow to respond. "No... It's quite good. I rarely have home cooked foods." Mostly he feasted on prey he caught these last few months between the battle fields and missions and home cooked meals like this were rare these days. You smiled at him. "Thank you. If you're still hungry later then you're welcome to take more of it. If you can't move just ask me and I'll get you more." A jug full of water and a cup was placed next to him. "Here's some water. Drink some. I'm going to clean up the mess you made of my bathroom. Next time don't leave your old bandages next to the tub." "My apologies." He did not say anything else as you left to clean up the bathroom and dispose of the old slightly bloodied bandages he had wrapped around himself. "Burn them." You paused in the middle of carrying the small pile of bloodied bandages in your hands. "What?" "Burn them in the fireplace." His eyes glanced to the fire. "It'll better for any trace of me to be cloaked for now." He took another sip of his tea before looking at your face calmly but seriously. "When you are finished, I want you to take the ashes from the fire pit and go outside. Cover any pools of blood I might've left behind with them. It'll mask the scent until the dirt fully absorbs the blood away." "Mask the scent from who?" "Anyone wishing to find me and finish what the others failed to do. Try not to let anyone see you do it." You weren't exactly sure who these 'people' were, but you'd rather not risk it considering the spike of fear from his words. So you did what he asked with an approving hum from him. Throwing the old bandages into the fire until they burnt into ash and collecting the burnt out ashes and logs in a metal bucket nearby. He only watched silently still eating as you heaved the heavy bucket out of your house, around back, and where you found his collapsed body. Sure enough there was some red blood stained there from where he laid for who knows how long before you found him. Taking the still hot ashes, you made quick work of it looking around yourself to be sure no one else was watching you before all the red ground was covered up. Leaving you to scurry back inside to him. He seemed pleased with your work and just finished eating silent before you began collecting the dishes he set aside once he was finished with it. He stayed like that for the rest of the day, just silently sitting there and looking like he was in deep meditation. You didn't disturb him still feeling strange from the intense look he gave you earlier. However you did comply with him when he asked for more food before retiring to the futon you set up. Not wanting to disturb him, you just pulled out a spare set of blankets from the shelf and curled up near the front door just in case you needed to jump out for whatever reason. However you woke up the next morning in surprise to find him sound asleep still. Seeing as you still had a quiet morning to yourself, you quietly made your way out to go to work which wasn't too long a job but you thought that the man would've been awake by the time you came back. You were surprised to see that he wasn't. Instead he remained there in the same position you saw him in when you first got up. Long hair splayed all around him. But what caught your attention towards him was the twitching of his eyelids. He looked incredibly bothered by something. So when a hand touched his forehead, his eyes snapped open immediately to look at you. "You're running a fever...It doesn't feel too high thankfully. I have some fever medicine in my kit. I'll give you some and you should feel fine later." He merely hummed before closing his eyes back shut. "Do what you must." You smiled and made to move..but paused. Removing your hand you stared at his bare forehead in confusion. ".... That's strange. Didn't you have a cut on your forehead?" "You're mistaken." He didn't bother opening his eyes. You stared at him before opening your mouth. That's not true. You DID treat a cut on his forehead but again you decided not to bother fighting him and again treat him with a herbal tea infused with the medicine. He opened his eyes and would've sat up to take the drink from you, but blinked as all of a sudden a hand pushed itself under his head and lifted him with extreme gentleness he'd never felt before. As if he was cracked glass and at any moment could shatter. Something warm and herbal smelling wafted over his lips as you cradled his head and held the cup to his lips. "Here. Drink." The eyes stared up at yours and how soft your features were... before they glanced at the cup, and slowly opened his mouth. It was enough for you to tilt the cup for him to drink taking great care to not spill any on him. Making sure to also give him breaks between gulps to allow him to breath until it was empty. He'll also need something solid in his stomach. Good thing you still had leftovers from dinner last night. He didn't make any moves to stop you from cradling his head and feeding him until he seemed to be full enough and you gently encouraged him to sit back up. You needed to treat his wounds again. He seemed to struggle to sit up by himself so you had to push him up into a sitting position before you could again treat him. He just remained silent and compliant throughout the entire process until he was laying back down and a cool wet towel was being pressed against his forehead. "There you go. You should feel better soon. Is there anything else you want?" "No. This should suffice." You smiled at him again. "Well you should be well for now. I'll come back later and get you some more water after I finish cleaning the house. For now rest." He looked at you closely. "You're doing your duties even while caring for someone else fully?" "Well ..Yes. You're my guest, and I should be a good hostess but I shouldn't neglect my chores either." "Hm. The markings of a devoted housewife." He nodded. "Your future husband will be pleased." You paused blinking.. before slowly looking at him with a look. "I'm not seeing anyone for the last time.." His eyes looked back to you. "Really. I'm not. I clean my home and provide for my own person because I like independence." His brow rose higher than before. "A woman living alone and supporting herself?" The eyes scanned you up and down. That was unheard of. "With how young and beautiful you are? A woman by your age is usually married or engaged to be married soon. It's unheard of to hear that you're not." You paused. Before your face lit up a light pink at his words but despite that you shook your head with a frown. "No. I like living by myself and providing for just me. It's simpler and more peaceful." "You do not want to be married? Or start a family?" You gave a thoughtful look. "Well..I think it would be nice to settle down eventually, but it shouldn't be forced. Marriage is supposed to be about love for one another, not just what I look like." "You haven't gotten any suitors?.. Outside of the man calling himself Sabo." You shook your head picking up a bucket. "No. I have but most of the ones I've gotten have always been pushy or only wanted to marry me because they thought I was pretty or for some other selfish reason. Living on the edge of town helps but sometimes someone still comes here and try their luck. Some more pushy than others. A lot of the time they don't like hearing no." Kokushibo silently seemed to be giving a thoughtful, considerate look to what you had to say. "I see." He said nothing else as his eyes closed once again and you left to fetch a pail of water from your bathroom. If he wanted to rest then you wouldn't disturb him. Only rolling up your sleeves/bottom of your kimono before starting to scrub the floors. He remained still as you worked even as you moved furniture and pushed him and the futon over at one point to clean under him. He merely perked an eye open, before immediately closing it again unbothered by anything. Made no difference to you. You just continued to go about your business dusting, sweeping, mopping, etc. You again changed the towel on his forehead and fed him more later in the day but it wasn't anything special. However come the third morning he was there you started to think maybe demons were more supernatural than you thought. You had woken up as usual and gotten up but froze when you found the back door open and he was just sitting there already helping himself to what must've been the last of the large pot of stew and rice you made. How the heck was he able to eat so much? He noticed you before you could even say something. "Apologies for devouring your food. If I wish to regenerate fully faster, I need more sustenance to sustain the energy my body uses to generate the healing process. But rest assured this only means I won't be a bother for you sooner." You blinked looking at where he had been resting the day before then at him opening your mouth.. before just closing it. "It's..not a problem. You must be really hungry. I'll cook you a few eggs." He only tilted his head slightly as you silently went over to make his bed, without complaining about it to him, before exciting the home to begin your work. A woman who didn't complain about things he did and just offered him more food without a second thought. The markings of a good woman who'd take good care of her husband and the home when he was away. However she seemed very stubborn minded about remaining single. She'd most likely die alone. He'd just finished the food you'd given him and you took his plate away with a smile when a knocking noise from the front door caught your attention. Kokushibo merely cracked an eye open from his meditative state. Neither of you moved and then the knocking came back again but louder. "Who could that be?," you mumbled putting the plates to the side. "A man." From the presence he sensed and by the smell, it was a male around the same age as you and from the smell of animals, he was either a hunter or was wearing some kind of animal pelts. You hesitated looking at him both wondering how he knew that and a bit concerned. He said he didn't want anyone to know that he was here, but he didn't make any moves to hide or move out of sight...You supposed it would just be ok to answer the door, you just had to make sure to not accidentally show Kokushibo was there. So with a sigh you steeled yourself with a smile and walked on over to the front door, just sliding it open enough to peek your head out... before you blinked and your face frowned. "What are you doing here?" Kokushibo's head perked up at the heavy distaste in your tone. "I came to see the love of my life.~ Isn't it obvious?~ I missed you so much.~", came a gruff but young male's voice he'd never heard before. Behind the door you placed a hand on your hip. "You're not allowed back in town. You were banned after you almost killed that elder a year ago." "It was an honest mistake-" "You got drunk and picked a fight with that poor old man for no reason! On top of that you dishonored your family and that was on top of the pile of horrible things you've done!" "You don't live in town. This is just outside it, so I'm not breaking any laws." Kokushibo's head turned to the side and rose a brow seeing a hand caress the side of your head through the doorway. "I missed you.~" SLAP! The hand was harshly slapped away from your face. "GET OFF MY PROPERTY!!" You bellowed out at him in a tone that surprised Kokushibo could come from such a soft lady especially since he's never heard such a tone come from you. ''I don't know who you think you are but you're not welcome here! You're NEVER welcome here! You disgust me to no end! Now get off my property! I don't want to see you again!" There was an instant reaction to your words. One of which being that you were shoved back harshly. Enough to send you stumbling back and falling to the floor as the sliding door slammed open and someone stepped inside. The someone was a man about her age maybe a year or two older with a few scars and clothing made from animal skins. Ah. That explained the smell of animals. He walked in initially with a smirk on his face but paused upon seeing the face of another man staring back at him calmly and silently. Except Kokushibo made sure that he kept his eyes under his hair, concealing his true identity. You shook your head scooting back from the new man entering your home and glared at him. The two men silently stared at one another before finally the first one sneered in anger and pointed at Kokushibo. "Who the hell are you?!", he demanded. "Who I am is not important for you to know," he responded back calmly only making the newcomer angrier. "What?! Did you get married or something while I was gone?!" He snapped to you in question. "So what if I did?!" "SO YOU GOT MARRIED!?" "Again that's none of your business! I don't owe you any explanation on what goes on in my life! GET OUT OF MY HOUSE!!" The man didn't. Instead he snarled at Kokushibo who took his sweet time standing up and turning to face him. His calm expression beyond repair making him even more so. "I believe she had asked you to leave this house," he spoke more calmly half lidded eyes staring at him. You looked up at him. Holy crap...he was a lot taller than he looked. "Tch. And what right do you have to it?," he asked silently sizing the samurai up. "None. I am nothing but a mere guest to this household however you are not. Now you had best be on your way. I would find it improper for you to stay any longer." Perhaps it was the previous blood loss that had dulled his senses or the fact he didn't take this man as a threat (and to be perfectly honest he wasn't a threat at all) but when a hand shot out he stiffened awaiting the blow- However it-...Never came? The smell of blood filled his nose after a body flew up and something metallic and shiny slashed across your face. A cut formed on your cheek. Pain exploded as you yelled out stumbling back until you collided with a body. Kokushibo blinked as you fell against him easily catching you in one strong arm as you gritted your teeth and clutched your cheek as a cut bled out on. Kokushibo slowly blinked as you felt tests start to stream down your face. Kokushibo slowly let his eyes grow wide before looking at the man who also seemed surprised as he held up a dagger. "Leave him alone!," you bellowed out at the other man, "He's hurt enough! Just leave us alone! GET OUT! GET OUT!! GET OUT!!" Well..that escalated rather quickly. He stared at the woman starting to cry in his arms then back to the man holding the knife. Her body was slowly slid until she was gently placed on the floor. Turquoise eyes blinked as he easily stepped over and placed himself between her and the other man. An unusual feeling of anger bubbling from his surface and he found himself wanting to do nothing more than smash this man's head open like a walnut. ..The sobbing continued behind him which made him give pause. Hmm. That would possibly escalate the situation to a much worse scale. Kokushibo decided he wouldn't be ending any lives. Not now. Not today at least. He chillingly looked back to the man. "You have been told to leave. If you don't wish bodily harm upon you, you'll honor the request." The other man stared at him before daring to growl. "Who's gonna make me? You?" "Obviously. Normally I wouldn't care of what business or purpose you have with her, but you attacked my hostess. I can't simply let that slide." "I'm not going to let a woman order me around like a weakling. And I'm sure as hell not going to let you get between me and my business!" An arm was raised up high and the dagger was raised only to be swiped down- And grabbed by a large fist faster than either could comprehend. Shocked eyes stared into the calm face, eyes hidden by burgundy hair. CRACK- Your body curled up on itself as a man's shriek echoed throughout the home. Pain wailing through his hand and up his arm shooting off like fireworks. The knife fell to the ground with a clatter by their feet as Kokushibo effortlessly and calmly crushed the man's hand. It was all a quick blur. His hand swiping from the hand to his neck, grabbing him by the throat and lifting up. You watched shocked as Kokushibo was able to effortlessly lift up the dangling man like he was nothing and walk him to the open front door struggling and wheezing for air grabbing at the calloused hand clamped around his throat. Until the samurai stopped just in the doorway. "A man's place is to protect and provide for the woman he devotes his life to. Your proclamations of love are as empty as your threats. You are neither a man nor a worthy lover. It's only because I'm being courteous to my hostess that you live. She just cleaned last night and I'd hate to make a mess and ruin all her hard work. But make no mistakes. Should our paths cross again for whatever reason..." The calm eyes narrowed as the grip increased. "I will be the last thing you see before death claims you." The man's body dropped like a ragdoll with a thud and a large gasp left his mouth followed by a current of coughs as sweet oxygen filled his lungs. He simply watched him wriggle and struggle like the pathetic worm he was before he was able to scowl and struggle himself away. He stood there until he was no longer in sight and then some before closing the door in front of him. Silence resumed for a long moment. "...That was incredibly stupid of you." You blinked as he turned to look at you. "I didn't ask you to defend me and if you do it again I'll be sure it's the last time you do." You ...just blinked. Staring at him as tears continued to roll down your cheeks before you scowled. "I-" "Should be the one protected," he stated bluntly, "It's a man's job to protect the women not the other way around. You've already done me a great deed by feeding me, giving me shelter, and treating my wounds without a thing in return. I owe your safety at least in return." You said nothing as he walked on over to the shelf and grabbed the box you kept your medical supplies in. "Now treat the wound. It will be better if you did." You wiped at your face before nodding. "F-Fine. But remove your coat so I can care for your wounds in return.'' "There is no need. They will be fully healed by tomorrow anyways." That wasn't true. The gashes on him weren't deep but they'd take a long time to heal fully. "Even still, it'd be better to treat the wounds until they heal fully and I said I'd take care of you until you healed fully." He regarded you for a long moment. "A woman who insists on treating others before herself...You would be an ideal wife if the right man wished to court you." You deadpanned at him. "Nevertheless I agree but treat your cheek first." You didn't argue against that or when he suddenly pressed a cloth to your face to wipe off the tears and blood from your cut. Your eyes just widened as a hand tilted your head up to look at him and he continued working...a redness spreading across your face much to his inner amusement. "Who was that man?" His voice made you jump. "W-What?" "He seemed to know you. Was he a past lover?" You scowled in his hold. "He wishes. No. Not even remotely." He hummed. "He seems to think otherwise." "His family owns a successful fur trading business in town. Because of that he's very spoiled. He thinks he can get away with anything but last year he was exiled from town because he almost killed an elderly man after he got drunk and picked a fight with him for no reason. Everyone was tired of his selfishness." "What is his business with you?" "Nothing. His parents tried to convince me to make an arranged marriage between us as children and I guess since I've told him no he can't seem to get over it. But I'm afraid he might make good on that loophole." He hummed wiping around your cut. "Technically I don't live in town. I live just on the outskirts of it. So if he comes back here then he wouldn't be breaking the law.'' "And they never asked your parents for that?" "I don't have any parents." He paused giving you a look of interest. "Years ago there was a wild fire in the area that burnt down a quarter of the town. A few people were killed in the flames. My parents were two of them." He watched as her eyes sadly looked back down to her work. "I was taken in and raised by a very nice older couple who didn't have any children. I'm forever grateful for their kindness especially concerning my boundaries. However now Nori has returned-" "If he returns, he dies." You blinked as he seriously spoke. "I warned him. If he so chooses to not listen to that warning then he'll face the consequences of his own actions. I never go back on my word." You blinked at him before pulling away red faced. "Y-You didn't have to do that." "I did what my role entails." The rustling of clothing had you look over and freeze as his purple and black checkered coat dropped to his feet and exposed his torso to you. "Now you may treat me like you wanted." Your eyes stared at his toned chest- "It's rude to stare." Jumping you scrambled grabbing your medical kit as he just calmly raised an arm to allow you to quickly pull away the old bandages and trying (and failing-) to not stare at his torso and his scars-...Wait. The bandages fell away from his skin and you froze staring at his wounds. Except..they weren't wounds. They weren't even scars! They were just light markings that looked extremely faded to the point that they were barely present. You just...stared at them. Wounds don't heal that fast. Staring silently you slowly looked up at his eyes. "Is something the matter?" You opened and closed your mouth but quickly shook your head no. "N-No! You're healing up quite nicely! You were right when you said you'd be better in a week!" You offered a smile. "After this I'll make you some more food and drink. Do you like tea?" "That's fine....You mentioned that you had no lover?" You shook your head busing yourself by just removing his old bandages trying not to think too much about the mysterious scars. He... probably just had a rare healing rate. Or the wounds weren't as serious as you thought at first "No. Nori was very selfish and any others weren't really what I was looking for. I'd rather make my own way." "Would you ever accept a courtship?" "Well...Yes. I might if the man wasn't interested in my looks or any other selfish reason. Like you for example. You don't seem to care much about those things. If someone as materialistic as you proposed to me or if I asked I would hope he said yes.Uh...N-No offense." "None taken." He raised his arm higher looking over you carefully before closing his eyes with a hum. "Like me?" "Y-Yes. But that's rare to happen-" "I see." Kokushibo did not leave when he stayed an entire week. Your shock of seeing Nori near sun down left you just finishing bandaging him and cleaning up the small mess Nori left behind. Kokushibo took the dagger Nori left, but you had no idea what he did with it. He only returned to what he had been doing before Nori showed up, which was meditate for the rest of the day until it was finally nighttime. Kokushibo insisted on you taking back your futon and you still bring in shock just laid down staring at the ceiling until you fell asleep. You awoke the next morning to once again finding Kokushibo silently meditating in the corner helping himself to what must've been a full jug of water. Yesterday's events shot through your mind and you got up sitting up immediately. "I see you're awake," he stared plainly, "I was beginning to wonder if you were going to sleep in the entire morning. I'm quite hungry." You only gave him a look of annoyance before nodding with a sigh. "Alright but then I need to head for work." "Is that wise?" He asked watching you stretch and get up. "Your cheek is still wounded. Someone might ask questions." "I'll just say that I accidentally made a wild fox angry or something." You yawned again and he couldn't help but blink at your figure stretching out gracefully. "It would be more suspicious if I didn't show up to work." "Hm. Understandable. Will you be cooking me a meal?" You deflated only looking at him before sighing and moving to get him the food he asked for. If he was still recovering from the blood loss then he shouldn't push himself until he was fully recovered. He mentioned it would take him a week to recover right? Today was the fourth day so he'll only be here for another three days at most. Maybe he'd forget about you once he left. But for now you'd keep your promise and care for him. It was the least you could do after he drove Nori away. Hopefully that would keep him away too... Oh how wrong you were about that. You ended up serving him more eggs and fruit from the wild trees. He didn't seem to mind however and thanked you before taking it. Leaving you to just go about your work until retiring that night. As suspected your boss asked about the cut on your cheek, but she only scoffed and called you clumsy when you told her you had just fallen on sharp rocks. The next two days were relatively the same. He'd meditate or watch as you went about your own chores after you got back from work or to ask you to cook for him which you obliged. You also checked over his injuries only to find they had healed to the point that there wasn't even any scars left behind. You'd never seen anything like in on another man. Even your had small scars from burning himself on a stove or cutting himself on a carving tool. Perhaps he was born with fast metabolism that fueled his body's healing? Would be why he ate so much. You didn't bring it up. You were feeling relief on the seventh day. It'd be his last day here before he left apparently and you wouldn't stop him. However you weren't expecting him to ask you for a brush for his hair. Huh... come to think of it his hair had been worn down outside of the ponytail he had when you found it. "I'll fix your hair for you if you'd like me to," you offered which caught him off guard as he blinked at you in light surprise, "I can style hair a little bit. My mother showed me how to, so I can put your hair back up if you want." Kokushibo just slowly blinked again before closing his eyes with an exhale through his nose. "Do as you wish." You smiled in return at him and went to fetch your brush. He didn't move but did lightly open his eyes when he heard you return and grab a strand of his long soft hair. It was soft to the touch and you took gently care in pulling apart the small knots you felt before even pulling the brush through the very bottom of the long fall of hair. He found the treatment acceptable so allowed it to continue. There was silence for a while as you hesitated until you spoke again. "You have beautiful hair... You're a very handsome man." He froze. Something soft and gentle touched his head which automatically made him freeze. His body instinctively standing on end and a thumb and finger curiously tugged gently at a strand of hair....But no hard metal comb yanked through his scalp. Instead two gentle hands caressed the strands and gently began to weave out the tangled big and small so slowly it didn't even pinch. A hum of a woman's patient voice sneaking through as she worked. The murmurs of a lullaby echoed and gentleness wafted with it. Silence. Other than the lulling memories of melodies and the soft touch that was left behind. "Heart. Beats. Fast. Colors and promises. How to be brave? How can I love when I'm afraid to fall? But watching you stand alone?" You gently pried apart two strands of burgundy hair as Kokushibo remained still. "But watching you stand alone, all of my doubts suddenly go away some how." hands gripped into the fabric. He fell silent and didn't make any moves to stop her. When was the last time he ever felt such a gentle touch? He couldn't remember? Perhaps when he was a babe still in his mother's arms before he was snatched away into the harsh care of his father. Perhaps whenever His brother insisted on being kind to him. Maybe when he even indulged himself for the company of a woman when nights were particularly cold and hard. But this?..No. Never this. Never something so...intimate. A thing to share between lovers. His body went into absolute shock as tears weld up in those eyes and freely flowed down his face from the gentle treatment. "One step closer. I have died everyday waiting for you. Darling don't be afraid I have loved you for a thousand years. I'll love you for a thousand more. " You continued working through the hair which was surprisingly easy to brush through. "Time stands still. Beauty in all she is. I will be brave. I will not let anything anything take away what's right in front of me. Every breath. Every hour has come to this." Arms lightly shook as she nearly completed her work and red eyes watery glanced at the blankets that covered him. Pathetic. That's what his father would call him if he saw this. The state he was in. The emotions his body shook and caved into. Stop it, stop it! Regain control of your body!! Do not allow your useless emotions to conquer your mind! "One step closer. I have died everyday waiting for you. Darling don't be afraid I have loved you for a thousand years. I'll love you for a thousand more. And all along I believed I would find you. Time has brought your heart to me. I have loved you for a thousand years. I'll love you for a thousand more." You finished up and leaned back to look at your handy work. However he just slammed his eyes shut from view and snapped his head away so you didn't have any clue he was even crying. Instead you rose a brow. Wow. You weren't expecting a thank you but that was a bit rude of him. "I'm finished," you told him even though he probably already knew that by now, "But I would like to get your bangs too if that's ok?" You leaned over more causing his body to visibly stiffen. "Oh. Are you alright?" "..I am fine." He forced his body to relax with a sigh through his nose. Quickly picking up his haori he had taken off earlier and slipped it back on over his shoulders, briefly wiping his face off to cleanse himself of the proof of his weakness. "You may proceed and finish but do so quickly. I intend to leave tonight as per my plans." "Do you think you'll be ready? I mean you were so hurt just days ago," you mumbled in concern shuffling to sit in front of him and gently grabbed the hair framing his face before running your brush through it too. "Why don't you stay one more night? You might feel better." "No. I will leave once it's sun down. It's almost time anyways." She sighed and he cracked his eyes up at her. She was sitting in front of him now but looked at him once he grabbed your hand gently. "I have a question to ask you." She blinked her big shiny eyes at him. "That man from earlier this week, he wanted to marry you. I can see why you haven't accepted him, but why not anyone else? Why not just give someone your companionship already?" You gave him a look before sighing. "Because there's no one who's shown me respect or at least interest in an equal partnership." "And you would let that stop you how? I would see no benefits in waiting so long." "Respect is earned not given." You firmly stated reaching out to again brush aside his bangs. "I hope for someone can get me to respect them not by intimidation, but by mutual respect. I want a good man. A strong man who doesn't see me as just a woman or a wife or something just to give him children. I want a man who sees me as an equal. As a person with my own mind. Someone to share our lives together. Not to put one above the other. I want someone better than what I was offered before." "... Interesting. What would you say would make someone better?" "I don't think anyone is better than anyone else unless they chose to be a bad person." You rose a brow. Why was he asking you this? "I don't think I'm better than you or anyone else. It's not that simple either however." His gaze on you intensified. "Explain." "I just said it's not easy to explain. You may have a higher position than someone like a homeless person but I would still treat you as an equal and with respect as long as I see you treating others with the same respect and equality. If you believe something like strength or wealth makes you better then that's your own flaw." What would be a good way to explain this in a way a demon could understand a human? "...A painter may not have the strength of a blacksmith but that doesn't mean they both can't create beautiful masterpieces. A florist may not know how to till the land like a farmer but that doesn't mean they can't grow beautiful plants. A teacher may not be able to win against the strength of a samurai but that doesn't mean their different skills makes one more important than the other.," You explained making him look up in awe at you. "You can lose skills, you can gain skills. There's always going to be people that do things better than you, and there's always going to be people that do things way worse than you. But that shouldn't define the worth of a person. Whether it be a man, woman, child, or even a demon." He regarded you for a silent second before humming. "Then how do you define who is a good person?" "That isn't as simple either." "What do you mean?" "Some people are just good. Some people are just bad....But a lot of times it's subjective to different people. Good people can do bad things especially if they think what they're doing justifies the greater good. Bad people can do good things if they want to, whether that's because they still have some kindness or because it's to get what they want I can't say. ...But most people I believe aren't inherently bad or good. Most fall in a place between." "Then....What traits do you use to judge others if you yourself have done wrong?," he spoke to you. You blinked surprised at all the sudden questions from Kokushibo but it was interesting to know that he wanted to know your opinion. "Well...Firstly Id admit what I did was wrong and not deny it. Secondly, I would judge someone else by what makes up that person." You gestured at him. "Their actions, their words, their morals, their personalities, and how they apply all of those things when interacting with me or anyone else. I'd also think about their point of view if I thought it would help me know how or why they would treat someone in a way." There was silence afterwards for a long, long moment. You could feel him looking directly at you calculating, as he was trying to figure out how he felt about what you just said to him. You wordlessly went back to brushing through his bangs silently. That was another thing about Kokushibo you liked. From all of your interactions he never really pushed anything when you said no. He never yelled at you the way your boss did calling you foolish and naive. He never did anything Nori did. Oh definitely not. Sure he called you troublesome but it seemed more because of the strange ways you both kept meeting up. Ironic. The first and only demon you've ever met and he treated you better than a lot of people already did by being silent and just listening. Your eyes gazed over at his still observing you and you really took a moment to really look at him closely. He really was rather handsome. If it wasn't for the fangs and extra eyes, he would've been no different than any other man. It's sad these simple features were ridiculed by everyone else. His eyelids closed on instinct when a hand reached up to touch his face but he stiffened shocked. Her delicate fingertips soothing over the soft skin, reaching over to trace the mark on his forehead. His open eyes instinctively darting to your hands caressing his features. ".... You're different from all the others." He visibly stiffened at your words. "Your structure is beautiful that way." He stopped fully just ... looking at you yellow irises expanding wider. You smiled. "Just by looking at you, you're very strong. I guess that's why you're so power-" You stopped once as two large hands just grabbed yours within their grip. The brush dropping to the floor with a thud. "-ful. Uh..K-Kokushibo?" "Your eyes." He mumbled leaning closer holding your hands within his grip. "I have..never seen such color before on any woman." You stopped in front of the lights shining on you just the right way to give him the impression you were an angel. A sight he was hesitant to leave when he bent down. Huh. And you were both closer than he remembered. Just a few inches from one another twinkling under the fire pit 's lights. And you blinked at the sudden closeness too. Face going a dim pink and a few chuckles from the moment escaping you. No one was here too. So it was just you two. Alone out here with nothing but each other for company. His mind felt completely blank and numb but in a good way, compelling him to reach his hands up and cup a cheek of yours something his rational brain wouldn't allow himself to do. Inches away now. You didn't move away. He stared at the woman in front of him, this strange, strange woman with the beautifully flowing hair and the cute smile. If he was watching this as an outsider, he would've laughed at how they were literally just strangers less than a while ago, but right now it didn't seem any of that or anything else mattered. Not even the topic they had been discussing just a few seconds ago. The draft blew some and blowing some of that pretty hair into his face, which she immediately reached to pull away and Kokushibo made no move to stop her from doing that. Or removing the hand that now cupped his cheek. Maybe it really was a mutual madness they both shared or some form of chaos in their lives, but right now....With them being so close...And so vulnerable. It was only natural of course-.. It's what soulmates do-.. Of course they would since-... Your lips just pressed for a few wonderful seconds before Kokushibo suddenly pulled himself away looking at you and breathing heavily. His grip on you tightening and untightening in waves as if restraining himself. His warm breath ghost over your lips and face warning them as he stared half lidded. "I need to know that you know the consequences of being seen with a demon." his usual monotone voice whispered out, "I need to know that you know fully what the implications of being with a demon will do to your reputation if they found out you let me stay here let alone kiss me. If anyone found out... You'll be exiled. Ridiculed. Shamed wherever you go if they know-" His answer was her death gripping his head and pulling him close. Soft lips collided with his as he was again taken off guard. "How many times is this woman going to surprise me?" Yes. Then he had a few more things to take care of after. *********************************************** Beware of things that go bump in the night. Moonlight peeked out through clouds chasing the darkness away a little. Enough for someone to have a little sense of sight in the somber darkness. Most living creatures hiding away from view all warm and snug in their homes inside dens and hollowed out trees. Or if you were a human, you'd be found safe and sound in your house. Snug cozy and warm inside their soft beds in slumber until the safety of the sun next morning. However one would not survive this night. The walls didn't provide a sleeping man shelter. A door didn't stop the Moon's Shadow from sliding it open and stepping inside. Blankets couldn't hide the identity of the person within it's grip. The darkness didn't stop six eyes of hatred from seeing his form. Oh look. He wasn't fast asleep like he expected to be in fact he was barely asleep at all. He was moving around in his sheets. Stacking two extra blankets on him for extra warmth against the cold. Even moving the futon ... dangerously close to the fireplace. The fire was small enough that it'd be out before morning but if it was even slightly bigger than it would surely catch the whole bed and eventually the house on fire. Six orbs maneuvered to the stack of many logs by the fire pit. Yes. Truly it would be a tragedy if the fire was bigger. The shadow loomed over the now terrified looking man. Too shocked to speak out of fear, but not scared enough to grab a nearby pen and thrust it at the approaching abyss. The item successfully sank into flesh but the shadow hardly flinched. No screams or noises were had when a clawed hand wrapped itself around the terrified man's throat and squeezed. "Quiet. You have no say in what you've brought upon yourself." Hands uselessly grabbed at the clasp around his neck. Legs uselessly kicking out. "Between us both, I was actually going to spare your life. Only place you outside and burn everything you hold dear to the ground and watch you have to struggle to actually work for it back like she had to do since your entire bloodline treated her so vile...but then you attacked me-" Again the pen was sunk into him. This time the eyes did widened as pain fell from the still timid flesh that just finished healing. "R-Rot in hell!" A hoarse voice wheezed out from under the fist. "She deserved everything that happened to her. If you weren't here I'd have her doing-" A tighter squeeze ceased all air from his lungs. A different hand slowly reached down to pull the pen from his chest. "The moment you dared to get in my way, was the moment that sealed your fate." Struggling was useless. Futile even. No matter. His fate would be the same as the other then. A hand brought him closer by the neck. This man disgusted him. His claims of having her to himself only furthered that disgust. He remembered her soft hands holding him, the same soft hands THIS PIG harmed. "H E R L O V E B E L O N G S T O M E." A warmth spread throughout the entire home as fireflies flickered around growing flames slowly moving from a futon to other parts of the home. Step after step a shadow took disappearing entirely from view. Their sights already focusing on another important fire burning brightly as the first scream of the town's people awoke. A fire crackled in a bit of rocks. Feasting upon wood that melted into ashes in its grip. A sloshing of liquid heard as a gourd was passed exchanged from one hand to another. Warm skin of a hand warmed by the fire brought the sickly sweetened alcoholic drink to his lips. It burnt his throat in a good way that left him licking the burning sweetness from his lips with a snack, a sleeve wiping at his face as he did so. "We shouldn't be out here," one man out of the six gathered around the fire commented. His face illuminated by its flames casting dancing shadows among them. "I don't like how quiet it is tonight. Listen...Not a bird. Not any beast. Not even the crickets sing their tunes tonight. I tell you it is a bad omen." The man with the burning sweetness on his tongue sneered at his comrade. "Don't start giving me that talk about devils and inhuman monsters. I've hunted and camped in woods more silent than this since I was a child. The only danger you'll face out here is nothing but the usual teeth and claws of a wolf or a bear if you're really unlucky. I don't believe in such things." The rest of the men only muttered in agreement with him or gave glances of weary. "Then we all share in your incompetent thinking by being out her while the moon wanes ordering bloodlust. And for what? A couple of measly game that hasn't even shown themselves." A stick was tossed in frustration to the fire. "I tell you the beasts were scared off by something far scarier. I say we take their warning and head home while we still have light to see by." Another scoff. "A single fat deer would fetch more gold than two giant grizzlies on a good day! Are you really letting your fear blind you from what you could have?!" "Perhaps he's right, Nori." Heads turned to the second oldest man of the group whom was staring at him with a thoughtful expression. "We haven't seen any hide or tail of the herd. Not even a footprint since we got here this morning. Even if there's no monstrous beast, it's obvious that the herd has moved out of the area. We should be home comforting our wives' worries and protecting our families from the dangers of others this night. We'll not be seeing anything here." "BAH!!" The fire hissed in protest as liquid was spilt on thrown from the gourd splashing it as hot the ground. "You all are nothing but a lot of whimpering dogs catering to a woman's stupid fears! We should be looking more instead of lazing around where nothing is happening!!" "You're lucky your parents hired us to tolerate hunting with you! After you got yourself exiled last year, you've done nothing but lust for a woman and then act like an ass when she rejected you!," the second youngest man sneered The older man sighed once more. "Alright...We will give one last look around the area-" He said defusing the situation between the angry men. "-but afterwards we go home. I would rather have the warmth of my wife than that of the fire." Grumbled were had. Murmurs were said. Footsteps crashed through the otherwise silent night. The light of the moon distorting everything with an eerie red hue as different men headed different directions. Splitting up to widen the search and make it back to dose the fire faster. Perhaps an unwise choice they would make. Bushes and branches of the trees did not stop the ambition of one man whom stepped his way forward to a direction where the beasts drank their full of water. And the place he'd find a strong stallion or beautiful mare to take for his own. A good horse would put quite a good amount of
Commissions Page (Updated to date) by itshauntedtoon, journal
Commissions Page (Updated to date)
I decided to update my commissions page for both writing and drawing. Please read the rules first. What I WILL do: .oc x oc .oc x cannon .crossovers .different fandoms .ships/oneshots (including crackships and reader inserts) .bios for ocs .custom designs or ocs .ocs or canon characters(unless design proves to be too challenging) What I WILL NOT do: .nsfw .taboo stuff .fetishes (Some are optional PLS discuss first) .extreme bloodshed, gore, themes, etc .draw robots, mechanical things(can't draw those) .any fandoms I know nothing about .toxic topics .anything I say Im not comfortable doing RULES .I have the RIGHT to REFUSE a commission .Please make all payments to the points poll on my page .All writing commissions are 30-45 points each. If you want a sequal then it's another 30-40 points .Drawing commissions are priced each based on detail. Headshot: 10 points each. Shoulder n Up: 15 points Half Body(Middle n Up): 25-30 points depending on the detail of the character Full