#things tsuka wants

[insane-brit]

Royalty (Ch. 2)

Muzan Kibutsuji x Soulmate!Fem!reader

Park Links: Prologue, Chapter one, Chapter two, Chapter three

Tags/Warnings: Enemies to lovers, semi slow burn, dark story/themes, violence, fighting, mentions of prostitution/entertainment, anxiety, shock, anger, flashback.

MINORS DO NOT INTERACT

Word count: 2.7K

The trek to Yoshiwara felt almost effortless despite her interpersonal matters. Her mind was consumed with staring at the thread protruding from her wrist. Receiving this gift bestowed upon her kept her from an ounce of rest that night. She marveled at the tie and couldn’t help the flurry of questions that infiltrated her mind. As much as she prided herself in problem-solving and anything clever, her intellect was stumped. Regardless, she thanked whatever higher power for this opportunity that had forsaken her from a young age.  

She kept her promise to Tengen as much as she wanted to find him and ramble about the occurrence. He would be happy for her but the nagging in her mind knew that it would be selfish to present this information to him when his wives were in potential danger. When the sun broke through the horizon and dawn showed its lovely face, she packed her things and set off. It had been a day or two and the path ahead was cracked. Clear evidence was strewn about of it being a well-traveled route. She supposed that was a good thing. The blazing heat caused sweat to bead along her forehead and nape. Pulling on her haori, she fanned herself in a fruitless attempt to circulate air. 

It wouldn’t be long before she reached the district. The pit in her stomach from the night her thread appeared was still apparent. She thought that it was her intuition expecting something to happen. That something being the appearance of her soul tie, but with every passing minute, it never ceased. She had attempted to suppress the feeling while remaining cautious, but it would relapse and grow every time she tried to forget it. It caused her to lash out at a poor maple tree the previous night. Her Nichirin sword left deep grooves in the bark as she unleashed her irritability and unease. Lucky for her the outburst did not harm her blade. She did not have the time nor patience to deal with Haganezuka and his damned vengeance that would be seeking her blood. That man would know the moment any of his blades even had a scratch and the next minute he’d be screaming obscenities with steel to your throat. Sighing, she chuckled at the thought. He cared for his work, and she admired him for that.

The sun continued its descent to the horizon, the atmosphere growing ever so slightly cooler as she pursued the winding path. The tree’s canopy bestowed some shade upon her figure and a faint breeze accompanied the peaceful atmosphere. If she had to guess, she would make it to Yoshiwara a bit after the sun's rays faded under the vista. Perfect timing on her part and she mentally patted herself on the back.

The shade around her grew until it covered the terrain and a chill shot down her spine. The breeze blew some wisps of hair in front of her face. Caressing her features as she clutched the Tsuka of her blade. The ray skin was coarse against her palm and she gripped it until her knuckles turned white. There was virtually no sound. The birds were silent, cicadas halted their clamor, and all that was heard was the fluttering of leaves. Her heart was in her throat threatening to claw its way out, but she was static. Eyes swept across the dense foliage, searching for the source that caused much attentiveness. 

The crunching and rustling of leaves and twigs promptly made itself known as a commotion rapidly approached her stable form. The movement of air being cut resounded to her right and she swerved as an amalgamation of leathery skin settled in the spot she once stood. Its landing kicked up filth and a cloud of dust blew upwards. Eyes hardening, she readied herself as it subsided. Revealing one of the more grotesque demons she has ever had the pleasure of encountering. Its frame was thin, skin stretched over its bones. Back turned to her, it jolted, and she could hear cracking as its limbs moved unnaturally. The bending of tendons and grinding of joints had her mentally winching. 

“Wretched thing.” She seethed, angling her katana. The blade flashed in the dying rays of the sun and the emerging moonlight that peaked through the canopy. It snapped its head towards her, the eyes were pitch black with a single prick of white in the center and a red line streaked across it. A smile, full of needle-like teeth stretched as it locked its gaze onto her. It darted back and forth between her face and sword. If it was even possible, the grin got wider. 

“A Hashira,” its voice was grainy and sandpaper-like. “Lucky me.” 

She growled lowly and gritted her teeth. How revolting, and to think she was almost to her destination without getting into any trouble.

“I think you’ll find yourself unlucky.”  Digging her foot into the dirt she lunged at the monstrosity. Its face contorted in what looked to be glee before parrying her attack. Retaliating in a flurry of precise assaults aimed to incapacitate the slayer. She veered away with ease and brought her foot up, slamming it into its chest. Staggering backward it groaned, hesitating, and looking stunned. 

“Come on demon!” She hissed and swung her blade. The demon dodged and glared at her. Not making any sudden moves and being motionless. She furrowed her brows and kicked up dust to distract it. Why wasn’t it trying harder? It’s not even moving. 

She had advanced behind it and leaped. Readying her blade to strike its vital point. To sever its head from its neck and watch its twisted body disintegrate. It cocked its head towards her. Eyes wide and mouth stretched into a tight line. It seemed like it was forcibly constant. It raised its arm in a futile attempt to block as she sliced right through the flesh like butter despite its appearance. 

The body stiffened and collapsed in a heap as the head rolled. Coming to a stop a few feet away from her. She watched the expression on its face contort in a multitude of emotions.  “To think, for a second I thought you would’ve fought harder.” She smirked and sheathed her sword. It still looked at her. An expression of shock and something she couldn’t recognize. Frowning, she dusted herself off before turning away from the slowly deteriorating demon. 

“The progenitor.” it rasped. 

She halted and looked over her shoulder. Confusion and agitation were written across her face. 

“His presence,” it choked out as its mouth started to turn to ash. “Hashira, you- “

“Enough with your delusions demon!” she hissed and glowered at the lowly creature. “Whatever scheme you’re planning in death will not deface me in any way. You mutter nonsense and plead to the thing you call Master.” 

For a demon who appeared so delighted in the prospect of fighting a slayer earlier, it was quite a weak and depressing display. Begging for its Master, Kibutsuji Muzan, and conniving to bring her into the ordeal. Maybe it was going to threaten her. Regardless, she cut it off before it could utter its last words. The lower half of its face was gone, and the rest engulfed itself into cinders. Surroundings quiet once more, she stood there staring at where the demon once lay. Disgust and unease flooded her bloodstream. 

She shuffled from one foot to the other. Mulling over the limited words the demon spoke. Sure, these creatures threatened people, especially slayers, but she can't recall one ever mentioning him in their final moments. She had to admit, it was odd, but it had to just be trying to strike fear into her. Which ultimately failed. Kibutsuji was a master at evading the corps or he was just a coward. The only one to have seen him in ages was Tanjiro and he should be thankful to be alive. If she ever came face to face with the creator of these things she wouldn’t hesitate to fight to her dying breath. That was the oath she pledged long ago, and she would be damned if she broke it. However, killing his creations would suffice for now. Taking in her surroundings, she groaned realizing she would arrive later than she hoped. 

————————————————————————

The streets of the district were flooded with people. Loud chattering and bright lights evaded her senses as she took it all in. It had been a while since she walked its streets, but not much had changed. There were still the festivities, women entertaining avaricious men and hidden trades. Pulling out some of the letters Tengen gave her, she skimmed through them and made note of the houses each wife “belonged” to. Tokito, Kyogoku, and Ogimoto. Three of the top houses in the district. 

She stepped out into the crowd, feeling slightly overwhelmed by the sheer number of bodies. It seemed that wherever she looked, more people spawned and searched for whatever kind of entertainment suited them. It felt almost impossible that she was ever going to find clues to where Tengen’s wives may be.  Much less encounter them. Going straight up to the houses didn’t feel like the best idea to her. She didn’t want to deal with the heads. Besides, if they were missing, she doubted they would know anything. Much less disclose that information to a random woman on the streets. She would have to wait for the pathways to clear if she dared try and use her forms. Even then it may attract attention, but she had to do it. She made a promise.

Pushing through the waves of people, she excused herself a multitude of times before falling silent. Opting to stick to the edge of the crowd to avoid getting swept away by its tide. Her sword had been tucked under her haori and she held it close to her side almost protectively. It brought a sense of comfort as she knew that having it meant being able to dispatch almost anything if she felt it was necessary. 

Gripping the hilt, she flinched at the sudden pressure in her wrist. Looking down, she observed her thread and saw that it had tightened slightly. Pupils blown she jerked her head up. Looking at it as it weaved itself through the crowd of passersby.  

Are they here?

Following the line, she saw that it led to a prominent house in the district, the Kyogoku House. She felt a slight pang in her heart at the thought of her soulmate engaging with other women, but maybe that wasn’t the case. She reassured herself and stepped through the crowd. A few people rammed into her, and others mumbled vulgar things as she excused herself. Just checking wouldn’t hurt right? She couldn’t make much progress in the way of using her forms to locate Suma, Makio, and Hinatsuru until the masses died down anyway. At least, that’s what she told herself. Truth be told she was often unable to restrain herself when it came to certain things. Though rare, this was one of those times, but she would never admit that. 

Freeing herself from the horde she continued following the glowing fiber. It darted around a corner and felt tauter than ever before. She leaned against the wall of a building and took a deep breath. Her feet felt heavy as she stepped out from the corner. The area before her was dark. Not terribly so, but devoid of more people than the street behind her. A few mingled about and the lights gave off a subtle amber. Only illuminating a few feet away from their position. Surveying the scene, she followed the string as it stopped where darkness met light. 

A man stood there, back facing her. An obvious line hovered between them. Bleeding a scarlet hue. She squinted and stepped forward trying to get a better look at the man, but as her eyes adjusted, she froze. 

Air caught in her lungs, and she found it hard to breathe. Her mind went blank save for all but one memory. 

 ————————————————————————

Sitting next to his hospital bed at the Butterfly Mansion, she smiled softly at the young boy. He was bright, and his spirit spoke for him. It was quite rare to see such a youthful soul full of compassion and determination in the face of danger. 

“Tanjiro,” she started looking slightly downcast. “May I ask you a question?” 

He regarded her with that same smile and nodded his head. “Of course!”

Sucking in a breath, she looked away before locking her eyes with his. 

“What did Kibutsuji look like?” 

The smile that graced his face downturned as he gazed at his hands. Gripping the sheets until she swore, he would tear them. It was an immediate switch and fury radiated off him. He clenched his jaw as she went to speak but he cut her off before a sound could be uttered from her mouth. 

“Human,” he exhaled. “Completely human.” 

Cocking her head, she furrowed her brows. “What do you mean?” 

“He blended in with everyone. No one could tell that he was a demon. Only me,” the fire in his eyes smoldered as he continued. “His eyes were a deep red, black hair that hung closer to his shoulders in the front, pale skin, and he wore a black patterned suit with a white hat.” 

She could see him slightly shaking at the mention of Kibutsuji. Not from fear. It was anything but fear. 

At that moment she felt terrible. She had heard from Tomioka briefly about what had transpired in the mountains with Tanjiro’s family. Later, Tanjiro filled in the missing details himself. She felt reluctant to have learned of such an event as it felt too personal, but if he discerned her to be someone he could confide in, she wouldn’t turn him away. 

“I’ll kill him if it’s the last thing I do,” he seethed. “He’ll pay for what he’s done.” 

Remaining silent she observed him. Reaching out she put her hand on his shoulder. A means of comforting the boy, however, deep down she knew that no amount of comfort could close a wound so deep. Giving him a soft smile, she stood up. 

“I believe in you but be careful,” he looked up at her. The fire slowly smothered itself out. “You’re a good person but don’t get ahead of yourself. Your sister needs you. The corps needs you. There’s been too many people lost.” 

He studied her expression before giving her another big smile. “Right, of course!”

Regarding him with a nod of her head she turned to leave but paused. “And Tanjiro, just know you’re not alone.” 

 ————————————————————————

Bile rose and burned her throat. Swallowing her tongue was the only thing keeping her from retching. One hand pulled at her collar and the other shakily reached for the Tsuka of her Katana, the world around her seemed to slow and fall away. Gaze solely focused on the man feet away from her.

Jet black suit. A rustic gold pattern on parts.

Her eyes darted around. 

White hat.

She sucked in a breath.

Sickly skin. Dark hair.

Blood trickled and filled her mouth with iron as teeth punctured her lower lip. 

Mind racing, she pleaded for him to not turn around. This had to be a mistake. A coincidence even. There was no way this could be the same man that Tanjiro described. That this could be Kibutsuji. There had to be many others out there who looked similar. Her chest hurt from how hard her heart pounded. It was in her ears and a cold chill ran through her body. 

He appeared to be contemplating. Clearly sensing her gaping at him. Cocking his head in her direction, he fully pivoted it towards her. The coiling pit that constricted her stomach like a snake snapped. Her eyes went wide, and her mouth parted slightly. A choked noise fell on deaf ears. 

His gaze locked with hers and carnage churned in them.

The attachment tightened, locking. Signifying what she dreaded and didn’t want to admit once she feasted her eyes on him. 

His eyes were a cavernous crimson.

His pupils were slits. 

[gippynippyhadaskippy]

Secrets; Mizu x mixed!fem!Reader

A/n: Hiiii welcome to my first post! I'm pretty new to Tumblr and saw the Mizu posts then I grew inspired, I'm so obsessed with my wife that it's not funny ya'll. Anyway, Let me know if you want a part 2!

Warnings: Violence

More Notes: Mizu's pronouns are he/him until the reader knows otherwise.

Incense filled his senses as the publicly proclaimed samurai said his prayers, his lips cracked and voice gravelly. 

A man watched from outside the shrine, the cold making only his breath visible. Nothing else about him was, his all-black attire head-to-toe. The katana at his side was slightly unsheathed from the tsuka.

Ready, waiting.

Then the target started moving, extinguishing the incense before getting up with ease. The samurai walked out of the shrine, and he met eyes with the man. Short, but that was all he picked up since he was covered with black fabrics, gloves, a mask, and a kasa. The only thing that should’ve been visible were his eyes, but he looked down, avoiding eye contact. 

Until he wasn’t. 

Was it the shadow of his kasa or was that his skin? The samurai didn’t have time to think before a dagger was thrown at his head. He swiftly dodged it not bothering to move much, through his yellowed glasses he furrowed his brow at the stranger, coming to the assumption that money was placed on him. 

The samurai unsheathed his blade, the hunter mirroring him. A couple breaths were exchanged in the winter air before they clashed blades. The samurai stepped closer and tried to cut the man diagonally, but the hired sword blocked and grabbed his wrist side-stepping before using the momentum to throw him to the snowy ground, but the samurai had different plans, he used his height advantage to hook his arm around the back of the man’s neck causing them both to tumble. 

The swords were discarded, punches were thrown, and strangely the air felt electrified. A lip was split and it stained the powder snow, yellowed glasses were knocked off and there it was. Blue, like the sky or a still lake. The man had no time to be surprised only slightly widening his eyes. The samurai spat in his face, taking advantage of his blindness, he rolled on top of him.

 Then a punch, two punches, three before the man's mask fell, his kasa long forgotten. Curly hair spilled around him, his brown skin showing clearly in the daylight, his…long eyelashes outlining the shape of her eyes, and her full lips clenched shut and split, bleeding. 

Her.

Her?

The samurai couldn’t believe his blue eyes, a woman? Pretending to be a man? 

She was dazed from the force of the punches, likely to pass out any second. 

“Who are you?”

But it was no use, she was out cold. 

The samurai put her mask and kasa back on and carried her to the shrine, then continued on his way, conflicted. 

She awoke with a start the next morning and looked around her confused then an annoyed huff. 

“Great.”

If only she knew the blue-eyed samurais' secret, and how similar it was to hers. 

[ravneski]

Desecration

Kokushibo x Fem!Reader

They take what they can't have and bathe in the sacrilege.

this has also been uploaded to ao3 (kudos and comments there would be appreciated <3) link here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/46981597

warnings: smut, cunnilingus, fingering, menstrual sex, dubcon nearing the second half of the fic, mentions of pregnancy, implied breeding kink, religious imagery, sexual violence, strangling/choking, fisting

word count: 5.4k

Fate was a cruel thing.

Dragging her eyes from the floor, she cursed herself for not staying alert, for not paying attention to which room she had mindlessly entered. The Upper Moon One’s aura pervaded, thick as well-trained metal. She stared and he stared back, six eyes unreadable but nostrils flared, shark in water detecting what slicked her fukusa.

“One day.”

Since she had started bleeding. She tensed. “What of it?”

“It will… be painful.” Kokushibo’s golden gaze bored into her.

“There are worse pains,” she dismissed, face blank. She made to turn.

“Are you going to Doma?”

She graced him a near unnoticeable nod.

“Will you… spread your legs for him?”

Centimetres away from him in a flash too quick to be perceived, her veins frosted. “Doma tells me you opened your own for Daki.”

Their gazes swept one another, rising and falling as the moon did, but nothing as renewing as moonlight enveloped either. “Mourning her?” she drawled.

“I utilised her for… what her job dictated she do…”

Her upper lip curled in disdain.

“And you,” Kokushibo continued, knuckles white from the clasp on his sword’s tsuka, “are no different… from me. Go… to your whore.”

She laughed at that, but the mirth was dry sand, rigid as though hardened by unremitting waves. “Doma isn’t my whore.”

“Then what… is he? Your lover?” he replied, derisiveness worn like armour.

“You tell me,” she said after a moment, gathering herself. “You know his body as well as I, do you not, fornicator?”

A vein throbbed at the side of his neck. “You never hesitated… to run to me when you were bleeding… yet now you spare… time for aimless ambling…”

“Say what you mean.”

Even in the gentle light of the Infinity Castle, Kokushibo was but a shadow. The dark side of the sun, she thought. He knew only his shadows, and she found herself drawn to be engulfed by the same fate. His expression held solemnity it was never without, but by now she saw the veneer. As he inched closer, the fractures in his mask seemed ardent.

“Can Doma not taste… your flow?” he asked, interest sincere. “The one that follows the moon’s cycle… is it beyond his reach?”

“He likens it to wisteria,” she admitted, reluctant as she was, “and talks of the mere touch burning him.”

“One man’s bane… is another man’s ichor.” The suggestion in his voice rang sharper than any demon slayer’s blade. She made up for his mishap, his nerve to close their distance and his barely veiled want, by widening the space between them again.

“It’ll be such ichor to him if I allow him to draw blood from my womb,” she pointed out.

“Will you?”

“Will our lord let me?”

“Mutinous thing,” sneered Kokushibo. “When have you cared… for our lord’s boundaries and laws?”

“No more than you.”

His hand, wrapped around his sword’s tsuka, twitched. “I remain constant.”

“Then leave.”

After a second of hesitation, one he tried with fervour to conceal but seeped through to his countenance, the constriction of his pupils and the scorch in his irises, Kokushibo stayed where he was. “You bleed heavier than… last time,” he noted. 

“Do you observe through your Transparent World every time I shed?”

He shook his head. “You misunderstand… I smell it. It permeates.”

And he was the only one who could detect her moonblood. Besides herself, and their master, but Kibutsuji Muzan was swamped in more crimson than she could ever spill.

She pivoted, but Kokushibo grabbed her wrist, iron and impetuous. “He’s angry,” she said as her excuse to leave, searching the old samurai’s face. “The boy who bears your brother’s mark and wears your brother’s earrings is making mincemeat of the lesser Moons.”

The mention of his twin left him cold. “That person will… not miss you,” he wagered. “You have time spare.”

He melded, still, to her wrist, unyielding; the shock of his skin pressing hers reignited what she had long assumed abandoned, a stinging ache that rippled between them as waves in storms devastated ships, naked and exposed. Ghosting the pallid paper of her flesh, his nails were a parody of humanity, short and plates plain. Kokushibo coveted what he could not have. For one to receive, one had to give. The human body had to be sacrificed to exceed its feeble limits, its brittle mortality. His façade was flimsy, and with the right amount of force it would shatter and out would come the demon that he had sold his soul to become.

His gaze drifted to her abdomen, which she had clutched in fruitless instinct, before once more locking with her. “Let me,” he said.

It took little time to think over her answer, as much as the sour wrath in her stirred. She acquiesced, and his hands wandered beneath the silk of her clothes.

She was undignified in this bestial position, but Kokushibo lacked the temerity to penetrate her through his cock. She could not bear to meet his face; ignoble though the stance of coitus more ferarum was, it provided sanctity, a way to avoid the intense blaze of those six unblinking eyes. Wooden floor scraped and pricked at her elbows as she used them to support herself. She focused on the crevices of the floorboards, the cracks resembling abysses with their infinite black hollows, wondering how much hot red had rolled into them and festered over the centuries.

Her robes were hoisted up, impudently close to the tender swell of her breasts but secure enough to not reveal them, welcoming him, exposing more than flesh when her heart jumped from the warmth of his invasively close breath. Kokushibo explored her, parting her like petals; when her folds had become so wet she didn’t know, nor wanted to, but his fingers trailed them, tentative as though she were made of glass and he feared breaking her. Sticky with her flow, his digits climbed up to the flushed bud and grazed it with their course tips. Betraying her, her hips gave an involuntary buck. This was decadence, she mused. For the both of them. They would consume the other in every way but literal, the same way he had. Muzan was a blight impossible to efface and stained them even now.

His tongue skimmed the plush of her inner thighs, scraping at the dark cardinal smearing them. The organ roused an acute jolt from deep inside her as it slid in, blood and arousal mixing and gliding to form an easy lubricant. The electric reaction of her body wasn’t quite arisen from satisfaction, but neither was it spawned from pain; it curled and coiled as an endless serpent, a visceral sensation of a latent guilt and a repressed thrill.

Heat unfurled within her, a spark of life, but it wasn’t enough. Grinding her teeth together, she turned herself around, lying on her back. Their gazes tangled, a flash of resentment shared between them; overwhelming the cramps of her womb convulsed something keener, a wretched desire too close to impalement. She raised her thighs for him anyway, as easily as the gates of hell would open for them both, and let the mongrel feast.

The flat of his tongue pressed against the nub at the top of her sex. Long fingers, svelte and elegant enough that they seemed unfitting for a sword-wielder, moved inside her in a focused rhythm, the squelch of sloughed tissue and blood resonating as her body relaxed, sucking him in deeper. Kokushibo’s tongue carded the lips of her quim, dragging down to near his fingers then slithering back to her clitoris, which rose like the opening flowers under sunlight’s grace. Her hips played and rutted to the tempo he dipped in and out of her with, stomach crawling as much as it flipped as she thought of how he had arrogated her with such facileness. Raking the tatami, she searched for a modicum of anchorage over herself, some dose of stability.

She was pitiful, but so was he, and equally deviant. They were deformed, her kind. Demons were death, but they dreaded finality so. She was no exception. Was that widespread fear, lurking in the caliginous heart of every demon, an innate one? Did each of them know there was no salvation in death for their forsaken souls, but only the expecting flames, searing and everlasting?

Once, she had encountered a god, beautiful and bright and unequalled, and underneath layers of false flesh the scars from the conflict, eternal in their retribution, still burned like the sun. If the fires of hell were real, she had felt their touch already, and her cells had never forgotten it.

They were monsters unspeakably damned. Hideous and acrimonious, most couldn’t give reason for why they continued to live other than base instinct, that primal hunger that gnawed and gnawed, impossible to sate. They were greedy to their finest fibre. It was why they were territorial beasts. Sometimes they mated, the odd few, those who dared, foolish and tainted, but it never lasted. Eventually they cannibalised each other, skewing bones and mangling flesh until there was nothing left. The hunger grew too great, too indomitable. Demons could not kill demons through any other means. She summoned the guts to look down at the one on his knees, submerged betwixt her thighs, lapping at nutrition, lifeblood, that which symbolised renewal and viability, and thought there was something poetic about fucking functioning as death.

“He’ll never find the amaryllis,” for those six eyes saw so much, what others could not; she waited to see who those eyes belonged to, the samurai or his lord. “He—” then she stumbled, his two fingers pressed against a hard edge inside her. Drowned into silence by the waves of venereal indulgence.  

“A woman’s hatred… is a sort of devotion,” mused Kokushibo from between her legs.

She lowered her gaze to him, gripping his dark mane to lift his head away from the hot throb of her cunt, though his fingers stayed encased. Pliable, he made a pretty picture painted in her. “Devoted to you?” she ridiculed.

“To him.” His tone was dull.

“I would rather kneel to Ubuyashiki’s Pillars,” she growled. “Your nonsense is bovine. Hold your tongue.”

“Many of our kind would sacrifice themselves to… see our lord live, but you would… throw away your life to see him die.” When Kokushibo tilted his head, the thick, ropelike tendrils of his hair swayed, midnight black percolating into glossy crimson. Strands stuck to the viscous gore around his mouth and he pulled them back. “Do you not… think that is a form of devotion?”

Her jaw clenched in indignant ire.

“Your enmity for him will never… be enough for him to kill you.”

“Does this come from one traitor to another?” The gumption of him to look inquisitive, as though he understood nothing, persuaded her to continue, treading on dangerous grounds. “He was your enemy. And I know you became a slayer to imitate your brother, not out of integrity or duty, but did you never once feel the slightest antagonism towards that person? How can you serve a remorseless man who has slaughtered and devoured thousands after once claiming you would put an end to him?”

“Do you revile him for… his carnage?”

Kokushibo was a mess of slick red, a deceitful embodiment of the rivers of Sanzu. Besmirched by her, flaunting thick fluids and stringy sombre clumps, with the gleam of something darkly holy when her blood caught in the fortress’ ochre illumination, but his features were peeled back into a snarl, teeth whetted and splenetic. Claret dressed between them dribbled past his mouth and down the strong, arrogant angle of his jaw; he was too monstrous to be divine, the beast vespers was sung to ward against than to revere, closer to a wolf than a deity as half a dozen eyes narrowed in synchrony and she recalled the time when he had been her sword, and wondered if this blood was of a wound from where he had turned his weapon on her.

“It’s pointless to wage war against a calamity,” she conceded, then groaned as he stroked that spongy bump at the top of her wall in repeated, lazy beckons, the flick of his wrist and the hook of his fingers.

Grotesquely prurient, ichor in the tiny cracks of them, his lips flitted upwards. “Have you… capitulated to him?”

The question gave her pause. Did she submit? After a millennium chained to her lord, she knew she would never be free of him, that his grasp was indefinite and all-consuming, larger than she could fathom. The gods, if any existed, had surely abandoned her long ago, deserted her to his clemency. But Kibutsuji Muzan was not merciful. Cruelty was in his very appellation and thrived in his every word and action; under his dominance, even those who escaped him through his noxious curse perished in agony, humiliating and revolting, when they uttered his name.

“No.” Her finger smudged scarlet as it traced his jaw.

Riled by her answer, Kokushibo tasted the watery flow that clung to his own fingers. “So learn your place,” he chastised. “Besides, where was your… guilt when you feasted on the defenceless child that… carried rare blood in its body, which now… rests in your gut?”

She smiled, despite his nerve. If she was wilful, she was not alone.

“You bleed a constant rage…”

Waning as the moon did, jilted by the inimitable sun, the smile faltered.

“It ebbs and flows… endlessly in your veins. Are you… not weary?”

His bones trembled as her nail lengthened and sliced into his gristle-coated skin, which split with the proficiency of soft carcass under the butcher’s carving knife. Close to his left bottom eye that it seemed like a rose tear trickling, his blood mixed with hers, finer and more lurid. She lifted a rouge fingertip to her lips and gave a languid lick. With the thorn and bristle of marechi, he withered her, but he lacked its lure. She swallowed him, “And you taste of the storm,” and his fury mingled with hers.

Eyes dark, Kokushibo pulled back. “Your contumacy will not… kill you,” he warned, as if he hoped repeating his admonition would cause her to change. Though he was not a man to indulge in delusions.

Her hand snared in his hair. “Then what do I do with this anger?”

“He is your master,” and she loathed the reprimand of his tone, smooth and ugly.

“He is yours,” she corrected, defiant against his caution anyway, claws pricking at his scalp as her lips thinned. “Is there fulfilment for you in being his lapdog?”

“Akaza retains… that responsibility,” he responded dryly.

“Then what are you?”

“His servant.” The kanji in his eyes, indurated sable that whispered of unfaltering centuries of loyalty, fealty cut regal by the blade, gleamed in the flickering flaxen light of the lanterns. So are you, it rebuked.

She shifted, threading his locks between her fingers. “His ever-faithful Upper Moon One. The strongest of his subordinates, staunchly dutiful to our master,” the word was spat, but eased as she continued with a malicious lilt, “spread for him. Taken by him. Ravaged by him.”

Kokushibo’s eyes flashed. “Why does he allow a woman like you… to roam untethered?”

Oozing furrows were dragged out across his roots. “When did questioning that person become your position?”

“I... am his associate.”

“Is that what you tell yourself when he’s wedging his cock down your throat?”

Rivulets of red ran from his scalp where his hair lay matted, his beautiful strands spoiled by the knots they were weaved into. She reached out, a hand around the thick trunk of his neck, and wrenched him forward until their noses were near touching. Releasing its tight grip around his oesophagus, her hand crawled upwards, spiderlike, stopping its pilgrimage at a flame which befouled his pale flesh. The mark stretched from the right of his sharp jaw, down the side of that strong neck to his collarbone, her fingers descending beneath the white rim of his relic kimono. She brought her lips to his ear, fingertips dancing over the crimson crest as she felt his pulse, faster than it ought to be for a being of tenacious stoicism. Against the shell of his ear, as all his eyes shifted right to follow her, she crooned in a whisper, “Samurai-sama.”

Kokushibo turned to stone, scarlet trickling down his chin and splashing her naked calves. Then he recoiled, swift as a blade sheathed, pulse spiking further and noble face hardening. Her gaze dropped to between his legs, to where the carnal ache of him protruded through the obsidian layers of his hakama.

“A woman like you ought to have her tongue cut,” he snapped.

“Well,” as she began to play with herself, Kokushibo traced every movement with captivated attentiveness, the arch of her back, the heave of her breasts under her robes—with his Transparent World her clothing could be no obstacle, but, whether principle or that men like him preferred the notion of undressing those they lay with, unwrapping their prize, he never indulged in perversion of that kind—the glisten of arousal garnishing her, the cruor dripping out to nestle in the creases of her lips, “I’m certainly glad your tongue is intact.”

While he regarded her with contempt under long lashes, the heat of his groin did not dissipate, a rapt need to slide between her. His breaths were heavy, chest she knew was bedecked with fierce muscle rising under the affluent fabric of his clothing. She paused. “Doma…” she started.

The moment that name was out of her mouth, her curiosity, storm’s gale she had never been able to overcome, was assuaged as his expression soured like fruit gone grossly rotten. Nobody in the Moons would pull out the false diviner from under the sun if he were to be struck by it.

Kokushibo rested his chin atop her imbrued mons. “What kind of slut lies with… a man and speaks of another… male she’s bedded?”

“Don’t insult me if you lack virility where your subordinate doesn’t,” she hummed. “At least I’ve never been reamed open by our master. How much honour did you have, mighty swordsman, when he sodomised you against your will?”

Tapered teeth glistened as Kokushibo glowered.

“You’ve always been undeserving of what I gave you.”

“Perhaps, but… our blood still call to each other.”

Such was devastation’s path. In fleeting wonder, she pondered how many had died to their hands over the distorting centuries. “Then you defile me. We are contaminated by the other. We are filth.”

Kokushibo healed, each gash she had carved into him during irascible delectation repaired by regenerating skin, his hair smoothing out the knots from heady red.

“Filth resonates with filth,” she told him as he pushed her to the floor and tore apart the rest of her kimono with insolent dare, for though her womb had quietened it was not yet silent. “Our blood endure a murky stream,” as he left cochineal fingerprints across her breasts, exposed to him as he lowered his lips to one and suckled with neither care nor violence, but with a rhythm that had her racked in a feverish shiver.

“In a just world, I’d see you… swell and distend with… the weight of my seed,” Kokushibo murmured against her teat, flicking his tongue against it and watching it erect. She blanched.

When his fingers entered her this time, they were not kind, but curled with purpose. They buried deep within her, pumped in and out in time to how he toyed with her nipples, one clasped between the serrated ends of his canine teeth and the other caressed by the hand not thrust within her, rolling it as he kneaded the fullness of her breast on his palm. Stuttered breaths seeped from her open mouth as she smarted from him, yearned in earthquake-like shaking, the coil in her stomach tightening as she clenched around him. 

“We bleed sacrilege,” she gasped, and soaked him in her exhilaration.

Sudden warmth ensconced her as he withdrew from her breast, a string of vermilion saliva snapping, and hid his face in the crook of her neck in a jarring imitation of affection, but it came not from the abrupt facet of affinity and nor was it born of the gratification that had just flown through her, a gentle current now turbulent with terror. Her gaze sidled over the steel thew of Kokushibo to the figure in the corner of the small room. His aura was as weak as it had been when their paths had first met, devoid of killing intent or bloodlust. A chilling resemblance to the Upper Moon demon marked him, but he was distinctly human—and distinctly dead, she reminded herself; yet here he was, defying the laws of the universe once again, and that scared her more than those sixty years after coming across him—with his hanafuda earrings and his soft maroon eyes, connecting with her own.

Cold terror dredged upwards like the pull of limbs from seaweed’s shackles, a fear that had never been conquered despite the centuries separating that night and now. Kokushibo took notice of her stiffened limbs, but in his fatalistic arrogance assumed it was his doing and continued rubbing at her clit in concentrated circles, still resting at her neck.

The Sun Breather stepped forward, face resolute in its emptiness. Vacant gaze, hollow expression. In life, he had never smiled, so Kokushibo had told her. She wondered if a person like Tsugikuni Yoriichi had ever had anything to smile about.

“Leave now,” she whispered to the apparition’s brother. “You’ve fulfilled your purpose.”

Kokushibo’s fangs left her neck and he frowned down at her, bemused. “Stay,” he said, moving his hands up to the slope of her shoulders as if in preparation to hold her in place.

“Stay?” Humouring the lingering note in his request.

“Beneath me.”

“Would you have me like that?”

His hakama rustled with his movement, the grind of his hips, the hardness of him taut and desperate to break free as it rubbed against swollen lips hidden under a thatch of raven hair. “How many men have… had that pleasure?”

“Not Doma,” she confessed.

“Not Doma,” he agreed in pride, then, embittered, “feminised by your wiles… Let me take you as… you should be taken. Under me.”

“Will he kill me then?”

Out of the corner of her eye, Yoriichi ventured another step, only a centimetre but enough to make her skin smoulder with memory. No, she would not die. Not to her master’s cells, not to the Sun Breather’s ruby sword. Across a thousand years, a single opportunity had come to her, a scalding escape, but Yoriichi had failed to take her head.

Years upon years later, here she lay, a man aneled in her blood looming over her with hungry eyes and hungrier cock while a universe beyond her comprehension played games with her.

Although the unworldly dimension of the Infinity Castle protected them from day’s influence, she and the other demon suddenly tensed in unison nonetheless. All Kibutsuji’s mutant creations felt the surface of dawn, a knell within the fibre of their bones to warn them of their only predator. It came with a hounding instinct to run, even if one was safe from the sun’s culling reach. To run and run until the blest recitals of matins was inundated with unfolding nightlight.

As daybreak erupted in another realm, Amaterasu’s sacred child faded, though not before his lips opened and moved with the motion of talk. Nothing audible departed from him. Her heart pounded against the confinement of her chest. Kokushibo finally realised she was glaring past him and turned to follow, greeted by a void corner. When he looked back at her, he discovered no one under him and muttered her name beneath a churlish breath.

“What reason have you to remain? Leave,” she repeated, by the fusuma. Sweat mellowed her body, throbbing from the aftermath of multiple climaxes, but a darker heat piqued within her as she scrutinised his ensanguined form, the wet mess of his face and hands. “You won’t send me to the gallows, Kokushibo, but something worse. Go.”

He towered over her in the blink of an eye. “I don’t… understand you. Women—”

“You don’t need to.”

Bold, he outstretched his hand and splayed his palm in the valley between her breasts, feeling the hammer of her heart. “Do not think me cunt-struck,” the fingers there decayed from paramour’s caress to the scuttling perfidy of insect legs, straining for prey as they made way down a breast and sullied it shimmering cardinal. He groped at her, the roughness men didn’t care enough to reign in. Their teeth nipped and nails scratched. Always squeezing and grabbing. “You will not treat me… like one of your whores, disregarded… once I’ve made you come,” and he placed emphasis on those final words, conceit blatant.

Kokushibo was an animal. The closest of the Moons to Kibutsuji in terms of power. It was only natural, in all the unnaturalness of demons, that he should be so mutant and repulsive, so it puzzled her that she found him beautiful. It, she supposed, was the beauty of a thing ethereal, or perhaps transient; a sacrificed animal, immolated by an unknown force. He was the bleeding lamb, the shot and limping cur, that which was so harrowing it could not be turned away from, the morbid fascination that stirred delight in the sickest minds.

Still, as the lamb bolted from the hand that reached to console it, and bodies withered and mortified from the undertaker’s embrace, his beauty spilled into evanescence. Butterfly wings broke when touched. He mouldered and came to fester a violent, disturbing darkness. While she dwelled on this, he made his move. Pushing her down, mounted above her with the full weight of his strapping form, shoving three virulent fingers inside her.

She pelted him with a livid glare. “I’ll defer when that man dies.” For she would not submit now. That went unspoken, but he heard it. Perhaps his samurai teachings to adhere to greater strength was the only reason his cock remained clothed. 

“Do you… crave death so badly?” Covering her body with his own, he slotted a fourth finger in. The delicate lining of her womanhood stung, his nails nicking as they danced inside her.

“Are you killing me?” she mused. Viridian claws slashed at his violet-ebony kimono, finding purchase in his broad shoulders. Mordancy dripped from her tone like how blood trickled down the hard ridges of his torso.

“Death will not give you peace.”

Perhaps it wouldn’t, but this life was far from pleasant. Though she shook her head at him, Kokushibo drove into her with vigour, the scourge of a whip. She shoved at his chest, his moonlight skin sickly pale, but he did not budge and, in some irreligious depth of her where she ached for this, the intemperate madness of sinners who trod the thin line of destruction and endurance, she was glad for it.

“Stop this,” but her words sounded empty to even herself. He didn’t, because he was a man who took what he wanted and obeyed the whims of only one other beside himself. Audacious, apathetic, awful, he inserted his thumb, then pushed the entirety of his fist inside her. A snarl tore from her throat, and his other hand came to close around that. He did not squeeze, but the mere presence of him around her neck was the potent pressure of a noose. Wet slaps rebounded in her ears as he twisted his fist, drawing his knuckles against her. She burned as if ablaze as she stretched to accommodate the violation.

Why was he here? What had he come for beside the sweet, metallic taste of cunt and the clench of red insides? It was something born of a selfish motivation, she figured that. No different or better than her. Though someone of his station should not act on self-serving wants.

Farther Kokushibo breached. To her unease, her body did little to prevent him. “I thought this was altruism?” she hissed.

His thumb pressed against her jugular, some vile punishment for opening her mouth. It marked her with a hue of cerise, an eager bruise blossoming under the skin. “This is not amity.” By the drag of a craven’s fingertips, veneration was rescinded. “It is… contrition. Yours.”

Bellicose blood smeared her, slewed down the inside of her thigh, not her moonblood, but thinner, of a greater, brighter constitution. Venous, drawn from a wounded and maimed creature, dismal and writhing like a worm on a hook. The hardness of her cervix turned friable. There was a knife—or a sword, she thought wryly, and wondered if he would fuck her with his disgusting katana if he could—in her cunt and it stabbed its way to where no foreign intrusion should have. She spasmed, wrenched out the arm of the hand clasping her smarting neck and suddenly they were both bathed in sticky red, tepid as it gushed from Kokushibo’s socket. It reeked. Not of them, but of him, the laden scent of Kibutsuji. Vessels for his violence, clawing at each other like rabid dogs, fuelled by the instinct to tarnish and impair, the need to rip apart with teeth and talons. They were nothing if not that man’s vestigial reflection; as Kokushibo hollowed her out and the sordid point of his nails pricked at the firm, barred organ of her cervix, it was not the samurai that penetrated, but his lord. A maggot burrowing away, carrying a corrosive disease. There was sin in their veins and it ate at them.  

“Warm my bed,” said Kokushibo, too frustrated to be a growl, too stark to be a plead. A demand, one which she spat at him for, all noble airs abandoned. He flinched as if her saliva cauterised. She hoped it did, hoped that his patience was a manacle and not frangible thread. She had seen what monstrosities cultivated within sullied wombs; the devils seized out of broken hellmouths in downpours of black ichor; the thousand deaths endured in pregnancy, in childbed, in motherhood. That was not a desirable end. It was not true death, but something beyond it, worse and unending, and men were baleful enough to inflict it on any wench they deemed deserving.

Depraved in the way ruby tainted rare moons, Kokushibo gouged her in repeated blows, battering the closed pale-pink neck of her uterus. She wept as his cursed touch shed more of her flesh than her own body could. A malevolent torrent of something she couldn’t put a name to raged within the leaking fissures of her. Here, raising a hand that trembled as it pressed his cool cheek, she was close enough to delve out his awful eyes, to slit his neck, to divaricate his limbs. Close enough to devour him.

But she wouldn’t. An insidious weakness.

When she yanked his savage fist out of her, she freed herself of her cage as well as gaoler. Torn from her insides, the pear shape of her womb, hot and rosy, and aperture of her cervix. Arteries and veins fell like tears, burst like shattered mosaic. She threw the poison in her system to the floor, where it soaked the wood with her diseased red, and relished the surprise on his face.

Kokushibo scanned the consecrated blood daubing him, then his gaze scraped her, fibrous sclera and aureate irises glowing, pupils blown. All they were was blood. They rotted with it, congealed and decayed until there was no trace of who they had been, only the stench of who they had slaughtered. They were their victims’ legacies, harbouring so many ghosts.

Crucifying agony dulled with each passing second. Already her body was repairing itself, working against her as it always had, cancer regenerating within her. Kokushibo rose and she stepped back, bare before him like an offering, though she was not sure what virgin oblation she could be when she had already been eaten; she could not consume him when he had consumed her, and from that she knew he was desecration. Vitiated in the spoils of him, she fled to ensconce herself within the umbrage of endless slanting corridors, praying they would guttle her too.

[rougepancake]

I need a big boy

Gyomei Himejima x Afab!DemonSlayer!Reader

If you don’t recognize the title, here you go

A/N: Uhh there will be some language used, a little zesty maybe - who knows 👀. Honestly proud of this little idea my brain cell cooked up lol. Also mentions of suicide (please don’t come for me) because it takes place in the suicide forest

Not proofread (😀) I’M SORRY

Summary: Shortly after you join the Demon Slayer Corps you’re sent out on a mission with THE Gyomei Himejima to investigate the melodramatic wonder known as Aoikigahara, but then things start heading south, fast.

“Y/N L/N! HERE ARE YOUR ORDERS!” Your kasugai crow shouted at you, circling far above your head. The sudden noise made you jump with surprise, but you figured that if you wanted to continue slaying demons, then you were to just get used to it. “HEAD TOWARDS AOKIGAHARA IMMEDIATELY!” You stopped dead in your tracks.

Aokigahara?

Just the name alone was enough to make you shudder. It was rumored to be a horrible place, one where many people were lured to their deaths, most likely by demons. They say that its quiet enough to drive a person mad, and that is what drags people deeper into the demon’s terrain. But it was simply too beautiful to go unnoticed, which is why people were just known to go missing there. It’s often said that if you are there just for the scenery, the forest will persuade you to stay. Forever.

But they were just rumors, so there was little to no truth to them… right?

You sighed and looked back up at the clouds overhead. You were only a rookie, so why did they send you to somewhere as dangerous as Aokigahara? Hopefully it wasn’t just a suicide mission.

There you stood, staring blankly at the miles of open greenery ahead of you. You stood no chance against what was in there, you were simply going to die and there was nothing you could do to prevent it.

With your hand firmly on the tsuka of your sword, you took your first steps into the mystical realm that was known as Aoikigahara. It was then that a terrible dread came over you.

You were being watched.

Nervously, you looked around, trying to see if the being was nearby. Yet there was nothing. Absolutely nothing. You freaked out and ran back outside of the thick wooding, only to run face first into what you thought was a tree. (It wasn’t.)

You had been knocked down because of how hard you ran into it, causing you to groan in pain. To your surprise, the tree helped you up. Which was really weird since trees couldn’t move outside of being blown around by the wind.

You rubbed your head nervously and mumbled a ‘thanks’ before raising your head to look up at said tree. When your eyes met his, you freaked out even more.

“OH MY GOD YOU’RE A HASHIRA!” You whisper shouted, afraid that the forest might hear you. You stared at him in awe, ‘He’s so tall..’ you thought to yourself, quickly apologizing and stepping away so he could have his personal space back.

You looked back up at him, noticing his blindness immediately. ‘Why in the hell would they send me out with a blind guy?!’ Taking a deep breath to calm your nerves, you walked back over to the talk stranger.

“I’ve been looking for you,” his surprisingly deep voice rang out. He looked down at you, stone faced. “I am Gyomei Himejima, the stone hashira. I was told that you practice wind breathing. Is this true?” He had his hands together as he spoke, almost as if he were in a state of prayer.

It made you anxious to think about how you’d been sent out here with a blind and religious nut, but you couldn’t say much, he was much stronger than you after all.

Swallowing thickly, you gave a quiet, “yes, sir” and kept your head down. You didn’t know why you had gotten so timid all of a sudden, like what had gotten into you?!

“Right, off we go then.” He said before disappearing into the terrifying forest that was Aoikigahara.

“Holy shit!- Hey! Wait! Isn’t there going to be any backup?! I didn’t even introduce myself! Come back!!!” You shouted at the trees, knowing that he was long gone now. “Well shit.” You grumbled, taking off towards the trees.

Hopefully you’d be able to catch up to him, or even better, maybe he’d slow down so you could catch up. Either way, you didn’t want to be alone, so you were going to find him as soon as you could.

“What took you so long?” Gyomei’s voice rang out again, causing you to yelp in surprise. “I was starting to think a demon had gotten to you.” You heard his voice, yet you couldn’t see him.

“G-Gyomei?” You spun around and braced yourself, placing your hand on your katana. “Where are you?” With a deep breath, you checked around you once again- maybe you were missing him?

“I’m just a little further out. I think you should see this.” You heard a shift in his voice that made you suspicious of him.

“I can’t. I’ve been wounded.” The demon slayer corps had many code words and terms that were used in case of emergencies, it was often that demons tried to impersonate fellow slayers, so if they didn’t return the code, then they were to die.

“Just remember your concentration breathing and come here.” You let out a sigh of relief and began to head to where he was.

“Alright! I’m on my way o-“ Before you knew it, you were on the ground, pinned beneath an incredibly large being. You coughed at the sudden lack of air, your eyesight slowly fading to black. Quickly, you moved your arm to your sword and unsheathed it. “Wind breathing, third form!” You said weakly, doing your best to stay conscious. “Clean Storm Wind Tree!” And just like that, the creature that had landed on you was twenty feet away from you, unconscious.

You used your katana as a crutch for yourself as you slowly got to your feet. The world was spinning as you glanced back to where you had sent your attacker. Your eyes widened as you noticed the color of his skin. It was unusually pale and covered in strange markings, and his hair was not a natural color by any means.

You were facing a demon.

But demons couldn’t be knocked unconscious.

You rushed forward with the little strength you had left, prepared to cut off his head, but right when you lifted the blade above your head, he caught it.

“You’re a sucker,” the demon chuckled, punching you in the stomach and throwing your katana to the side. “I can’t believe you fell for that, honestly.” He planted his foot on your chest harshly, once again taking the air from your lungs. He giggled as you struggled to catch your breath, your hands slowly coming up to his foot, trying weakly to move it. “You’re adorable though, I may just let you live if you do what I ask~”

Fear spread throughout your body instantly. “G-Go to hell you monster,” you spat, but your threat only caused him to giggle again.

“I love it when you little slayers get all worked up like this.” He leaned in close to your face, his smile growing. “You must not be very strong if you’re not putting up a fight.” There was something about the way he has said those words, it was true, and your reaction showed him it was.

“Now~” he licked his lips. “Do you give up, cutie~?”

You returned his smile, and in one swift movement on your part, the demon was on the ground once again. His eyes watched you curiously as you bolted towards your weapon, how you moved, your well thought out attacks, you were a work of art. He was honored to finally have someone who would be worth the effort of fighting.

Though, he was lost in thought for too long, because you had managed to get ahold of your sword in and cut off his head all within the blink of an eye.

“H-how” the demon mumbled to himself.

You reached down and picked up his head, forcing him to face his murderer. “I may not be as strong as my fellow slayers, but I sure as hell ain’t weak.” You whispered, an evil grin spreading onto your lips, just as he did mere moments earlier. “I hope you won’t underestimate anyone like me in the afterlife,” as you spoke, you dropped his head onto the ground and watched him fade away from existence.

Once you had cleaned yourself up a little, making yourself look decent and picking the grass off of your clothing and out of your hair, you continued to search for Gyomei. Thankfully, he wasn’t too far away. You had found him sitting on a tree stump, hands together and head down in prayer.

“Odd,” you whispered to yourself, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder to signal that you had found him before joining him in prayer.

You didn’t know what he was praying over, so you decided to pray for your safety during the mission. You prayed for Gyomei’s overall well-being and for him to make if out of this mission. He was a hashira, so him making it out alive was much more important than you, as depressing as it was.

When you opened your eyes, he was looking at you, his expression blank like before. You both sat there in silence, staring at one another. “Your name is Y/N, correct?” He asked simply.

“Yes, but I never told you, so how did you know?”

He looked up at the sky mysteriously, a tear sliding down his face as he did so. “I have my ways, that’s all.” All you could do was nod at the strange reply and sit there, it was a calming silence, but there was still something eerie about it.

“Have you found any demons yet?” He looked back at you, tears still flowing down his cheeks. “I-I’m sorry,” you stuttered, “I didn’t mean to interrupt the silence.”

“Yes, I did.” And he left it at that.

“Did you find what we were sent out here for?” Again, he just stared at you in silence. It was as if he was processing the question in his mind, like he didn’t understand it before.

“No, I didn’t.” He let out a short sigh before rising to his feet. “We were sent out here to investigate, but I don’t know what we’re investigating.” He looked over his shoulder, quickly assuming his fighting stance. “Be ready, we’re being watched.”

You stared at him in awe, but it didn’t last long, because you were soon ambushed. Four grotesquely large demons had you both locked in combat. You had managed to slay one of them completely right off the bat, but the second one you faced was much more powerful than the first. It was a challenge to get it done, and you thought you had, until you turned around to face Gyomei and fell to the ground, unconscious.

You awoke in a room that you didn’t recognize, which was altogether pretty terrifying, but the fact that you couldn’t move was even worse. The pain was excruciating, and your legs were numb. You noticed that someone had bandaged you up, but you still had no idea because there were no hints as to who’s house this was.

“Hello?” You called out weakly, hoping that someone would hear you, but with the size of the room you were in, you figured it was at least a mansion. There was no chance, you were stuck.

“You called?” A familiar voice responded, his footsteps sounding out in the hallway. Gyomei opened the door and carefully peered in.

“OhmygodI’msohappytoseeyou” you let out a huge sigh of relief, smiling when Gyomei walked into the room and sat down on the chair beside your bed.

“I was worried back there,” he stated, his hands back together in a form of prayer. “I with the amount of blood you had lost, I’m surprised I didn’t have to call Shinobu-san.”

“How…” you trailed off, looking up at the ceiling so you could think about your next words. “How long am I going to be here?”

“I’m not sure.” Gyomei’s answer was honest, but there was something about his tone that made you feel you’d be here indefinitely. “From what I was able to bandage, your wounds were deep. You may not even be able to walk for a few days. I would like you to take it easy, because your wounds can, and will, tear open.”

“Yes sir.” You heard him make an odd noise at the name, and shortly after, he excused himself because there were things around the house he needed to do.

Right when he left was when it it you. He was blind. And as far as you knew, you two were the only two in the house right now. So how was he able to bandage you? Did he just feel you up until he found your wounds?? You looked down at your stomach, and upon seeing the bandages, you blushed heavily. Had he really bandaged you himself??

Maybe that’s why he was being so weird when he left. Maybe he was married and didn’t want you to think he’s trying to get up your skirt. Or, or, or- maybe he’s embarrassed about what he had to do and because of that, being in your presence makes him nervous..?

“Yeah that’s totally it.” You whispered to yourself.

Just then, someone came though the door. Immediately you turned to see who it was, and to your surprise, you didn’t recognize her.

She was much shorter than Gyomei and had her purple and black hair pulled back into a messy ponytail. Her haori looked like the wings of a butterfly with its markings, in fact, she looked like a butterfly. She moved with grace in each step and took her time coming over to where you were resting.

“Hi hi Y/N-chan!” She greeted enthusiastically. “I’m Shinobu-san and my friend Gyomei told me that you were looking pretty rough!” She stood beside your bed and examined the bandages around your stomach.

“Well he wasn’t wrong,” you tried to laugh it off, but the pain caused you to wince. “I don’t even remember what happened.” You admitted to her, looking away out of embarrassment.

“Now now, did you bandage yourself?” She asked, slowly lifting up your shirt to get a good view of how far your wounds went. You shook your head and Shinobu gigged to herself. Once she had finished examining you, she stood up and brushed off her hands with a kind smile. “I’m sure you’ll be fine. With what I felt, you’ll be on your feet tomorrow at least, just remember to be careful and to take it easy!”

And with those words, Shinobu had left.

You wished you had asked her if she could send Gyomei back into the room, you were incredibly bored and it would be great if you could just talk to him to pass the time.

Sighing, you looked out the window and noticed that the sun was beginning to set. “Good night house,” you mumbled to yourself as you got comfortable.

That night you had dreamt you were healed, and in a much better condition than you were now. You dreamt that you were much more powerful, and beautiful too. But the best part of that dream was what happens behind closed doors with a person who lives alone.

“G-Gyomei~” You were a mess but you couldn’t quite explain why. He was crawling on top of you slowly, practically towering over you with how tall he was. Gyomei placed his hands next to your head and leaned down in close to your ear.

“You called?” He whispered seductively. A gentle smirk graced his lips as he began to kiss you softly along your jawline. You shivered, looking away out of embarrassment. Though, that move only made your neck more vulnerable. “What do you need, Y/N?” The question gave you goosebumps, which you tried your best to ignore, but the sudden heatwave that flushed to your face made it hard to do so.

“Y-you,” you mumbled shyly. “I need y-you, Gyomei.” He smiled at your words and slowly raised his body from yours. He carefully sat up and pulled you into his lap, your back against his chest and his hands resting on your waist.

He buried his head in the crook of your neck as his hands moved up to unbutton your shirt in the most teasingly slow way possible. “Just let me take care of you darling.” His breath was hot against your bare skin, which only made you shiver in anticipation.

“Y-yes sir.”

You woke up to find yourself saying his name. You were flushed and covered in a thin layer of sweat from the wonderful dream that you had been torn from. Slowly pulling the covers over yourself, you looked around the room, hoping that no one had heard your little… incident.

But your heart stopped completely when you saw Gyomei’s figure in the hallway. He looked mesmerized just as you looked terrified. You hurriedly hurried yourself underneath the blanket and mumbled an apology since you assumed you had woken him up.

You wanted to be able to die of embarrassment so badly, but sadly you were forced to face the consequences of your stupid little dream.

The sound of footsteps reached your ears, making your heart rate skyrocket. They stopped before your bed and you could sense his stare, burning through the covers.

He squatted down to your level and slowly pulled the blanket off of your head to reveal your more than red face. Gyomei leaned over to your face and let out a short sigh. “You called?”

[astralm00ns]

WXS CYBER AU (my takes on it)

feel free to use these au ideas with credit! (if you decide to please tag me i’d love to see)

SHIBUYA, TOKYO | CYBER UTOPIA - 20XX. shibuya, tokyo, for the most part, has remained one of the most bustling and important parts of society as a whole. it’s many products, businesses, and overall heavy advancement in technology have made it a staple in the world, especially those looking for business partners. it’s technology has absolutely exceeded many, turning it into a cyber utopia.

though, what hides is the corruption underneath all of this cool tech and beautiful cityscape. crime is a regular, mostly by rogues who want to fight against businesses, who have turned creativity and art into nothing but a huge money making scheme. the higher ups always consider rogues as criminals, as they would prefer siding with the people who would give them money.

rogues for the most part, spread around their creativity without the form of payment, without needing to think of it as a cash grab. also engaging in fights and crime for the sake of defending art over fame. rogues typically act late at night, since ordinary folks are typically distracted by the cityscape and flashy products being shoved right into their faces. while they fight, they do have good intentions. merely wanting to put a stop to cash and fame grabbing scenes, and return to art being a form of expression.

companies released these power hungry robots to combat rogues. selling them in mass, disguising them as “protectors.” it’s gotten to a point where these robots have taken over a huge portion of shibuya, and it’s starting to become a major problem to the cityscape.

KAMISHIRO RUI

a vigilante who works alone in the shadows, though also once a well known figure in local parts. thanks to his past of showing off the inventions he made.

in his youth, his inventions were ADORED. absolutely loved by people, and that made him happy and all that. he wanted to keep making more such things since it’s something he really likes doing

though as he got older, he noticed people trying to buy his inventions off of him, saying how he’ll make it big and that he won’t ever need to worry about living his life the way he does anymore. and it gets consistent too. like, REALLY consistent these offers, when rui’s just really trying to enjoy making inventions for enjoyment and artistry. he doesn’t ever want to see his inventions as products that can be sold.

it starts infuriating rui since he thinks that these rich companies just want to get his inventions in their hands to make a quick buck, and it gets him really pissy and shit. so he stops showing off his works, keeping it private and only showcasing it to people he trusts. only works he does show off publicly are the ones he uses when it comes to combat, like his drones.

rui wants to find others like him. others who have seen through the minds of these other companies who are supposed to focus on art, not actually doing so and instead using it as a way to go viral and get money. he is a firm believer in using art to express, not to sell. he’s typically either working on inventions or out fighting, though alone most of the time. occasionally going out to combat with nene, a childhood friend of his. also since she’s really the only person he knows now that he still trusts a lot (prior to meeting emukasa)

TENMA TSUKASA

a well known rogue, at least around other rogues. he keeps himself undercover when not in public, but he goes full out flashy when engaging in combat. tenma tsukasa style and all that idk. he buys his tech, especially his combat ones, from other rogues, mostly to help them out. also to put it to good use. when it comes to being out in the city, he’s mostly hidden. watching over the cityscape overtop buildings and planning, or walking about scramble crossing. he really can’t deny that despite the amount of advertisements being shoved everywhere, all the lights do make up for a beautiful looking area.

tsukasa was often seen doing play battles as a kid, especially with little abandoned robots he had found laying around in parks or other public spots. taking them home to keep playing with them. his little friends that kept him entertained while his sister, saki, was in the hospital. he gave some of these robots to her so she could also have someone with her. tsukasa often prioritized going whenever his parents gave him the opportunity, doing anything with those little robots to make her happy. tsukasa then started going out more as he got older, starting to see rogues doing their thing. he believed it was one of the most amazing things he ever saw, and agreeing fully on their motives. he remembered saki talking to him once about them before, but never would’ve have believed he would see some in action. he wanted to do just that to make saki happy. once he was of age, he became a rogue himself. though forgetting his original motive, wanting to climb ranks, he moved up extremely quickly. now being one of the top rogues out there. both to his amazing ability handling tech and physical combat, his lack of identity in public too.

he met rui while taking down some robots. his ass was getting whooped by some robots, but rui found him, going in and dealing them off. tsukasa thanks rui for the saving and decides to ask him about his inventions, mostly since they caught his eye. something he’s never seen before. after rui explained to tsukasa that he made all of them all on his own, tsukasa was immediately taken back and impressed. he offered rui to join him, in which he was first denied. mostly since rui still had trust issues at that moment. eventually the pair kept running into each other, until finally rui gave in, seeing what this “oh so great tsukasa” truly had potential for. proving to be a great partner in combat.

KUSANAGI NENE

a not so active rogue, mostly spending her time in arcades. either for fun or for tournaments. though she does manage to get herself to go out whenever rui decides to ask her to. while she doesn’t go out as much as rui at all, she certainly knows her stuff. especially with robo-nene, a robot rui made specifically for her as a friend. also so that way she had someone to play games with. nene over time requested features for robo-nene, and now she often uses her as some sort of side kick when fighting other robots. thanks to robo-nene’s analyzing, it allows nene to act fast and prove to be a very strong opponent, whether it be human or AI she’s fighting.

she typically avoided being flashy and showy, mostly since she didn’t want to bring any attention towards her. mostly for safety reasons. she prefers keeping herself much more secluded, especially since it makes everything easier. it’s been like that since she was little, only exception being when she was with rui. often being shy and not really talking to people. she started fighting after rui introduced her to it, seeing it as a good way to bond with rui again after growing a little distant. often going on little side missions just to keep her busy, though she did eventually find enjoyment out of it. often thinking about it like playing a game. where the objective was to destroy as many robots as possible. she and rui complemented each other really well with each other’s fighting styles, the pair always working well the few times they fought together. though for the most part she fought alone with just robo-nene.

it was through combat where she tsukasa, seeing him do his thing. at first she felt second-hand embarrassment at how extra tsukasa was acting when talking about himself, at least before seeing him whoop ass. she couldn’t help but be impressed, then deciding to occasionally watch him fight. until eventually he noticed her, introducing himself and inviting her to join him. she decides to, occasionally fighting with tsukasa now as well. nene decides it’s best not to tell rui about him yet, just to be safe. besides, rui would eventually catch a guy like him anyways, considering how easy that man would be to spot. she met emu in an arcade tournament. watching her talk to one of the players about plans. then occasionally running into each other in rogue safe spaces. she came to grew an appreciation towards her after seeing her contributions towards rogues, despite not even being one at all.

OTORI EMU

her family owns OTORECH, one of THE most largest businesses in shibuya. they sell out a whole bunch of devices in mass, ones that supposedly are supposed to make things easier for people. emu, being an otori, knows what goes on behind the scenes. she often overheard her brothers and father discussing their sales, and how they only keep trying to come up with more products to make even more. emu believes the money her family makes could go out to other people rather than blowing it on even more products, but her proposals never end up getting to her family. 

what emu does instead is give insight for rogues. she delivers information about OTORECH and other companies they have partnered with, mostly to allow them to plan ahead of time which areas they need to deal with in terms of savage robots. she never asks for anything in exchange, other than the ability to either watch or help fight said robots. rogues have come to respect her a lot, always looking forward to what she has to bring. in turn she also keeps the rogue’s plans as secrets, that way they won’t be caught. enjoying delaying some of her brother’s plans so rogues could do what they need to do much quicker. she’s very skilled in using weapons way larger than her size, carrying them with ease and also using them to beat down robots. always wanting to go on combat missions solely because of how much she enjoys them. she’s hoping that one day she can be the one running her father’s business, that way she can put a stop to all the unbelievably pricey items her dad and her brothers decided to put out.

tsukasa was the one that introduced emu to rui. nene had already known her for a bit from the few times she encountered her at the arcade or at some vacant places with robots, but it was her first time meeting rui. emu was quick to like rui’s presence, not really hearing much about lone vigilantes, let alone ones with all of their gadgets being self-made. also trying to see behind rui’s serious exterior. she and tsukasa both then decide to take rui out to fight. eventually nene joins as well, the four of them forming their own small coalition with one another. each using their own unique skill sets to take down robots much easier, for the sake of bringing back art in its purest form.

[lbukisgf]

budo masuta, umeji kizuguchi geiju tsuka: how they love you <3

(alt title: love languages!!)

— gn!reader, implied relationship, tooth-rotting fluff, very mild angst w/comfort. not proofread. (maybe some slight favoritism in length 😭)

budo masuta: acts of service and quality time (with a sprinkle of physical touch)

listen; this man is probably whipped for you.

he’d do just about anything for you

you want bento to take to school? he’s on it! (PLEASE DONT LET HIM COOK)

you need help with carrying something or as simple as schoolwork? it’s already done.

he loves being in your presence just as much as doing things for you.

your presence is the most surreal, comforting and loving thing for him; so much so that it’s distracting at times.

it usually results in some small hugs and kisses (even a make out session)

he’s the kind of lover that’d bend over backwards just to move heaven and hell, the stars and the moon; all if you asked him to.

umeji kizuguchi: physical touch and words of affirmation.

after all the bullying he’s endured, the slightest of touches and the smallest of compliments make him fall apart.

holding his hand while you’re walking home together? he’s blushing.

you call him pretty and the sweetest boy ever? he is absolutely blushing.

he loves when you hug him while thanking him for literally anything (bonus points if you kiss him!!)

he’ll give you a hug, kiss, or the sweetest blanket of words he can think of if you ask, he mostly does it randomly; leaving you speechless at times .

he’s the type of lover to reciprocate the love you give to him, but give it back tenfold.

he just wants to keep you happy, and he loves you enough to all of his sacrifice his time for you.

even if he ‘complains’ about it.

geiju tsuka: quality time & words of affirmation

another one for the “this man is whipped for you pile” just less obvious

he’s so in love with you, it tends to seep into his art.

(headcanon that maybe geiju secretly has a bunch of small sketches of you and has been wanting to give them as a gift but thinks itd be too awkward so he just has a whole box of them)

he loves having you close to him while he paints, thinks it’s the most relaxing and comforting thing ever

he absolutely adores when you tell him how great of an artist he is- it has a heavy affect on him. (the kind only you have)

he’s a man of few words, but it doesn’t stop him from saying the sweetest of things to you.

(it can range from the most adorable things to him being a smug fucker)

sometimes if you’re lucky, he’ll be in his art studio, painting a picture of you; giving you the perfect opportunity to tease him with your sweet words.

— the end.

note: massive shoutout to the yansim discord server for giving me this idea + characters to write for this!!

lbukisgf Ⓒ 2023

[ssruis]

7 and 12 for the ask game? •v•

12 - favorite NPC:

SEIR💃🏻YU🕺IN💃🏻 SA🕺KU💃🏻RAKO‼️‼️🔛🔝💯

Unless we’re counting nonhuman npcs because I also love nenerobo and usachan. She’s tied with them.

7 - popular hc you disagree with/hc you have that you’re surprised isn’t more popular:

(Under the cut because I don’t shut up)

Do not agree with “kanade is tsukasa’s sibling” at all. It’s cute & no disrespect or hate to the people who enjoy that hc have fun and enjoy yourself. I’ve seen it done well. but as an annoying canon purist I have to say that I think it completely misunderstands both tsukasa’s mindset around being an older brother & his relationship with toya (wrt why he considers toya like a brother).

Tsukasa isn’t adopting younger siblings left and right, he’s just modeled so much of his personality off of being a good older brother that it is deeply entrenched in what he thinks a star should act like. It’s why he places so much importance on being a responsible senior/role model at school. “I want to be a star” & “I want to be a good older brother” get combined in his brain as a kid -> “what a star acts like is (traits that make a good older brother) so I will be doing all of these things when interacting with others” -> he just acts like that now.

He’s very caring & helpful towards everyone but that’s 1) not an “you’re my sibling now” thing 2) often overshadows the fact that he can be pretty self absorbed in fanon. While this helpfulness is definitely genuine and I do think he likes to make other people happy, he also is doing it because it’s how he believes he should be acting as a future star and he likes to be viewed as a responsible mature helpful person. He is doing it for himself AND for others. & notably he’s a lot more likely to show the older-brother-tsukasa side to his close friends & especially his siblings whereas everyone else gets world-future-star-tsukasa.

Toya is his brother because they’ve known each other for like 10 years. And (imo) because there was an unconscious “saki is in the hospital and I can’t do anything to help her and I have nowhere for these big brother tendencies to go. Thankfully there’s a sad little blue thing for me to act like this towards” thing going on in tsukasa’s head & toya was very “sad little blue thing that really needs someone who’s first priority is making toya happy” at that point so these two factors combined to create a very beautiful and strong sibling relationship.

I think half of my beef with it also stems from the fact that this hc often overshadows his relationship with saki (& to a lesser extent toya) in fan works and I adore the relationship tsukasa&saki have so it makes me :(.

Kanade is Tsukasa’s age, they’re both nearly adults, & kanade has niigo and her grandmother to support her. While I think it would be sweet if they became friends I really can’t see them forging a strong bond as it is. Also I know this hc popped up because hirose said he’d want kanade as a sister but I also want to point out that for that same question toki said he’d want tsukasa as a brother iirc. So.

Honorable mentions go to any form of angstkasa, any interpretation of rui&nene drifting apart that places the blame on nene, any hc that makes rui malicious & conniving or emu stupid, “x female character and x male character are siblings” with zero reason for it beyond the fact that for some reason a m/f dynamic can’t be platonic it either has to be familial or romantic, etc.

Hc I have that isn’t more popular… I know it’s probably been disproven in canon, but I like to think that Rui’s mom’s job is very animal focused (zoologist maybe) and this is why he has a fondness for so many strange animals and a wealth of animal facts ready to be deployed at any moment. I also think he watches random documentaries/video essays/podcasts/etc while working on stuff and this is partially why he knows so much random shit.

I also think rui is a dog person (he likes cats he just really likes dogs) & tsukasa is a person who claims to not like cats but is universally loved by cats. like they will not leave him alone. so now he’s fond of them and has become a cat person.

Other assorted ones:

> nene does like physical touch (from friends) she’s just also so so so prone to over thinking every single social interaction that she doesn’t feel comfortable initiating it. so emu being someone who wants to be touching her 24/7 actually works well for her.

> I think emu can ride horses. Her family has horse money and she seems like a kid who would like doing that. She can understand horses… horse whisperer… wxs has to go to a stable for some reason and a super skittish horse approaches emu and really bonds with her & rui is like (looks at emu and the horse) (looks at nene) ahh I see.

> tsukasa would watch and read a lot of musicals/plays/etc when he was home alone as a form of comfort and this is why he talks like that. Still thinking about “parting is such sweet sorrow” or whatever he said to vbs in the new years event like we get it you’re a theatre kid tsukasa.

> nene has some degree of coding knowledge and dabbled in game making in the time period after she froze on stage & before she joined wxs. she never finished making a game because 1. Really hard 2. Anytime she’d be struggling with something it would remind her that she wasn’t as close with rui anymore and she’d get sad

> emu has a lot of random strange talents but because she’s friends with rui “oh i know how to do [thing he has literally zero reason to be good at]” kamishiro this has never been relevant. She could, however, break out her parkour skills at any second (ominous).

> emu’s looney tunes esque parkour skills are a result of going places and climbing things she was not supposed to as a kid. Shes managed to keep her joyous and whimsical outlook and thought process partially because she’s been working at pxl since she was little so she’s constantly interacting with kids.

> nene thinks reptiles are pretty cool but she could never own one because feeding one mice would gross her out & she would die if she had to feed one bugs.

> When wxs were doing their ambassador shows shousuke would get them 2 hotel rooms with 2 beds each but because wxs are pack animals (of the clown genus) emu would frequently drag nene to rui + tsukasa’s room and they would all hang out until tsukasa made them all go to sleep at a reasonable time.

> tsukasa & emu can sleep anywhere anytime. Nene has mild insomnia and rui has both awful insomnia and struggles to sleep unless he’s somewhere familiar. even if he’s dead tired. Somehow the sound of Tsukasa’s cartoonishly loud snoring became familiar enough to rui’s brain that it made it easier for him to sleep.

[twilightmalachite]

Sora Harukawa Mini Talk - Audition VS GLADIATOR -Fourth piece-

Translator: Mika Enstars

"It's the first Sora's seen it, but it's such a cute character! ♪ Sora feels that Mido-chan would like this sort of thing too~! ♪"

Do You Want That Plushie?

[Read on my blog for the best viewing experience with Oi~ssu ♪]

Season: Spring

Location: Arcade

Sora: HaHa~, HiHi~, HuHu~♪

Get into the rhythm and tap at the right times! And sometimes, hold!

If Sora moves his body like this, he'll clear it in no time!

💬 You're good at this

Sora: Yes! This song is one that Sora's best at in this rhythm game! ♪

Actually, how long has Anzu been here watching Sora? Sora was so focused on playing he didn't notice at all~!

Anzu didn't want to get in Sora's way, so shes been quietly watching all this time...? HeHe~, Thanks for being considerate!

💬 ... (applaud)

Sora: Hmm? There's someone watching... Wait, it's Anzu!

Could it be Anzu was watching Sora play?

Sora's happy he was able to manage a clear in front of Anzu with a good score~! ♪

Sora: It's rare to see Anzu at the arcade... Is there a reason Anzu came here?

Hmm... So it's to get a plushie she had wanted!

Which one is it? Maybe Sora will be able to help out!

💬 It's that plushie, but...

Sora: Whoa, it's something colorful... A cat? Could it be a cat?

It's the first Sora's seen it, but it's such a cute character! ♪ Sora feels that Mido-chan would like this sort of thing too~! ♪

Anzu thinks so too? Then, Sora will try to get one to bring back for Mido-chan!

💬 I wanna try hard to get it myself

Sora: Is that so? Sora was hoping that he could help out, though...

But, like Anzu says, maybe Anzu finds it more important if she gets it herself?

In that case, Sora will watch and cheer Anzu on! Go~, go~, go Anzu~!

Sora: Clapclapclapclap! Anzu was able to get the plushie she wanted! ♪

Sora is sure the plushie is happy to have been gotten by Anzu as well~!

Will it be put on display somewhere when Anzu gets home? Or since it comes with a keychain, will Anzu be carrying it around with her?

💬 I wonder what I should do

Sora: Anzu was planning on displaying it, but she can't decide where...?

If it were Sora... Hmm... He'd probably put it on his desk, or his bed?

Because if it's one of those, then it'd always be easy to see! It'd definitely feel a lot closer than if it was put somewhere out of sight~!

💬 Which one should I do?

Sora: Either displaying or carrying it with both feels like it's being "valued", huh~.

So Sora thinks he can understand why Anzu is having trouble deciding between one or another.

Sora carries things around him sometimes, but he usually will have them displayed in his room. Either one is probably fine to choose~?

[ ☆ ]

Time For Sweets

[Read on my blog for the best viewing experience with Oi~ssu ♪]

Season: Spring

Location: NewDi Office

Sora: Anzu, take a look inside this box!

Strawberry shortcake! Chocolate cake, cheesecake, mont blanc mille crepe!

They all look so yummy, Sora can't decide which to eat!

💬 Why is there so much cake?

Sora: Tsuka-chan brought some for the staff and everyone else in the office!

Although Tsuka-chan had to leave the office for a meeting or something already...

But he told Sora, "Go ahead, Harukawa-kun", so Sora's gonna pick one out too~! ♪

💬 There's pudding too

Sora: There is, huh! ♪ As expected from Tsuka-chan, he bought all kinds of stuff~!

Tsuka-chan had to go to a meeting though, so Sora would like to save some for him...

I wonder which one Tsuka-chan would like to eat? Sora wishes he's asked~.

Sora: HaHa~. Sora debated quite a bit, but he has decided on eating this tart~! ♪

It's topped with so many fruits and looks super yummy!

Has Anzu decided yet? Anzu can use this plate once she has! ♪

💬 Is it alright for me to have one?

Sora: Of course! Though, Sora might have decided this on his own...

But even if Tsuka-chan was here, Sora's sure he would have offered one to Anzu too! ♪

So, please feel free to pick one! Sora wants Anzu to have her favorite cake~! ♪

💬 What cute paper plates!

Sora: Sora thinks so too! They have cute flower patterns and come in a bunch of colors~! ♪

The staff... said they were office supplies, but... Sora doesn't think these plates were here until recently?

So maybe Senpai asked for some new ones~!

Sora: ...Ah, Anzu got the shortcake, huh! ♪

Hmm? Sora should've known that she was gonna pick out the shortcake?

...That's not true~! All the cakes look really yummy. Sora figured that she could've chosen any of them!

💬 That's true

Sora: Though, he did notice Anzu was eyeing the strawberries on the shortcake! ♪

Sora picked out the tart, but he also considered the shortcake too~!

Huh, Sora can gave a bite? Then, Sora will share some of his tart with Anzu too!

💬 Well, actually...

Sora: Anzu was debating between the shortcake and pudding, but went with the shortcake because she wanted strawberries...?

That makes sense! ♪ It's true, the strawberries on the shortcake are big and look so yummy!

Let's go ahead and eat, then! Put our hands together, and– thanks for the food!

[ ☆ ]

[yamayuandadu]

thank you for the reply and the information! I was curious how the other fox would fit in with PCB Extra's metatextual mention of Three Lands, but I hadn't even considered it might be three worlds and not three countries. this is neat

(Original post for context)

I forgot I left the response to this in my drafts, sorry. Luckily, this means I could update it with recently acquired knowledge when I found it again. Truth to be told, my point is less that the other fox is a better match, and more that Ran being Tamamo no Mae is one of these things which make sense at first glance, but the deeper you look into it, the less coherent it becomes.

This got much longer than I planned, so for organizational purposes let's refer to this post as Revenge of the "graveyard god", or why I don't think Ran is Tamamo no Mae. More under the cut.

The early Tamamo no Mae

The main point of connection between Tamamo no Mae and Ran are the nine tails, but that’s not even really a consistent part of the former's background. The oldest version of the story - which is really fun, the seduction section is pages upon pages of Tamamo and emperor Toba discussing esoteric Buddhism -  states that she was “an 800-year-old two-tailed fox from the Nasuno Plain in Shimotsuke Province”. Early depictions of her true form follow this pretty closely:

Nezu Museum of Art, via Monsters, Animals, and Other Worlds. A Collection of Short Medieval Japanese Tales

Kyoto University Rare Materials Digital Library

Suntory Museum of Art

As far as I am aware, the two tails are actually unique to her. Other foxes of note have either one tail or nine. While it does seem the belief in the number of tails growing with age is genuine rather than a modern misconception, it’s hardly central to fox folklore (I’ve seen the portmoneu “foxlore” at least once btw, it’s very funny). And, as I will outline later, it doesn’t even seem to be behind the idea of nine-tailed foxes in the first place. Anyway, the oldest version does provide Tamamo with more backstory, but it’s closer to presenting Shuten Dōji as a manifestation of Mara than to a straightforward “Tamamo is x under a pseudonym” popular today. As we learn, the two-tailed fox is in fact a reincarnation of a “graveyard god” (塚の神, Tsuka no Kami) from India, described in the apocryphal Humane Kings Sutra (it gets namedropped directly), likely originally composed in China.

How come? It all started when Kalmashapada, a prince of Devala in India, wanted to offer 1000 skulls of virtuous rulers to this deity because a suspicious “heretical” preacher convinced him it’s a good idea. After defeating and imprisoning 999 such kings, he encountered Shrutasoma, one of the previous incarnations of the historical Buddha, who managed to show him the error of his ways. All of the kings were released, and Kalmashapada was redeemed. The “graveyard god” was less than thrilled, and swore to keep reincarnating as a fox in kingdoms where Buddhism flourished to destroy it. We are told that happened many times, but only one past identity, that of Bao Si (Hōji), comes up. Obviously, eighth century BCE China was not exactly an area famous for Buddhist devotion, but that’s irrelevant here. We are told the endgame is not just to overthrow a righteous ruler, but also to become his replacement. Alas, Tamamo no Mae obviously fails at both of these goals. Still, points for trying.

The story does not provide the deity with a specific identity. However, Nobumi Iyanaga notes that in the referenced sutra he’s Mahakala (the original Makakaraten version, not the joyful Daikokuten). In East Asian Buddhism he is described as dwelling in the graveyards due to acting as both the chief of dakinis and their subduer. At the same time, Iyanaga argues in the context of the Tamamo no Mae story it can be argued he is either implicitly replaced by the dakini par excellence, Dakiniten (closely associated with foxes), or that the deity has no identity other than the fox one.

Later Tamamo developments

Two elements which are mainstays of modern retellings are missing from the oldest version, as you might have noticed. It doesn’t feature the Sesshōseki, which was only added later, seemingly as a way to promote Zen Buddhism, since this extension of the story casts a member of this school as the new protagonist. In the early variants Tamamo’s corpse was brought to the imperial treasury, the same one which shows up in a similar context in the tale of Shuten Dōji, and there is no indication she came back as a vengeful ghost, let alone that she repented and accepted Buddhism, as she does in some of the Sesshōseki variants.

The other difference is, as I already pointed out, the tails. The oldest depiction of a nine-tailed Tamamo no Mae I am aware of is Sekien’s. Based on a few papers I read it would appear textual variants of the story giving her nine tails might have been in circulation earlier, but that’s not reflected in any of the illustrated scrolls shown above. 

Sekien's nine-tailed Tamamo (wikimedia commons)

Sekien claims that Tamamo no Mae is one and the same as Daji (I’ll get back to her later), and specifies the latter was a nine-tailed fox. He cites Zhang Dingsi’s Langye Dai Zui Bian (浪挪代醉編, “Langye’s Substitute for Drunkenness: A Compilation”) as his source for this tidbit, but does not explain where does the conflation of the two foxes come from. In contrast with the elaborate reincarnation scheme from the older version, he states Daji simply flew across the sea to reach Japan, without reincarnating.

What is now essentially treated as the “definitive” version of the Tamamo no Mae story, and what cemented her image as a nine-tailed fox, only dates back to 1805. That’s when Ehon Sangoku Yōfuden (絵本三国妖婦伝; “Tales of Enchantresses in the Three Kingdoms”) finished publication. The author, Ranzan Takai (高井蘭山), was an enthusiast of neo-confucian thought, and he wanted to write a story highlighting the time honored confucian belief that dynasties are brought down by suspicious concubines. The real goal was somewhat broader, though -the story of Tamamo no Mae was essentially repurposed as a critique of the concept of women playing an important role in public life.

It needs to be noted here that it is not impossible that the original was already part of a political polemic. Arguments have been made that Tamamo is a fictional representation of Bifukomon-in, for instance. They are certainly linked to the same emperor, Toba.

Bifukomon-in (wikimedia commons)

However, while I would not rule this out altogether, it’s hard to deny the typical medieval penchant for reinterpreting Buddhist material feels more central to the story. It is ultimately a very elaborate twist on the Humane Kings Sutra first and foremost. It belongs to the same world as other fabulous tales about figures from distant Buddhist lands arriving in Japan, alongside the likes of the legend of emperor Suwa of Hadai or the medieval Amaterasu narrative involving Mara (stay tuned for my post about that one).

Ideological motivations aside, in Ranzan’s version an anonymous nine-tailed fox appears as Daji in China, Kayō in India (seemingly a leftover of the original “graveyard god” story; here the prince is convinced to carry out his evil plans by his concubine instead though), and finally Tamamo no Mae in Japan. He also gives a unique account of Tamamo’s arrival in Japan, as far as I am aware: in his novel, she was brought there by Kibi no Makibi, a famous historical envoy to China. This was not his first time as a literary character, a much earlier picture scroll about his adventures is pretty funny (I have Touhou ocs based on it), but I’ll save this discussion for another time.

Not quite Tamamo: the influence of Daji

Daji, as depicted by Hokusai (wikimedia commons)

Daji requires some further discussion. She was initially regarded simply as a non-supernatural wicked concubine, but came to be treated as a fox posing as a human by the Song period. According to Xiaofei Kang the oldest evidence for that comes from 1101, from a Japanese text presumably reflecting an already extant Chinese belief. By the Yuan period it became a commonly accepted view, with Quanxiang Pinghua (全相平話) specifically stating Daji had nine tails. Her fox-like image was finally cemented fully by popular novels in the Ming and Qing periods.

Since there was a preexisting tradition in which Daji was a human woman, a remedy was developed: the “real” Daji was possessed by a fox, who took her name and identity. Curiously, the fox component of her story is otherwise not very important, and some modern authors basically characterize it as “tacked on”: she is the quintessential evil concubine bringing kingdoms to ruin out of a sense of cruelty who just happens to be a fox, and her story doesn’t really depend on preexisting fox-related motifs. 

There are multiple accounts of Daji’s deeds, but the most famous one, and at the same time the most likely influence on Razan’s portrayal of her (and thus Tamamo), is Investiture of the Gods. However, he skips the origin attributed to her here: in the Chinese original, Daji is an agent of the goddess Nuwa, though she eventually overdoes it and is rebuked by her former boss for excessive cruelty. This doesn’t really fit well with Tamamo’s backstory, obviously; making her and Daji interchangeable was detrimental to both characters, I feel. A Chinese story dealing with Daji reincarnating does exist, but it’s not exactly similar. In the Ming novel Zhaoyang Qushi (昭陽趣事) she reincarnated as Zhao Hede, a concubine of emperor Cheng of Han. What happens next has been described as “pornographic entertainment enlivened by supernatural and historical costumes”. For more details, check out Rania Huntington’s book from the bibliography below.

Curiously, it is possible Daji was simultaneously an object of active cult, since there is a Song imperial edict outlawing the shrines dedicated to her, Wutong (a southern Chinese spirit who was believed to bring wealth and bewitch people, compared with foxes in the north) and “General Shi” (no clue who that might be, I’d hazard a guess one of the popular pacified vengeful spirit cults but don’t quote me on that). However, another contemporary source instead mentions the outlawing of temples of “fox kings”, so it might also mean that the name of Daji was applied by officials to an unrelated popular fox cult (“fox king” is a reasonably common appellation for supernatural foxes). Both regular and nine-tailed foxes are attested in such a context across history.

Early nine-tailed foxes

An early Chinese depiction of a nine-tailed fox (wikimedia commons)

The early portrayals of nine-tailed foxes are something I started looking into recently because of Ran’s freshly revealed connection to Yuuma: I figured it makes sense that she’d be in origin someone who belongs to the same world as the taotie.

Looking at the earliest Chinese sources, multiple nine-tailed foxes appear in legends about virtuous rulers like Tang, Wen or Yu the Great, essentially as generic good omens, without much fanfare. According to confucian commentaries from the Later Han period, the nine tails were understood as a sign a given emperor will have many descendants. The exception from this generally positive tendency is the Classic of Mountains and Seas, where the nine-tailed fox is described as “man-eating” (something very uncommon in Chinese fox literature). However, it also doesn’t exactly get more spotlight than the other creatures. It’s also treated as a separate animal from regular foxes, not as a particularly old fox. You could say it is to the fox what a bai ze is to an ox, I think. Visual arts add further specimens: the source of this discussion, the nine-tailed fox attendant of Xi Wangmu, later seemingly “decanonized”, and another belonging to the entourage of Zhong Kui. Both of these are hardly eminent and seem to fit the mold of auspicious omens. In Zhong Kui’s case the fox is in one case listed alongside the bai ze which only strengthens this impression. However, it also makes sense that its inclusion would reflect Zhong Kui’s role as a demon queller: he is often portrayed with conquered demons as servants, after all.

Conclusions

To sum up: ultimately it just doesn’t seem nine-tailed foxes are quite as big of a deal as popculture makes them seem, and nine tails are neither exclusive nor innate to Tamamo no Mae. Since that’s the only real point of connection between her and Ran save for a throwaway PCB line which leads to no further references, I maintain there’s no strong case for identifying them with each other, especially since there is no shortage of other candidates. 

There’s also the fact that, Daji aside, most other nine-tailed foxes are largely blank slates you can do anything with, while Tamamo has many fairly unique characteristics which would be wasted by randomly slapping her name on Ran, in my opinion. To be fair, ZUN does occasionally make similar mistakes - Yoshika is the main example (remember, the actual legend about Yoshika’s immortality claims he decided to pursue eternal life after having a thrilling affair and has him call himself “strongest madman under heaven”).

I would personally argue ZUN himself probably did not feel strongly about who Ran is supposed to actually be when he originally came up with her, though. None of her spellcards reference Tamamo no Mae. Or any other fox identified with her, for that matter. They do have a more or less consistent theme, but that theme is, broadly speaking, “magic arts”, from onmyodo (Shikigami "Banquet of the Twelve General Gods"), through shugendo (Illusion God "Descent of Izuna-Gongen", Shikigami "The Protection of Zenki and Goki", Superhuman "Soaring En no Ozunu") and esoteric Buddhism (Shikigami "Channeling Dakiniten", Esoteric Sign "Odaishi-sama's Secret Key"), to contemporary stage magic (Shiki Brilliance "Princess Tenko -Illusion-"). In other words, I do not think canon actually strongly supports any specific option. 

I will admit I’m biased but personally I think picking a different fox makes it much easier to accommodate Yuuma and their shared animal realm past, the most thrilling Ran development in ages. As for Tamamo, I do think she would be fun to see in Touhou, but preferably as her own character - with two tails, if possible.

Bibliography

Bernard Faure, The Power of Denial. Buddhism, Purity, and Gender

Rania Huntington, Alien Kind. Foxes and Late Imperial Chinese Narrative

Nobumi Iyanaga, Under the Shadow of the Great Śiva: Tantric Buddhism and its Influence on Japanese Mediaeval Culture

Idem, Dākinī in: Brill's Encyclopedia of Buddhism (vol. 2)

Xiaofei Kang, The Cult of the Fox: Power, Gender, and Popular Religion in Late Imperial and Modern China

Laura K. Nüffer, Lady Tamamo in: Keller Kimbrough and Haruo Shirane (eds.), Monsters, Animals, and Other Worlds. A Collection of Short Medieval Japanese Tales

Sumiko Sekiguchi, Gender in the Meiji Renovation: Confucian 'Lessons for Women' and the Making of Modern Japan

Chun-Yi Joyce Tsai, Imagining the Supernatural Grotesque: Paintings of Zhong Kui and Demons in the Late Southern Song (1127-1279) and Yuan (1271-1368) Dynasties

[halloeverynyan]

"10 things i like about you"

whoa new fic but with the art pres x science pres? yippee

warning im pretty shit at formal texting or talk so what you see here is just me randomly putting fancy words lmao

another warning it's shit so expect some mistakes and grammars HAHAHHAHAHAHA

summary: 10 things i like about tsuburaya geiju.

10 things i like about tsuburaya geiju.

hmm how shall i say this?

although we barely have any communication due to busy times, but the times where he makes me feel comfortable and warm around him... i do like him and see him as a friend.

but what are some ten things i like about geiju? that's the question mana and eiko asked me.

let's see...

1.) his talent of art.

i do admire his talent of art, and it just makes me have similar ideas, but well... i do asked his consent.

2.) his freckles.

don't get me wrong! i like his freckles, they remind me of strawberries. i meant that as a compliment!

3.) his care for his brother.

shoku tsuburaya right? i question myself why geiju chose the surname tsuka, but i don't want to ask him. although i do appreciate how geiju cares for shoku whenever his parents are at work, sometimes i always wanted to ask him if he needs help.

4.) his introvertness.

while i do tend to talk alot and stuff about my uh... interests and hobbies, geiju isn't like the other students i suppose, no offense to the other students, but he just listens and nods, which i do appreciate it.

5.) his smile.

i've never seen geiju smile, but shoku did told him that one time he smiled it was during his birthday. i've always wondered how he never smiles, but i suppose that's just his preference.

6.) his laugh.

hmm, i barely see him laugh, but i do remember how he chuckled when i begged boru to just give me the paint for a school project, i will never forget how sweet but soft geiju's chuckle is.

7.) his glasses.

his glasses are cute, don't know why almost everyone hates it. if anything, i suppose i find it beautiful on him.

8.) he's the only person who only communicates with me.

i can understand his reasoning to not like interacting or communicating with the students, but i still wonder why he just went up to me and talk to me with such small words. ahh— i meant in a curious way not in a offensive way!

9.) his scent.

NOT IN A CREEPY WAY! everytime i went up to him i always smell this one apple scent, i've always thought it was from the perfume or the cologne but knowing there's maybe no apple scented perfumes, i mostly thought he used a cologne.

10.) him, his comfort.

he makes me... warm, the way he speaks, the way he touches my hand... geiju makes me warm, and comfortable. it's the first time i've ever felt comfortable with a human being, let alone the president of the art club... but, i quite like it, no— i like it, just genuinely. maybe romantically? i barely show any true romantic emotions to anyone but... him.

URGH THEM I LOVE THEM AHHHHHH 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

[kustas]

do you know of any similar blogs to your own that analyses artists styles and animation and talks about it?

Blogs exactly the same as mine don't come to mind but I do follow some quality animation stuff. Regarding this blog I'm in a weird space between fandom posting and more or less accurate technical blabla + curated showcase of stuff I like and fancontent and while I don't know people with that same combo I do know people who share elements with that.

For animation:

@you-should-care-about-animation is run by @beatle-07 and regularly showcases some lesser known animated films, some of which are available for free online, by sharing screencaps/gifs/videos. the blogger is also an animanga fan who'll share extremely cool fanart and posts her own.

@animatejournal posts short clips of animated series/films with a huge variety of time periods, countries of origins and techniques showcased.

@sakugabooru and the site by the same name publish anime-related things: anime history, artist interviews, technical and historical information...

@ca-tsuka is a must follow for animation news, although I'd recommend their website over their blog.

Not on tumblr but the Animation Obsessive newsletter project is amazing. Similarly, fullfrontal.moe for anime stuff. They both have rly well researched articles about many animation things.

For comics:

@mangacapsaicin posts high quality caps of lesser known manga. Likely my favorite manga blog on this platform. If you want to read obscure stuff, @deadscanlations is real good

@manga-and-stuff for caps + artbook scans

A few select individual users:

@meruz is a lovely person and animation professional who shares their work both pro and personal

@kojad one of my favorite artists i found online period, who is an animator

for comic artists: @slaviiik @turndecassette2 @simon-roy @jayrockin @plaest2k come to mind. many comic artists and animators have a tumblr - check your favorites!

my "art" tag on this blog is a quick way to check out all fanart i share, like a gallery of curated fanworks :)

[an-inspired-eternity]

👀

ok full transparency this is infact. an au i still really want to write. but you know how it is the 2020s urge to just have no joy or motivation to make creative fan products

ANYWAY my wxs* focused fantasy au!! i have a couple rp blogs for it but that's the closest i get to making content for it rn..

*other characters involved but wxs has the most developed and involved

ANYWAY let me go sicko mode under the cut hehe. taking a bit from my rui blog bc i dont wanna retype all dat

worldbuilding

there is a big magical forest at the center of the region, it's considered dangerous and somewhat risky to travel through, as the inhabitants (which are primarily either magic users/"witches" or other inhuman beings. but there's also some standard like. fantasy jrpg monsters yk how it is) consider it their safe home and may not take kindly to outsiders or anyone trying to harm the forest.

magic users have varying reputations in the kingdoms outside of the forest, some don't mind and maybe even are welcoming towards them, others frown upon it but ultimately don't care, but some might even consider it taboo or forbidden to dabble in. it's for this reason that magic users born in the kingdoms may ultimately leave their homes to live in the safety of the forest instead

virtual singers (theyre the only ones to come up in story, but not the only ones) are among many of the guardians of the region, originating from the forest.

miku is basically the god of the world (likely under another name- or the goddess's name is known only as hatsune but not miku), but can't physically interfere in her primary state (think the law of cycles from pmmm), and so sends "fragments" of herself (sekai mikus) to help people and in the case of this au its the prsk characters

wxs :)

the otori family are the rulers of one of the kingdoms (the kingdoms do not have names. do not look at me), rakunosuke, the original king of the otori kingdom before emu's father kounosuke took over, was a lot more of open to magic users and other fantastical beings, and taught his son and grandchildren accordingly. when he passed, however, kounosuke and his elder sons would teach the younger children to be more fearful and wary- that not every being they'd encounter would be friendly

tsukasa & saki grew up in a small town with their parents, but fell on unexpected hard times, this resulted in them having to leave the town and it's inhabitants behind, the two ended up on their own, later joined by a semi amnesiac toya, where they were later adopted and raised by the otoris, being raised as royalty accordingly. (tsukasa trained to be a knight however, and toya felt very strongly about not wanting to be a heir unless absolutely necessary, resolving to use his smarts to tutor the other kids)

hinata helps emu and saki do their hair btw they r the sisters ever

rui is a natutal born magic user who grew up in a town that was not quite favorable to them- atleast not to magic users who don't restrain themselvesm rui wanted to experiment with his magic to see what he could do- all for the sake of helping people- be it healing, or doing visual tricks to make others smile, but the other villagers were afraid and/or distrusting of him. fearful of the villagers turning that hatred towards his parents, rui fled the village one night without telling his parents (at best leaving a note explaining why he left) to go stay in the forest.

nene is a friend of rui's- a mermaid from said forest, rui would visit when he was younger, coming to see her at the lake she stayed at. there, alongside their third companion (mizuki), the kids would discuss all sorts of things- magic, nature, society, the world.. nene doesn't know much of the world outside the forest, but wants to see the ocean someday.

tsukasa went out on a patrol to scout the areas of the region a bit further out from where the kingdom was situated- it's there he comes across rui and his "familiars" (kaito and wxs!miku) and the story begins! but tsukasa's big adventure also inspires emu to go on one of her own and play catch up ✨️

[nogenderbee]

Okay so this is the first time I've ever asked for a request but I just now thought of this and I thought it was really cute but could make me look insane but just HEAR ME OUT- pjsk boys with a S/O who was really lonely growing up and drew faces on stuff like basketballs volleyballs ect to talk to and starts rambling and going into detail on each and everyone of them, I THOUGHT IT WAS A CUTE IDEA IM NOT CRAZY I SWEAR

Don't worry it is actually pretty cute! Also I had waaay too much fun writing it hah but I hope you enjoy <3

Akito, Toya, Tsukasa, Rui with s/o who was lonely while growing up

Tag List: @alicewinterway18 - come get your future star!

You didn't had anyone in your childhood, not a single friend to talk or adult to take care of you. So you drew your friends! And they were fun! As you growed up, you managed to find some friends and even a lover! But stuff from your past still were in your room and your partner was curious about it...

⊱ Akito saw that every ball in your room had face drawen on it, at first he was a little creeped out but the more he came to your house, the more curious he started to be...

⊱ one day tho his curiosity won, and when you went to kitchen to get some snacks, he inspected these balls with faces, but you came faster than he expected so you catched him

"Oh, did Frank catched your attention?"

"Frank...? You mean, the basketball?"

"Don't call him like that! He's a great friend of mine! I can tell you about them if you want."

⊱ he agreed out of curiosity hoping that he will know why you drew faces on them, and he does get to know it but at the same time he also got to know all of your "friends" personality traits, likes, dislikes... there's no way he'll remember that!

⊱ but what's more important to him is that you didn't had anyone in your childhood and he's angry. Not only angry at everyone else, also angry at himself that he couldn't befriend you earlier

⊱ Akito from that day tries to spend more time with you so you won't ever feel lonely, he tries to set up a date every day or if he can't then at least he wants to walk you home.

⊱ you and Toya had one of your lazy dates at your place, you two were just classically cuddling when you decided to grab yourself a hoodie because it was cold

⊱ of course he didn't mind but when you opened your closet he saw a volleyball with face on them so he asked you if it's something from your childhood or if do you just like when they have a face, he wasn't creeped out or scared, just simply interested

"Oh, you're interested in Henry?"

"Henry? Did you named volleyball?"

"Yes! Would you like me to tell you about him a little?"

⊱ and so he agrees on that, one reason was his curiosity and another reason was how excited you were to tell him and he didn't wanted to ruin this for you

⊱ he does his best to remember all the personality traits, likes, dislikes and other stuff but if you have more than one "friend", he may have problems with that

⊱ he doesn't make fun of you for what you did, in fact he's worried about you so he makes sure to text you when he's not near you and tries to spend time with you more often

⊱ Tsukasa wanted to have karaoke or drama date with you but his sister had friends at sleepover so the two of you decided to take it to your place

⊱ but when he came, he saw a bunch of balls with faces on them, he thought it looked cute so naturally he told you that

"I know! Ellie is so cute! And she's a great friend too!"

"Ellie? Well it's a pleasure to meet you Ms. Ellie! Thank you for taking care of my co-star when I wasn't there!"

⊱ he sees it more as a play so when you ask if he would like to know more about Ellie and your other friends, he immediately says yes

⊱ he does his best to remember everything about your "friends" and he actually does! He remembers every name, likes, dislikes and other things of Saki's plushies to this day!

⊱ but when he gets to know why you're so dedicated to them, he sees it more than just a play, but after seeing how talking to Ellie made you happy, he talks with other "friends" too!

⊱ Tsukasa would like to spend even more time with you now, so he often invites you to his practices and shows, and invites you on dates more often

⊱ Rui forgot something from school so you took and and decided to give it to him tomorrow or next time you meet, but he seemed to need it now so he came to your place for that thing and for a little date of yours

⊱ but when he entered your room he saw a bunch of balls with faces laying around, he wanted to ask about it but didn't wanted to be rude so he only took a little glances at them but you noticed that

"Are you interested in Crystal?"

"Crystal? Is this some kind of your invention perhaps?"

"No, she's my friend! And others too!"

⊱ you don't even have to ask if he wants to hear more because he asks you himself, and trust me on that he will do his very best to remember every single detail

⊱ in exchange for telling him about your friends he will tell you a little more about his inventions! Because believe or not, he also talks with his inventions pretty often

⊱ although when he gets to know your past, Rui is pretty worried so he makes sure to initiates some soft contact and tell you some sweet words today to reassure you, he won't let you be lonely anymore

❉⊱•═•⊰❉⊱•═•⊰❉⊱•═•⊰❉⊱•═•⊰❉⊱•═•⊰❉⊱•═•⊰❉

[isimpxiaoooooo]

Tbhk 𝒞𝒽𝒶𝓇𝒶𝒸𝓉𝑒𝓇𝓈

(How they would react to your confession of your love to them~)

Sakura would just be the person to ignore you untill she is ready to confront you and accept the fact that you love her~ Sakura: Are you sure?..

You nodded a yes, While she ran away to change the rumors as always.. but she can’t stop thinking about you~ She never knew she had feelings as well for you..

She was confused but deeply in love with your eyes and personality..

When she came back..

Sacker: I—I suppose I- like you too..Would you like or perhaps want to come to my tea party?

You nodded a yes again.. While her face turn red as a tomato..

Nene - Chan would be the person who goes crazy because you are her first boyfriend/girlfriend and would become a different person like you never met before..

Nene : I— I love you Y/n!~(she said bravely but then turn into pink cheeks as cherry blossoms)

She ran away because she thought you wouldn’t like her because of her fat radish ankles.. So she decided to do exercise and wear different type of pants just to impress you even though you said she was perfect the way she was..

Nene: Does this impresses you?> Your perfect the way you are Nene- Chan~

Mitsuba would be the person who would tease you a lot— and be sarcastic most of the time in a way on how to express his love to you~ Mitsuba: hA Eheheh hOw dO I eVeR LiKe sOmEoNe LiKe yOu I MEAN I LoVE myself- ❤️

You frowned and walked away until he grabs your arm and—

Mitsuba: Wait—I..don’t want you to leave…

(After hours and hours of talking with him inside of his boundary.. you decided to leave until—

Mitsuba: Can you come— by tomorrow?..

You nodded a yes.. and left— But before you left he was shedding tears typically Mitsuba ~

Hanako-kun would be person who doesn’t treat you as a queen/king or doesn’t pay attention to you.. But when you ignore you him too.. He’ll be crazy and trying to get your attention again..But deeply in his heart he does care about you.

Hanako-kun : Stop Ignoring Me!!!

You rolled your eyes ..

But he took of his hat as a way to apologize to you... when he was looking at magazines of ladies and not paying attention to you..

Hanako-kun : I’m— sorry Y/n..I didn’t knew that you really liked me..can we start over?.>

Y/n : FiNe !! But you better not look at those magazines!!( you cried a little) But you fell in love with his eyes..when he said—

I am yours truly and please don’t cry—

I’m here by your side~

Kou would be the opposite of Hanako-kun instead he would treat you as a queen/king and protect from any supernaturals even tho he never defeated one.. He would do anything to make you satisfied..

Kou : Do you want me to bake donuts?

Y/n : No— it’s fine Kou ~ ( he bake them anyways cause.. he wants to see you smile and plus you always loved glazed donuts and on how you kept talking about it with Hanako-kun)

Kou : I—(he got flustered eheh) made donuts just for you Y/n!> Y/n: Yum!! You’re a great cook minamoto!

Kou : Please call me Kou~— Unless if you want me call me by my—

Y/n : Minamoto Kou~ I love you~ You blush a little at his words—

I will protect you! As an exorcist I shall eliminate all evil spirits!! ( He said bravely, but everyone thought he was weird for saying that—gave him the death stare while you gave him a cute smile~)

Tsukasa would be the person who is confused on what you said to him..

Tsukasa: What’s does “I love you” mean?

(Since, he hasn’t been out in the human world in so long.. he forgot what words meant.. because he was always busy on killing things.. you liked the dark side of him most of the time 🔪)

So you went with him to ask Sakura for advice..

Sakura: “I love you” means that you exchange hearts to one another which also means that you both are soulmates or belonged to each other and would never break that bond of an relationship.

Tsukasa: You mean— on how Mitsuba eats supernaturals?..

Sakura: Well not exact—

(Tsukasa brings out a heart that was filled of blood.. and his hands are covered in red..until—

Tsukasa: Well.. This is my love to you!! Ehehe(He smiles cutely)😈

(You were interested if that was his heart or someone’s else..As you saw him covered in blood again and scaring off the mokkes he reminded you of Hanako—kun and simply you wanted to learn more about Tuskasa~)

FIN ~ <3

[aeoki]

Tri-Lights - Wheel of Fortune: Chapter 2

Location: NEW DIMENSION Office Characters: Sora, Natsume, Tsumugi & Madara

Natsume: …………

Sora: Oh, Master~! Good morning!

You have a cloudy “colour” about you. Did something happen?

The “Wheel of Fortune” card…?

Ah, did you get a bad outcome again?

Natsume: No, it’s not thAT. I was just thinking about somethiNG.

AnywAY, did you come into the office to research some thinGS?

Sora: Yes! That’s what Sora is here for!

Natsume: HeheHE. What a coincidenCE. I’m also looking up sports-related things hoping they’ll be useful to our woRK.

Senpai was here a little while earlier but he just left to get documents from the compaNY.

Sora: Oh, I wanted to do some research for that too, but do you know why the “S” in “Switch” was supposed to stand for sports, Master~?

Natsume: ……? Senpai was the one who came up with that proposal so I wouldn’t knOW.

I asked him about it earlier and it seems he was embarrassed to sAY, mentioning that it was because “he was young and immature” or something like thAT.

I don’t think there’s an important reason behind iT.

Sora: Hmm. So Senpai was embarrassed and couldn’t give a proper answer. That’s troubling~

Sora thought it was something important related to why “Switch” was created.

Natsume: Who knoWS? We’re talking about Senpai heRE – He probably thoughtlessly went through with it because I had my plate full with gloomy feelings related to tHE “Five Oddballs”.

There’s the saying that “it's better to be rough and ready than slow and elaboraTE”, but that part of Senpai always lands him in troubLE.

Sora: It’s not an important reason…?

(...That’s true – Sora thinks Master is right.)

(One of the many images they came up with for the unit was a sports-based one and maybe that’s really all there is to it.)

(But something doesn’t feel right~)

(Sora thinks what Tsuka-chan said yesterday was also right.)

(Senpai likes prayers and “spells” so it wouldn’t be strange if there was an actual hidden reason.)

(Is Sora overthinking things and getting the wrong idea? Either way, Sora has to hear it from Senpai himself~)

(Sora has also prepared his trump card…)

Natsume: AnywAY, Sora, don’t just stand theRE – Sit here on the soFA.

I was reading a few interviews that might be helpfUL. Shall we split up the work and read through them togethER?

Sora: …Oh, sure, let’s do it!

Sora wants to find the answer quickly and make the job a success~

(Besides, Sora will be happy if Sora can find the thing Senpai was trying to incorporate into “Switch”.)

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ< Two hours later. >

Tsumugi: Natsume-kun, Sora-kun, I’ve just returned~♪

Thank goodness both of you were at the office when I sent a message on “Hallhands”. I can share the materials I received from the company with you two right away.

I think the answer we’re looking for can be found within these documents.

Sora: HaHa~ Thanks so much! Let’s get started right away then.

Tsumugi: Yes. Let’s take a look together ♪

Natsume: What’s thIS…? “Glistening Sweat on the Forehead. A Good Day with Friends”...

It’s not talking about clothes but is this rigHT?

Tsumugi: Yes. It seems it’s a lifestyle article like the ones you’d find in a fashion magazine.

The other projects are similar. Young people are smiling and enjoying their everyday lives while wearing a refreshing set of sporty and street clothes from the company…

Well, it doesn’t seem all that different from what we experienced yesterday. Would ice skating be too elegant?

Natsume: This isn’t goOD. We don’t have a lot of tiME. I don’t understand how this is different from what they’re asking of uS.

I thought we’d be able to find the answer but I suppose this was a let-doWN.

Have you found anything, SoRA? Any cluES?

Sora: Well…

Madara: That’s enough chit-chat!

Tsumugi & Natsume: ………!?

Sora: Woah, Sora’s being tied up…!

Madara: Hahaha. Sorry, Sora-san, I’ll be carrying you for a bit so be patient with me!

Natsume-san, Tsumugi-san, sorry, but I’m taking your precious junior!

Sora: Master, Senpai! Help Sora!

Natsume: Sora!

Tsumugi: W–Wait a minute. Why would you do such a thing!?

Madara: All worldly things are impermanent! Life is all about unexpected happenings!

You should follow me if you want to get Sora-san back…☆

Natsume: ArGH. We’re going after hIM, Senpai!

Tsumugi: R–Right!

But why did Mikejima-kun take Sora-kun? He was so cooperative yesterday…

Natsume: This is no time to stop and thiNK. Let’s get goiNG, Senpai.

I knew he’d be troubLE. He never intended on helping us out for frEE.

Oh, geEZ. Why is everything heading in a bad directiON…!?

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ← Previous Chapter ᠂ ⚘ ˚⊹˚ ⚘ ᠂  Next Chapter →

[snowmoonandflower]

Chapter Notes | juu-nin to iro; shades of a soul

Once again, this chapter got too long and the things I originally wanted to cover got pushed to the next chapter. I’m very bad at not writing longfic.

The title

The direct translation is more akin to "ten colours and people", and it's an idiom that's kind of akin to "to each their own". Ten people can look at the same thing and walk away with ten different opinions. I went with the title "shades of a soul" after some deliberation. Remember that the English titles of these chapters are not direct translations, but rather something that encapsulates the spirit of both the title and the chapter's contents.

Words and phrases

A bunch of weaponry and katana details this time.

yari – a type of Japanese spear, generally straight-headed with a varying number of prongs. Wiki page here.

saya – a scabbard, generally lacquered but not always.

sageo – the cord used to tie the saya to a belt or hakama.

tsuba – the hand guard of a katana

tsuka – the hilt or handle of the blade, generally wrapped in shark or ray skin (samegawa)

hamon – the pattern on the steel of the blade, sometimes straight, sometimes not

shihan – an honorific that is nowadays used to refer to martial arts masters, but is a perfect form of address between a tsuguko and their hashira. Kanao refers to Shinobu as shihan.

omiai – literall ‘look meet’; matchmaking or arrange marriages. Uncommon now as love marriages are a majority of Japanese marriages, more common around 16th century Japan and beyond. Akihito and Iyori met and married through omiai, as did Kagaya and Amane (and many, many more, as we will discover as the story continues).

Let’s talk about wardship and adoption

Wardship is perhaps not the correct term to use in Japanese, but it is the most appropriate word in English in my opinion for Masachika and Sanemi’s positions. They are adopted in all but name, given rights and assets that are normally only entitled to true-born children. 

In Japan, teenage and adult adoption is not uncommon, even to this day. It’s very common for prestigious families who lack a male heir to adopt an unrelated or distantly related male (child or adult) to carry on the family name. Oftentimes, it could be a straight adoption, or it could be adoption via marriage.

Wardship is a combination of traditional adoption and the unofficial status that many children in the Demon Slayer Corps are currently living under. An example would be how Genya lives under Gyoumei’s care and tutelage in canon – he is Gyoumei’s student, but Gyoumei is also implied to take a certain kind of responsibility over Genya, who lives with him. You could also argue something similar with Sabito and Giyuu, who were orphans but lived and trained with Urokodaki, who they doubtless saw as a teacher and father figure. Although in Snow, Moon, and Flower, Urokodaki is not part of a great family, people still regard his relationship with the two boys as that of guardian and ward. It is also Obanai’s current standing in the Chrysanthemum Estate – he’s given the same rights and protections as the trueborn Rengoku children (although we explore more of him and his circumstances later).

All in all, to most families, it’s a way to take in orphan children and give them a modicum of legality in terms of status. In this period, school is mandatory for children, but depending on how far out you are from the cities and whatnot, it’s not particularly possible for this to be enforced. There’s no modern-day CPS, but the koseki or Japanese family registry has existed and been enforced since the Meiji Restoration. This means all families and their units are reported to local authorities and governments – it is a registry after all. I do not speak on this too heavily in the chapter – it’s told from Masachika’s POV, and while he’s smart, he's not going to linger on the details of stuff like this. Wardships offer the orphaned and estranged child soldiers in the corps a degree of legal protection, all somewhat loosely handwaved and covered up by the great families and their “friends in high places”, the Ubuyashiki family and their copious amounts of money… and me, the author of the fic, who wants to think a little bit about this stuff, but not too much, because we are 5 chapters in on a 36+ chapter story that’s already longer than the average YA novel (75k or so).

To further explore this though, wardship means more to the great families than it does to a regular family, and it comes with more… “perks”. Entitlement to land that is bought by the family itself and gifted to the ward is a tradition that comes from the Sengoku period when samurai would take on retainers; in fact, wardship to the great families is very much an evolution of the relationship between a daimyo or shogun and their kanshindan. Kanshindan were retainers in service to the daimyo or shogun and would be offered land and rice stipends. Their duty was not only to serve their lords but to keep them accountable as leaders. Very much the bond of a lord and their vassalage.

In 1908, the current time the fic takes place, wardship means more soldiers for the corps under the family’s kamon, and it means a roof over the heads of the ward’s family and a meal on their plate every day, three times a day. They will never want for money or possessions. Being offered a wardship is to offer a family - an entire family, as large as the ward has and would like housed - safety and security in exchange that the ward is in service to the great family.

Is it antiquated? A little, and it will be explored. There’s a reason the kanshidan were abolished come the Meiji Restoration, and there’s a reason the corps’ great families continue a variation of the tradition. Is it manipulative to offer something so profoundly life-changing to children and their families in exchange for their devotion and dedication to a corps whose very tenets endanger said children’s lives? Yeah, it is, but this is a different time, and different set of circumstances (uh, demons), but it is also deeply, unfathomably wrong. 

And it will be explored.

Let’s talk about sexism

This fic has always been tagged as “Period-typical attitudes”, while I only recently added “Period-typical sexism” – I did hope that the former implied the latter, however. One of the things I wanted to explore with Snow, Moon, and Flower is… well, period-typical sexism and attitudes.

The weight of what it means to be a woman and a man in Taisho era Japan is alluded to in canon, but never heavily lingered on. We see a lot of different expectations between men and women, as well as between upper and lower-class families in the source material. My mind immediately jumps to the Ubuyashiki quintuplets, Tengen and his three wives and the shinobi culture, Mitsuri’s childhood, and other individual characters and their circumstances: Amane, Zenitsu, Ruka, and Shizu. 

As a modern-day left-leaning feminist who lives in a first-world western country, but whose heritage comes from Southeast Asia, I have a lot of differing opinions on this and this fic is an outlet for me to explore those opinions. Tradition is important in Asian cultures, and Japan is no exception. Sexism was and is rampant, then and now. Demon Slayer does go somewhat above the expectations of the time – women were not allowed to hold a sword or take on roles traditionally taken by men. Yoake and Kanae should not be heirs to their families, they are women. A woman like Tadako would not exist in real life and does not exist in the source material (I don’t think there are any female swordsmiths in canon!)

But as Yoake says in this chapter: “demons do not afford us the luxury of abiding by tradition.”

When I explore these themes, I do want to approach them from the worldview of someone who lives in this universe and is deeply ingrained in its culture. There is a complexity to Yoake’s position, to Kanae’s position, to Tadako’s, and Mitsuri’s, and Shinobu’s, and the Doumae girls that I deeply want to explore, and I want to do it justice without putting on my 21st-century hat as I sit in the comfort of a first world western home. This of course means there’s period-typical sexism and attitudes in this fic that are both addressed and ignored – abided by and defied – subverted and enforced. That’s part of the nuance of the story I want to tell in Snow, Moon, and Flower.

I only hope that I can do it justice.