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the-tragic-heroine · 2 years ago

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死鬼祭 | Shiki Matsuri

fandom: tokyo revengers

characters: kurokawa izana, kakucho, haitani ran, haitani rindou, madarame shion, kokonoi hajime

pairings: tenjiku x female reader

cw: blood, violence, major character death, supernatural elements, mass murder, angst with happy ending, kinda, she/her pronouns used for reader

tags: @akemiixx01

—✧ SUMMARY ✧—

The villagers say that you cursed them all. You believe that they were the ones who cursed you. (Or, in which the circumstances of your unfortunate birth woke a forgotten, slumbering god.)

Very vague depictions of the supernatural here, and a few cameos of specific yokai if you can spot them! Title is based off of a song by KODOKULOVE! More characters may be added as the story progresses.

CHAPTER 柒 SEVEN (FINAL)

“Welcome back,” Izana said as you settled back into your own body again. “Are you with me?”

You nodded, staring straight ahead.

“Good. How do you feel?”

“Awful,” you replied bluntly. Then, “Was that really me?”

Izana hummed. “Who knows… but I like to think that it was. Some way or another, you came back—and I believe that somehow, I was given the chance to make things right.” When he looked at you, you were transported centuries back to those same amethyst eyes: divine and ethereal in its majesty, but shedding tears like a heartbroken human man.

“It hurt,” you told him honestly. “It hurt more than the day I was bashed over the head and burned with a torch. I should hate you for making me go through that. Yet…” You trailed off. “Yet, I can’t. I can’t hate you because now, I understand.”

The you who grew up with nothing would have never been able to comprehend the pain of losing absolutely everything.

“The Sano household still stands, even to this day,” you said. “But my family’s old home has long since been built over. They erased both you and us from history and replaced it with the legend of a cunning fox, who tried to disguise itself as a human woman so it could kill the village lord. Not even my mother knew the truth, as it died along with me that night.” You met his piercing gaze. “But you knew, didn’t you? You knew the second you saw me and the blood that came out from between my legs. And the guilt of it followed you forever.”

Izana said nothing.

“I’m sorry,” you said. “I’m sorry for deceiving you. I’m sorry for leaving you all alone.” You smiled at him, eyes dry and free from tears. “But I’m here now, so let me help you.”

This time, when Izana smiled back, you found that he had never looked more lovely.

—✧—

The remaining walk to the village did not take very long, and when you both arrived, you could not even be shocked anymore at the sight that awaited you.

It was as if the entire village, from the rooftops to the streets, had been doused with foul, oozing tar. The malevolent spirits clung onto the sides of buildings, adhered themselves to the weary, zombie-like villagers who appeared to have lost all will to live. None even seemed to notice me as I peered out from behind the trees near the village entrance. Farther into the distance, I recognised the looming presence of the painfully familiar Sano household and its demons, sitting at the very top of the sloping hill.

“How unfair,” you said, “that one man’s sin would be enough to doom an entire civilization.”

“Such is the nature of man,” Izana replied, voice carried by the breeze.

Perhaps the long dream had broken something deep inside of you, because when your gaze came to rest on a crumpled heap along the side of an alley, surrounded by bloodied sticks and stones and with a cloud of both flies and demons hovering overhead, you did not even blink. Probably because the body reminded you a bit of yours, all those centuries ago… and you could no longer find within yourself any remaining ounce of sympathy left for the villagers who had shunned you and your bloodline, tortured you throughout your entire life, for a crime you had never even committed.

You did not feel human when you turned to Izana and said with a smile, “Burn them all.”

—✧—

It was the night of a full moon when you and Izana led an army of a hundred yokai to descend upon the village—but the only person the villagers saw was you. As if in a trance, they watched silently as you walked through the center of all the buildings, eyes set straight ahead, ignoring the chattering monsters that began to crawl close behind. When you reached the foot of the hill leading up to the Sano household, you finally turned around.

Behind you, Izana was already waiting, invisible to the eyes of the mortal men. All he had to do was raise one hand—and then, the massacre began.

Screams blended together with the laughter of Izana’s contracted spirits as one-by-one, the houses burst into flame. Wooden rafters creaked and groaned, snapping and smoldering while people desperately scrambled for safety—only to run headfirst into the jaws of the eagerly awaiting yokai, who devoured their souls and left only empty husks behind. The demonic entities that clung to the village were swept up into the chaos, latching onto and attacking both humans and yokai alike—but they were nothing more than fodder for Izana’s army, who quickly consumed them as well.

You caught glimpses of your shrine’s men in the crowd; Ran and Rindou were all too happy to stomp the demons flat, not caring if any humans were in the way. Shion killed any creature who crossed his path, human or demon, occasionally having to be yanked aside before he could attack an ally by accident. Kokonoi mostly stayed on the sidelines, away from the violence, but did not hesitate to crush any victims who strayed too far from the center of the battle. And you watched as Kakucho, whose eyes once swam with guilt and remorse, guarded the village border—catching whoever made it far enough in their attempt to escape and ripping their hearts from their chests. When he raised his head and briefly caught your gaze, you saw that he wore an expression of nothing but cold dedication to his duty.

As buildings and villagers collapsed and burned alike, you stood at the center of it all. Dying people cried out and begged for their lives like you were a god. How ironic, you thought to yourself as they perished like ants beneath a merciless heel; you had once died here, too, like nothing but a wounded animal, without even the chance to plead to your own beloved god for salvation. You wondered, if you could have chosen how you died, which you would pick: burning together with your people, or bleeding out alone in front of an entire village’s scrutiny.

The sudden touch against the back of your hand dragged you from your thoughts and you found yourself blinking up at Izana, who slipped your hand into his. As he interlaced your fingers together, he leaned in and rested his forehead against yours—mirroring the night of your death. You closed your eyes, letting the sounds of destruction fade into the back of your mind as he spoke.

“This is not the end,” he said, his voice a gentle caress. “This is only the beginning. Let this be the day of our rebirth.”

“Our rebirth,” you echoed, and closed the gap between your lips. In that moment, encircled by death and fire, you had never felt happier.

—✧—

The Sano manor was the only building still standing after the rest of the village was reduced to piles of smoldering ash. You stood before it, matchstick in hand, facing the same doors you had once been thrown out of.

“You tried to erase our bloodline,” you told the house, lifting the match into the air. “How funny that instead, mine will be the only one that remains.”

The match sailed through the air, flame dancing to a familiar melody. When the manor began to burn, instead of the crackling of flames, you heard the humming of your mother while she brushed your hair, woven together with the whimsical laughter of your little brother and sister.

You sat and watched until the house was no more, until all that was left of the fire was the curling of smoke into the air. Until you could no longer hear your family’s song.

“Goodbye,” you said, and cried.

—✧—

“Go sit down,” Rindou snapped at you as you tried to help sweep up some of the debris. “You shouldn’t be here anyway! You should be resting back at home.��

“She’s not a doll, Rin Let her do what she wants,” Ran piped up, standing so that he could stretch from where he had been moving rubble off to the side. “Ugh, some of this stuff is getting into my hair…”

You rolled your eyes at the two of them and huffed. “You guys are absolutely useless at cleaning. Especially Ran. That’s why I’m here, because the mess should have been cleared by now so we can actually start rebuilding everything!”

“Oh, come now,” Kokonoi laughed, sticking out his tongue at your bickering. “Why not pay for some more help? Not that I’m offering to spare some of my own money, though.”

“You’re useless too,” you grumbled right back. “I can’t believe you have the audacity to ask us to pay you to help! Why does Izana still keep you around? Also, where the hell did Shion go?”

As if on cue, a bloodcurdling screech erupted from a rubble pile a short distance away, before Shion popped into view with a disgruntled tanuki dangling by the tail from his clenched fist.

“Ever since we destroyed everything, this place has been crawlin’,” Shion said, eyeing the wriggling creature. “Might as well eat some of ‘em, right?”

You dropped your broom. “Shion! Let it go!”

“It’s lively here, but somehow, it seems that even less work is being done,” came Kakucho’s smooth, deep voice from behind you, right as Shion begrudgingly dropped the poor tanuki. It scampered back into the forest.

You sighed. “It’s like wrangling with children. I don’t know how you and Izana manage it.”

Kakucho laughed, and you were once again struck by the raw beauty of his happy face. “Well, when you’ve been together with these guys for hundreds of years, what’s just a few minutes more in comparison?” He patted your shoulder. “Take a break. I know you’re excited to get things finished, but there’s no real rush. There are no people left aside from you now, after all. And, well, except for…”

A loud yell and crash interrupted him mid-sentence, the two of you looking up just in time to see Izana cheerfully kicking Shion into a mountain of splintered wood. Ran and Rindou guffawed while Kokonoi snickered into one of his fluffy tails. Kakucho rolled his eyes and set off to help Shion up, who was now loudly complaining about splinters, leaving you to watch the scene with a little shake of your head—but unable to wipe the affectionate smile from your face. You were still smiling when Izana made his way over to your side.

“You look happy,” he murmured, tucking a strand of hair behind your ear before wrapping his arms around you with a sigh of contentment.

“That’s because I am,” you replied, laughing softly. “I never thought someone like me could ever be happy in this lifetime… but thanks to all of you, I’ve been proven wrong. Even though it took a lot of pain and heartache to get here.” And human sacrifices, your mind added helpfully, though you chose to ignore it.

Izana rested his chin on your shoulder with a pleased hum. “If anyone deserves happiness, it’s you.”

You closed your eyes and smiled. “If you say so. And what about you? Are you happy?”

You felt the curve of his lips against your neck as he responded without hesitation. “Of course I am. And so are the others. We’ve waited centuries to find our happiness again—and now that we found it, we don’t plan on letting you go.”

“I’m… your happiness?” Your words came out in a shaky whisper.

“…Always have been, from the very start.”

The tears of joy rolling down your cheeks became glistening sparkles underneath the warmth of the noontime sun. “Then, don’t. Don’t let me go. Let me stay by your side for the rest of my life—and for the rest of yours.”

“You’ve gotten better with your words since becoming one with me,” Izana said. “Do you feel any different, now that you’ve joined me in becoming a god?”

“Not really,” you said, after some thought. “I feel exactly the same. Who knows, maybe I was actually god all this time! After all, gods are formed from the power of belief, right?”

Izana hummed. “Indeed. This world works in mysterious ways—but that’s the beauty of it, isn’t it?”

“At the very least, I do feel like I’ve been reborn, like you said.” One of your hands found its way atop of Izana’s, where it rested over the slight swell of your stomach. “So I hope that it’s a sign of this village’s eventual rebirth, as well.”

“I’m sure it is,” he replied, closing his eyes. His long eyelashes brushed against your skin in a fluttering kiss. “We’ll rebuild it together, piece by piece.”

—✧—

a/n: Sorry if the ending was rather abrupt kdasjlsl I ACTUALLY HAVE ANOTHER FIC I PLAN ON DROPPING SOON SO I JUST WANTED TO FINISH THIS UP QUICKLY SO I CAN GET TO IT!! also, what do you guys think of an epilogue?and btw, before anyone asks about the logistics of how they're gonna rebuild an entire village with just y/n and the boyz, there are neighbouring villages and travelers who will eventually move in and settle permanently! as for how repopulating the village with humans as a god is gonna work, idk just go with it LMAO THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR READING THIS WAS A WILD RIDE AND BY FAR THE LONGEST FIC I HAVE EVER WRITTEN I HOPE YOU ENJOYED IT!!! NOW ONTO MY NEXT ONE!!!

#tokyo revengers x reader #tkrv x reader #tenjiku x reader #kurokawa izana x reader #kakucho x reader #haitani ran x reader #haitani rindou x reader #madarame shion x reader #kokonoi hajime x reader #tw mass murder #my writing

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the-tragic-heroine · 2 years ago

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死鬼祭 | Shiki Matsuri

fandom: tokyo revengers

characters: kurokawa izana, kakucho, haitani ran, haitani rindou, madarame shion, kokonoi hajime

pairings: tenjiku x female reader

cw: blood, violence, major character death, supernatural elements, graphic depiction of miscarriage, implied sexual abuse/assault/rape, heavy angst, she/her pronouns used for reader, PLEASE TAKE NOTE OF THE NEW TAGS

tags: @akemiixx01

—✧ SUMMARY ✧—

The villagers say that you cursed them all. You believe that they were the ones who cursed you. (Or, in which the circumstances of your unfortunate birth woke a forgotten, slumbering god.)

Read on AO3 Chapter One | Chapter Two | Chapter Three | Chapter Four | Chapter Five

CHAPTER 陸 SIX

“Don’t be afraid,” Izana said as your eyes widened. “While everything you will see and experience is real, your body will remain here unharmed. I will be with you every step of the way.”

Before your mind could even begin to digest what he said, Izana pressed a hand to the small of your back and pushed. You tipped forward, stumbling several steps to maintain your footing—and it was then your body seemed to pass through a bubble. It was like stepping through a wall made entirely of water, your surroundings rippling as an invisible force parted to let you through. You whipped your head around in a panic, mouth open in preparation to question Izana—but he was gone.

A sudden voice calling your name ripped you from your daze.

“[Name]? [Name]! Oh, there you are! Thank goodness!”

From the trees, a woman you did not recognise emerged. Her hair was askew and falling out of its bun, stray hairs plastered to her forehead and cheeks. You could only stand there, motionless, as she threw her arms around you in a tight hug.

“We’ve been looking everywhere for you,” she said, withdrawing only to clasp your hands in both of hers. “When you ran off all of a sudden… we were so worried. I thank Izana for keeping you safe. Come now, it’s already getting dark. Let’s go home, okay?”

You stared. She faltered, then cupped your cheek in one hand. “[Name]? Are you alright?”

Something compelled you to speak at that moment, accompanied by the sting of tears threatening to spill from the corners of your eyes. “Mom.”

When a relieved smile lit up her face, you allowed yourself to cry.

—✧—

The village was smaller than you remembered, and to your pleasant surprise, bustling with both people and a myriad of yokai. You glimpsed a split, two-pronged tail vanishing beneath a house. Faint orbs of glowing light floated around the trunks of neighbouring trees. Lanterns hanging from doorways of homes swivelled to look at you, sticking out their tongues and winking their singular eyes. Ghostly giggling children ducked between the legs of oblivious adults, waving to the village kids who laughed and waved back. Most importantly of all, there was no sign of the creeping and crawling shadows that haunted the village you knew.

“You must be hungry,” your mother said, unaware of the way you were drinking in all the new sights and sounds. “We didn’t prepare much today, since all of us were out looking for you all morning and afternoon, so I hope you don’t mind just some onigiri.”

“Big sis!”

Two children, a boy and a girl aged about ten years-old, rushed out of the house you were approaching and flung themselves at you. You were nearly knocked right over, if not for your mother hurriedly yanking them off of you and scolding them gently.

“Easy, now,” she said. “[Name] has had a long day, so be nice, would you?”

“We thought you left,” the boy cried, the girl nodding along with tears in her eyes. “We missed you! We’re sorry we stole your dango yesterday!”

“It’s okay,” you said, head spinning with all that was happening. Grabbing one hand each, the two kids led you inside, followed shortly after by your mother.

Plain onigiri had never tasted better.

—✧—

The next morning, you found that you still had not returned to your original time.

As you busied yourself with your new family—cooking food, making beds, chasing your brother and sister around the house—there remained a lingering unease in the back of your mind. Was this truly what Izana wanted to show you? Though he had promised to be by your side, there was still no sign of the white-haired shrine god, even as you wandered the streets and glimpsed several familiar faces.

Ran, laying precariously on a rooftop with his eyes closed, blond braids dangling like tassels over the edge. Rindou, shooing a small group of kappa away from where the village kids played and back into the nearby stream. Shion, chasing after a Tanuki who held a large piece of half-eaten taiyaki in its jaws. Kokonoi, nearly escaping your vision from how well he blended in with the other villagers, if it weren’t for the ghostly tails and ears only you could see. And finally, Kakucho, face free from scars, leaning against a building at the top of a gently sloping hill and gazing down at the village. It was with a sudden pang in your chest that you realised: this was the first time you had ever seen him smile.

What had gone wrong?

You held your grocery basket a little tighter to your body. Perhaps you had eaten a little too much last night; your stomach felt bloated and swelled with a churning discomfort. Still, you pushed it aside and hurried onward to the market. Your family needed ingredients for dinner tonight.

—✧—

“Oh, good,” your mother said when you arrived back home, placing the now full basket of food on the floor. “Just in time! Let’s go to the shrine together, shall we? And don’t wander off this time!”

When you visibly perked up, she laughed. “I know, I know. I can’t wait to see him, too.”

Just like you had hoped, Izana himself was waiting for the two of you at the shrine—and, like you were seeing his beauty for the first time all over again, your breath caught in your throat. He looked exactly as you had seen him last, all those years into the future: white hair and lashes shining underneath dappled sunlight, robes fluttering and earrings swaying. Except for one thing.

Had his eyes ever looked this warm?

To your surprise, your mother acknowledged his presence and bowed in front of him; when he turned his gaze toward you, you hurriedly scrambled to follow. You shot a discreet look at your mother’s face, only to notice something you had not noticed before: catching the sun rays was a pair of earrings just like Izana’s, still swinging with the movement from her 90-degree bow.

“Thanks to your blessing and protection, my daughter has returned home safe and sound,” she said. “I cannot express how grateful I am.”

“Lift your heads,” he replied, and the two of you did. His purple eyes rested solely on you. “I am merely doing my duty. You are my most precious shrine keepers, after all. Besides”—his expression melted into a genuinely kind and affectionate smile—“[Name] is the one I have devoted myself to protecting. For the rest of her life.”

Your eyes widened right as Izana turned to face your mother. Neither of them appeared to notice. “Come now. Let us begin today’s ritual.”

Thankfully, with all your years of practice, the rest of the morning passed without a hitch, although your mind remained preoccupied with a whirling storm of even more questions than answers. This Izana truly wasn’t the same Izana from your time; he gave no indication that he was even aware that you were not the same [Name] that lived in this era. In fact, you wondered if any of this was even real like your Izana had claimed. He said it was—but perhaps what he meant was that you were merely experiencing a fixed course of events. A past that had already occurred, with no way for you to change it.

“Are you alright?”

You jumped, nearly dropping the broom in your hands. Izana was frowning at you, white eyebrows knitted in concern. Further inside the building you heard your mother puttering around while humming to herself; the two of you were essentially alone.

“Y-Yeah,” you stammered, inwardly cursing at your wobbly and thoroughly unconvincing tone. “Why?”

“When your mother prayed for me to find you, she told me that you’ve been acting strange recently. That for some reason, you disappeared after receiving news that the village head will be returning home from his travels today. Did something happen?” One of his hands reached toward you.

“I have to go,” you breathed out, the broom clattering to the floor right as his fingers grazed your obi.

“[Name]—“

“I’m not feeling well,” you said, taking a step back. “Tell my mom that I went home to rest.”

With that, you whirled around and raced out of the shrine.

—✧—

Truthfully, you didn’t know why you were running away. In fact, your entire body seemed to be carrying you along without your own input. As you ran, your mind replayed what Izana had told you. Every instinct screamed at you to escape farther into the woods, away from both the shrine and the village—but when you remembered the frantic look in your mother’s eyes that morphed into relief when she finally found you, and the joy of your little siblings’ hugs and laughter as they welcomed you back home… your feet slowed to a stop. You couldn’t do this to them.

I’ll just go back home, you thought, panting from the exertion and wincing at the cramp in your side. I’ll just go back home and everything will be fine.

Swallowing down a wave of nausea, you braced your shoulders and trekked in silence back to the village.

You heard the commotion before you saw it. Laughter, happy voices, and once you entered the village, you saw a flock of people gathered at the base of the hill. More people were poking their heads out of their front doors and windows, smiling and bowing. All their attention was focused on one middle-aged man.

“Welcome back,” you heard everyone say, one-by-one, all while children crowded around and bombarded him with excited questions. Their mothers shushed them and pulled them back, but the man smiled good-naturedly. You watched him crouch down to pat their heads and speak to them.

That’s right— the village head is back today.

When he stood up again, his eyes met yours.

“[Name]!” he said, beaming brightly. “It’s good to see you again!”

You could not move.

Despite your mind hissing at you to just say something—it would be rude not to reply, so what were you doing?!—your throat closed up. All sounds of the cheerful village around you morphed into a buzzing drone of white noise. You stood there, stiff as a statue, while the village head approached. Now that most of the villagers had greeted him, the crowd dispersed and they went on their way, leaving the two of you facing each other alone.

“It has certainly been a long month,” he said, seeming to ignore your wide-eyed stare. “How is your mother? And the shrine?”

“Good,” you mumbled out, though your reply was more automatic than anything. Every muscle in your body was screaming at you to move, but you just couldn’t.

“[Name]! Oh, and Lord Sano! You’re back!”

Your mother came dashing up from behind you and bowed. “I did not expect you to arrive so early today! Please forgive me for being unable to welcome you home properly!”

Lord Sano waved his hand. “Oh, you know that doesn’t bother me,” he chuckled. “The shrine can’t take care of itself.”

“You are much too generous,” your mother said. “Well, [Name], let us be on our way. You will be attending tonight’s feast, won’t you?” The look in her eyes told you what she dared not to say out loud: Please say yes.

You dipped your head in a nod of resignation, sealing your fate.

—✧—

The feast to welcome Lord Sano back to the village was extravagant, at least in your opinion; years of isolation and cooking only the barest minimum for you to survive did not lend much in food variety. You shovelled as much of it into your mouth as you could, in hopes that keeping your cheeks full would spare you from partaking in any sort of conversation—and it worked, for the most part. With everyone vying for the chance to speak to Lord Sano about his travels, your little family was left to themselves, allowing you the opportunity to eavesdrop.

From picking up bits and pieces of neighbouring conversation, you were able to piece together the timeline of events. After the recent passing of Lord Sano’s wife, he had set off on a short trip that lasted about one month. To grieve, so the villagers said; apparently, his wife had been bedridden with illness for the few months leading up to her death, and her one wish was to be healthy so that she may explore the world. He was simply fulfilling that dream. It was a touching tale, but the growing pit in your belly said otherwise. Like your body knew something that they did not.

How you wished you never found out what it was.

*** WARNING: IMPLIED SEXUAL ABUSE AND GRAPHIC DEPICTION OF MISCARRIAGE AND DEATH STARTS HERE ***

Toward the end of the meal, you began to regret having eaten so much, for your stomach was beginning to churn again and you really needed to relieve yourself. You pushed your way through the bustle of jovial, drunken villagers, intent on finding the toilet—only for a large hand to grasp your wrist and yank you into a nearby room. No one even saw you vanish. Before you could try to scream, another hand clapped over your mouth.

“I thought I would never get the chance to meet with you in private today,” the man behind you sighed.

Your blood ran cold.

“We must be quiet, but that doesn’t mean you can’t talk. Those drunk fools can barely hear a thing. Now, my dear, why have you been acting like you don’t want to speak to me?” Once he was certain you would not scream, he let go of your mouth and spun you around.

You found yourself face-to-face with Lord Sano.

In the dim light of his bedroom, the shadows cast upon his weathered face made him look like a truly devilish oni mask. As he continued to speak to you, hands wandering over your clothes like crawling spiders, those shadows shifted. You watched in horror as a demon unfurled itself from where it had latched onto his neck and shoulders.

“Now, now,” he tutted, like he were speaking to a child. “Don’t struggle. You’re only going to make things harder for yourself.”

“Lord Sano,” you said, words choked out in-between a series of terrified, short breaths. “What are you doing?”

“Have you forgotten already? I did not think one month was that long,” he laughed. The demon perched on his back laughed along with him. “I would have stayed with you here, but the people would have been too suspicious. Besides, I needed to take her body far away. It would be no good at all if anyone discovered the poison in her system.”

Memories flashed through your mind: flickering vignettes of agonising pain, muffled sobs, and early mornings where you staggered alone into the woods so that no one would see you vomit. You saw your brother and sister playing in the stream, your mother smiling down at you while she brushed your hair, relaying to you her dreams of the day you would finally be wed.

You saw Ran and Rindou bickering as they showed you how to perform your duties properly; Kokonoi giving you a cheeky wave as he disappeared into the woods, never staying in one place; Shion tussling with a nekomata who had stared at you for a beat too long; Kakucho patting you on the top of your head with an affectionate smile as he praised you for a job well done. And, clearest of all, you saw Izana—bathed in moonlight and cradling your face in his hands like he were holding the most precious of treasures, telling you that he would love you for the rest of your mortal life.

“No,” you whispered. “No, no, no—”

Lord Sano’s expression hardened. “Have I not already made myself clear many times before?”

“Let go of me,” you spat, gathering your wits and thrashing furiously in his hold. “Let go of me—”

Anger flashed through his eyes. Behind him, the demon swelled and grew, billowing out like a plume of acrid smoke. With an excited shriek, it rushed forward in a flurry of churning mist, and you finally opened your mouth and screamed.

The door flew open to reveal a truly shocking sight to the entire village: Lord Sano fighting off the local shrine maiden who seemed to have gone entirely mad.

“Lecherous woman,” he bellowed to the stunned crowd, finally managing to grab hold of your wildly flailing limbs and haul you out. “An evil kitsune disguised as a human! Trying to wriggle your way into the chamber of a grieving husband… how dare you!”

“No,” you wailed, tears pouring down your cheeks. “No, no, no!” All the while, the cackling demon dripped and oozed over your pores, snaking its writhing form into your ears, nose, and mouth. You gagged and retched, the essence of a decaying, sinful soul penetrating you right down to your very bones.

When Lord Sano dragged you to the front of his house, where it sat at the very top of the hill, you heard a shrill voice rising above the cacophony.

“[Name]! Let me through! [Name]!”

“Mom,” you sobbed, craning your neck around to look. “Mom—”

Your voice cut off. Breaking as it had just left the tip of your tongue. A sudden jolt of pain surged from your belly, electrocuting every nerve ending from the tips of your fingers all the way down to your toes. Then, slowly but surely, something began to drip from between your thighs.

No, no, no…

“Witch,” Lord Sano hissed, and dropped you.

You tumbled down the hill, scraping a mess of cuts onto your face and limbs. Somewhere up above, you heard your mother screaming, your brother and sister crying. The villagers gasping and shouting their combined shock, disgust, and anger. When you came to rest at the foot of the hill, you found yourself on your stomach, cheek pressed against the grass and hands weakly digging holes into the dirt.

It hurts. Everything hurts…

Your gut burned as more blood, as viscous and dark as Lord Sano’s demon, sloughed out of your twitching body. You could still hear its mocking giggles echoing inside of your head. When you parted your lips to take a painful breath, you felt more blood trickling down your chin.

What did you ever do to deserve this?

Your eyes flitted to the forest. Under the clear sky blanketed with stars, the moon illuminated the faintest visible sliver of the shrine’s rooftop. You thought only of Izana as your broken body began to crawl.

In your last moments, you must have truly looked like a demon to the village: a small, tortured spirit, dragging itself across the dirt and leaving only a trail of melted shadows behind.

*** WARNING END ***

You opened your eyes to the sight of a body laying motionless on the ground in front of you.

The sound of approaching footsteps raised your head—your gaze finding the wide eyes and trembling shoulders of a shocked and horrified Kakucho.

“[Name]…?” he said.

I’m right here, you tried to say, but though your mouth was moving no sound was coming out. It did not appear that he was able to see you, either.

He took a step forward. Then another. All you could do was watch, powerless, as the body’s ears, nose, and eyes began to leak that telltale black substance. You could do nothing to warn him when the shrieking wave of dark, malevolent energy surged out of the corpse and directly at him.

Everything happened in a blur. Kakucho was thrown back and swallowed up by the cloud of spirits. His head emerged briefly as he fought back, only for the ensuing force to rip its claws down his forehead and slash through one eye. Above the Sano household, a thick miasma began to form, draping itself over the roof and weaving its way from villager to villager. The friendly, harmless local yokai had long since fled the streets, leaving space only for the entities that drank in the sight of chaos with glee. It wasn’t long before Izana’s men arrived—but they too were devoured by the sudden storm. And, at the very entrance of the village, standing as still as the dead, was Izana himself.

He did not lift a hand to fight. As he walked, his servants managed to clear a path for him, their arrival finally able to turn the tides so that with each step, Izana’s presence alone was enough to disperse the spirits cloud after cloud—until at last, he reached the shrine maiden’s body.

“[Name],” he whispered.

Izana, you wanted to cry out. I’m here, Izana. But you could not speak, and he could not hear.

He knelt down before her. From where you were standing, the young woman’s back faced you, the curve of her shoulder and tangle of hair obscuring her face, which was turned to one side and resting against the ground. Izana’s hands touched her arm. After a moment of hesitation, he rolled the limp body over onto her back.

You found your own lifeless face gazing back at you.

“[Name],” Izana said with a reassuring smile, smoothing a hand down your doppelgänger’s forehead and cheeks, wiping away blood and grime. He ran his fingers through her hair and brushed stray strands out of her cloudy eyes. “[Name], you’re alright now. The demons are gone. You can wake up.”

No response.

Slowly, the rest of his servants gathered around, too. All were bloody and bruised, but worst of all was Kakucho, who sat slumped on the ground next to Izana, blood pouring from the gash that tore his face in two. None gave any indication that they felt anything from their injuries, not while gazing down at… you.

“[Name],” Izana repeated, smile cracking. “[Name]…”

He bent over your body, pressing his forehead to yours. You watched as his eyes closed, tears soaking through his pale lashes and falling onto your own cheeks. The light from the moon illuminated every single drop.

—✧—

The village changed around you, all while you watched. Numb.

In this plane of existence, time passed in a strange manner. You saw each and every moment that occurred, yet it all went by in the blink of an eye.

After having declared you a cursed spirit, Lord Sano banished your remaining family from the village. You watched as your mother, without even the chance to say goodbye, tearfully bundled up your two siblings and left. No one bothered to send them off. When they looked back at the village on the day of their final departure, all three looked completely empty and hollow inside.

That was the last time you ever saw their faces.

Without your family to tend to the shrine, it began to deteriorate—and with it, Izana and his men. Some villagers still visited and paid their tributes, but it did not take long for Lord Sano to put an end to it all. It did, however, take much longer for their withheld faith to dwindle. Over the passing decades, as generations long after Lord Sano came and went, you saw as the growing number of spirits gradually forced the weakened god and his followers out. Until finally, there came a day when they too stepped out of the village and never returned.

Though the villagers had already lost their faith, somehow, Izana still remained. It was only when one fateful day—hundreds of years after your death in the past—the dying woman that stumbled into the shrine answered everything.

“Finally,” she said, a single red earring swaying as she collapsed to the floor. “Finally, I’ve found it.”

You watched blood seep from her body into the rotting wood. A tree, revived from the brink of death, sprouting flowers the deepest colour of midnight.

The next time you blinked, you were sitting on the forest floor, emerging from your dream to the sound of birds and a smiling Izana by your side.

#tokyo revengers x reader #tkrv x reader #kurokawa izana x reader #kakucho x reader #haitani ran x reader #haitani rindou x reader #madarame shion x reader #kokonoi hajimie x reader #tw miscarriage #tw rape #tw sexual assault and abuse #i made myself cry when writing this #lmk what other tags u need me to add #my writing

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the-tragic-heroine · 2 years ago

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死鬼祭 | Shiki Matsuri

fandom: tokyo revengers

characters: kurokawa izana, kakucho, haitani ran, haitani rindou, madarame shion, kokonoi hajime

pairings: tenjiku x female reader

cw: blood, violence, minor character death, supernatural elements, she/her pronouns used for reader

tags: @akemiixx01

—✧ SUMMARY ✧—

The villagers say that you cursed them all. You believe that they were the ones who cursed you. (Or, in which the circumstances of your unfortunate birth woke a forgotten, slumbering god.)

Read on AO3 Chapter One | Chapter Two | Chapter Three | Chapter Four

CHAPTER 伍 FIVE

Without Izana around, the atmosphere at the shrine felt lighter. Still, you were left with a nagging discomfort at his absence, and you had to wonder if it was a side-effect of your growing anxiety as of late—or if you really did genuinely miss him. Sometimes, you found yourself touching your own lips, questioning if perhaps Izana’s late-night visit had just been a dream conjured up by your own fraying mind. It was difficult to dwell too long on the thought, however, as your companions had grown quite adept at keeping you preoccupied throughout the passing days.

Ran, as lazy as ever, had begun insisting you do his hair every morning, regardless of whether or not he had anything to do that day. While his preferred hairstyle of choice was his signature twin braids, he occasionally asked for something different—and, it was with much shame that you admitted you didn’t quite know how.

“I didn’t really have anyone to teach me, or anyone to practice on aside from myself,” you explained. “Even braids I only learned recently…”

“You know,” Ran said, flashing you a lazy smile that never failed to make your heart beat a little faster, “I’ve been quite jealous of Rindou stealing away all your time with his stupid ‘lessons’. How about I teach you a lil somethin’ of my own? Here, lemme show you.”

His long, lithe fingers, which you had seen wielding a ceremonial staff to cleanse the shrine grounds many times before, were gentle when they guided your hands to your own hair. He was so close now, face mere centimetres away from yours as the two of you sat opposite from one another on the tatami. You hoped he could not hear the loud thumping of your traitorous heart.

“You’re blushing,” he said, and in embarrassed instinct you began to lean away, only for Ran’s hand to shoot forward and wrap around the back of your neck to hold you in place. “Ah-ah, stay still.”

“W-Wait,” you stammered, cheeks going red-hot. “This is a little—”

“Shush.” The sudden intensity of his lavender eyes pinned you down. The hand not on your neck drifted from your hair to cup your face, thumb pressing underneath your chin to keep your head tilted up to look at him. “Let me be a little selfish today, princess.”

When he kissed you, you found that you didn’t mind a selfish Ran. Not at all.

—✧—

Rindou was pissed.

You already knew that the younger Haitani brother was quick to anger, though his temper usually fizzled out rather quickly. From what you had learned from him during his lessons, it was rarely anything more than surface-level annoyance; despite the sadism he displayed during fights, you found that he never harbored any real hatred. This time, however…

Rindou was pissed and he was avoiding you.

At first, Ran had seemed rather smug about it, so you assumed that the two were squabbling over something stupid again—but when you bumped into Rindou in the hall and he didn’t even look at you, you found it odd. When you approached him later (with much difficulty, as he seemed to make it his mission to make himself as scarce as possible) to ask him something and he looked you dead in the eye before walking off, you had a sneaking suspicion over what he was mad about. When this pattern continued over the next few days, that suspicion was confirmed: Ran had told him he had kissed you. Bragged about it, probably. It definitely didn’t help that ever since then, Ran had been much touchier than before.

So, you did the only thing you could think of doing. The second you caught sight of him, you gave chase. If anything, the shock then sheer panic that flashed across his face was rewarding enough, because when he took off running, you knew there was no way in hell you were going to catch him.

“What the—” Ran stepped aside as his brother flew past him, shortly followed by you. “What the fuck are you guys doing?”

Neither of you paid him any heed. With your focus locked onto Rindou’s receding back, you barely heard the eldest Haitani—and failed to see the slightly crooked floorboard jutting out in front of your feet.

“Ack—”

Instead of crashing to the floor, you tumbled right into Rindou’s arms.

“You idiot,” he hissed, grip tightening around your body. “You could’ve hurt yourself—”

“I wouldn’t have if you just stopped avoiding me—”

You had barely finished your sentence when Rindou crashed his lips onto yours.

“Stupid bro,” he grumbled in-between furious kisses, all while you clutched onto his clothing in a dazed stupor. “Show-off. Ugh— Stop wriggling.”

A distance away, Ran watched as Rindou dragged you to the direction of his room. Twirling a braid around one finger, he let out an exasperated sigh—but there was a small smile that tugged at his lips. “Little brothers. Never know how to share.”

—✧—

“I don’t know what the fuck is going on anymore,” Shion deadpanned. “I walked in on both Ran AND Rindou making out with you. Several times. Right in the fuckin’ hallway! What the actual fuck!”

“I don’t know either!” you cried out, cheeks an angry shade of red. “It’s just been kinda happening and I can’t really stop them—”

“Bull. Shit,” he sneered, his upper lip curling to expose one of his sharp canines. “You know damn well that if you told ‘em to stop, they would. Izana might be the fuckin’ god around here but you might as well be one too, princess.”

Your mouth snapped shut, shame written all over your face. At your stricken expression, Shion burst out into bitter laughter. “Look, it’s fine. Whatever the fuck’s goin’ on, Izana probably doesn’t give a shit—as long as you’re happy. Keeps the belief goin’, or something. Without ya, none of us would be here. Just…” He waved his hands around. “It makes me feel left out, okay?!”

A beat passed. “Huh?”

“They’re always doin’ shit like this,” he complained. “Leavin’ me out of things! Actin’ like I’m an idiot!”

“Shion—”

“Give me one, too!”

“Shion?!”

Somehow, you still found yourself laughing in his arms, all while he grumbled and leaned in for another kiss.

—✧—

Kakucho raised an eyebrow at you when you meekly approached him one afternoon. He had kept entirely quiet about his… fellow spirits and your affairs, despite having bore witness to it more times than he would have liked. Still, it was none of his business, and while he made sure to reprimand the others whenever they got too overwhelming, he acted like nothing was out of the ordinary around you. Until…

“Kakucho,” you said, staring up at him nervously. “Do you… not like me?”

“What?”

“You… I mean, well, with the others having been, you know…” He watched incredulously as you waved your hands around in obvious embarrassment. “Um. I thought that maybe you would end up doing something like that, too…”

“I’m not a degenerate,” he stated bluntly. “I’m not going to do anything to you.”

You flushed bright red at his remark. “…Okay. I-I’m sorry I asked and… for making you uncomfortable. Please just pretend I never said anything.” Before you could rush away, however, Kakucho held up a hand to stop you.

“Wait.”

You froze.

“I’m not going to do anything to you…” He paused, and now his cheeks were turning slightly pink, too. “…Unless you want me to, that is.”

I stared at him, mouth open. Still, I hesitated. “But… do you want to?”

The corners of his eyes lifted as he smiled softly, carefully lifting a hand to brush his calloused fingers across the apple of your soft cheek. “I’ve never wanted anything more.”

When he pulled you in, you couldn’t help but think that the touch of his lips felt like coming home.

—✧—

An unfamiliar voice drifted to your ears whilst in the middle of sweeping leaves from the courtyard. “So this is the lady of the hour that I’ve been hearing all about.”

Startled, you looked all around, seeing nobody there.

“Up here, miss.”

You tilted your head to the roof. There sat a man you had never seen before, one leg propping up his arm and the other dangling over the edge. His black hair hung in wavy locks on one side, partially obscuring one of two piercing, slitted black eyes. Though he appeared completely human at first, you were able to glimpse the telltale shimmer of several ghostly fox tails waving behind him, along with a set of matching ears.

“Um,” you said, blinking rapidly, wondering if you should call for help. Thankfully, the sound of the stranger’s voice was enough to summon Kakucho, who did not seem all that surprised to see him.

“Ah, Kokonoi,” he said. “I was wondering when you would finally drop by.”

“You know me,” the kitsune said, sticking out his tongue. “No money? No Koko.”

“[Name].” Kakucho nodded at you. “This is Kokonoi Hajime. He’s not often around, but he too is one of Izana’s servants. He isn’t bound to him the way we are, however—just a stray that stuck around.”

Kokonoi waved a hand at you, waggling his fingers and grinning. You smiled and waved awkwardly back, mumbling out a polite, “Nice to meet you.”

“What brings you here, then?” Kakucho crossed his arms. “And come down from there. It’s a pain to look up at you.”

With the grace of a feather, Kokonoi obliged, landing on the grass in front of the two of you and tucking both hands neatly into the sleeves of his haori in the same motion. He was still smiling cheekily at you. “Izana told me to notify him once the preparations are almost ready. I figured I should visit to see the little miss at the same time. Come to find, Izana isn’t here—so why not stay for a while longer?” He stuck out his tongue again. “Now I know why you’re all so enamoured. She’s sweet.”

“Back off,” Kakucho grunted, gritting his teeth. Kokonoi laughed.

“Ease up, guard dog,” he said. “Don’t want to scare her off, do you?”

You fidgeted in place, not quite liking how they were talking about you as if you weren’t even there, and muttered out, “I don’t think much else can scare me at this point.” That earned you a loud cackle from the black-haired fox spirit.

“Atta girl,” he said, bending slightly at the waist so he could look you in the eye. You found yourself gazing back, fascinated by his slitted pupils and long lashes. Despite your initial misgivings, there was no sign of that underlying darkness you had grown so accustomed to after several months of living with Izana and his men. Kokonoi appeared to notice the change in your expression and his face softened.

“Sweet thing,” he murmured, tucking a strand of hair behind your ear. One long, sharp fingernail grazed the surface of your skin. “What have they been doing to you?”

“Enough,” Kakucho said gruffly, wrenching Kokonoi away from you and shoving him backward. The kitsune did not even stumble. “If you have nothing else to say, then you can leave.”

“What a brute,” he chuckled, but it was dry and humorless. “Fine. Tell Izana I have a message for him, yeah? Usually I would charge a fee, but I’m feeling generous today so I’ll let it slide.”

Kakucho jerked his chin at him in a silent order to continue. Kokonoi shrugged his shoulders.

“As requested, I’ve finished gathering them,” he said. “I had to bribe a good number, but that’s to be expected. Izana isn’t as strong as he used to be, after all.” His eyes flitted over to you. “In fact, I’m rather impressed. Who knew that the faith of one single human girl would be enough to command a god and his entire army.”

That was all the confirmation you needed.

“I knew it,” you whispered. “I didn’t want to believe it, but… you guys are really going to destroy the village, aren’t you?”

Kakucho could not meet your gaze. This time, the sympathetic look on Kokonoi’s face made your skin crawl.

“Why?” you asked, voice shaking as you recalled the village mother’s agony in her last moments. “Why would you go that far?”

“I’ll tell her myself.”

The three of you whirled around to find Izana standing there, white locks and red earrings blowing in the faint breeze. Both Kokonoi and Kakucho bowed at the waist in perfect synchronisation when he approached, uttering out a simultaneous, “Welcome home, master.” Izana did not bother to even look at them as he passed, hypnotic lavender eyes fixated solely on you. He held out a hand for you to take; you knew it was not a request. With a deep breath, you placed your palm in his, and he laced his fingers together with yours.

“Come take a walk with me,” he said, smiling down at you. “There is something I need to show you.”

Your eyes darted from Izana to Kokonoi to Kakucho, then back again, and again. Though they had already straightened up, both men still kept their heads bowed—but they were close enough that you could glimpse the looks in both of their eyes. While the two of them wore the same cold grimace, Kokonoi’s eyes had gone from an amused, sparkling onyx to a dull charcoal. Kakucho’s, however… Your gut twisted itself to pieces at the sight of pure self-loathing in the wide-eyed glare he burned into the ground.

Left with no other choice, you followed Izana into the forest.

You had wandered through the trees yourself many times, before their arrival: foraging for berries, picking herbs and mushrooms, or simply allowing the chirping of birds to calm you. Nowadays, because of the ever-lurking threat of malevolent spirits leaking from the village, you barely found the opportunity to stroll. Back then, you might have thought the forest to be peacefully quiet—but at Izana’s side, you realised with a shiver just how wrong you were. Without the rustling of leaves in the wind, the buzzing of insects, or those lovely birdsongs drifting down from the canopies above, you came to understand just how loud a forest naturally should be.

Was it because of the demons? Or… was it because of him?

“You’re frightened,” Izana remarked.

“I’m not,” you protested, a little too quickly. He laughed in response, the movement making his earrings swing.

“You already know that I will not hurt you,” he said, “but you are not worried about yourself, are you? You are worried about the people.” When you did not reply, he continued talking. “Don’t think I haven’t noticed, little one. You and Kakucho are both very much alike. Try as you might to hide it, you still wear your heart on your sleeve.”

“And you?” you blurted out before you could think to stop yourself. “Where has your heart gone?”

When he stopped walking, your stomach lurched, fearing that you had really done it this time. But there was no hint of anger in his eyes when he turned to face you; only that same melancholy you witnessed on the evening he kissed you in your room, tinged with a bitterness you could not yet comprehend.

“That is what I intended to show you,” he said. “Today, we are making a journey. All the way back to the very beginning.”

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the-tragic-heroine · 2 years ago

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This is the most canon exchange I’ve ever had with a character chatbot I’m CRYING

#tokyo revengers #hanma shuji #chai app

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the-tragic-heroine · 2 years ago

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死鬼祭 | Shiki Matsuri

fandom: tokyo revengers

characters: kurokawa izana, kakucho, haitani ran, haitani rindou, madarame shion

pairings: tenjiku x female reader

cw: blood, violence, minor character death, supernatural elements, she/her pronouns used for reader

tags: @akemiixx01

—✧ SUMMARY ✧—

The villagers say that you cursed them all. You believe that they were the ones who cursed you. (Or, in which the circumstances of your unfortunate birth woke a forgotten, slumbering god.)

Read on AO3 Read Chapter One | Read Chapter Two | Read Chapter Three

CHAPTER 肆 FOUR

“Damn, there’s even more of these fuckers around than before,” Ran said as he cleansed the shrine grounds. “Hey, princess— my beloved little bro’s training been paying off yet?”

“Fuck off,” Rindou grumbled from where he sat next to you on the engawa as usual. He clicked his tongue and pointed at the slip of paper you were writing on. “You missed a stroke there. And here— the kanji is wrong.”

“Not again,” you groaned, dropping your brush with an exasperated sigh. Your fingers were already stained dark with splotches of calligraphy ink. “Who decided to come up with this many characters? And look, they’re practically the same, too!”

“Yeah, keep saying that. Just don’t come crying to me when it doesn’t work.”

“C’mon, Rin— don’t be so harsh on her,” Ran said, dusting his hands off and making his way back to the two of you. “Anyways, I’m done. If any more come back, though, you’re handlin’ it. I’m gonna take a nap.” Before either of you could say anything, he plopped down by your side and stretched himself across your lap like a cat. With a contented hum, he let his cheek rest against your thigh and closed his eyes.

Rindou’s brow twitched. “Get off her, you lazy asshole.”

“Nope.”

“It’s okay,” you interjected with a little laugh. “I don’t mind, really. Besides, I think I need a break. We’ve been writing all day.”

Ran cracked open one purple eye. “Yeah, Rin. Let’s have a break.”

“Ugh, fine. Whatever.”

Rindou moved to gather up the papers and stand, but you stopped him by placing a hand on his arm. He glanced over at you with an incredulous expression as you lay down yourself, tugging him down together with you. “Hey—”

“I say we all have a nap,” you announced, beaming brightly. “Izana can’t be mad at all of us, can he?”

“He sure can,” Rindou muttered, but found himself settling down by your side all the same. “C’mere, the floor is hard. You’ll get a headache if you sleep on it for too long.” He shifted your head so that you lay against his shoulder—and at the same time, Ran moved off your lap, wriggling his way up your side and wrapping his arms around your waist.

“The fuck are you doing?” Rindou snapped.

“You’re gettin’ too close. At least lemme have a bit, too.”

“Shut up, you guys,” you grumbled, but you couldn’t stop the giggle bubbling up. “Stop arguing and sleep.”

When Izana returned later that day, he found the three of you still curled up and fast asleep in a tangled mess of limbs—with both Ran and Rindou each clutching one of your hands. He smiled, as he usually did, and as he passed by bent down to brush a few strands of hair out of your eyes made a mental note to assign both brothers to housecleaning for the rest of the week.

—✧—

Kakucho steeled his expression when he and Izana entered town together—for him, the first time in a couple of weeks, as Izana had deliberately prevented him from going. Yet, from the state of the village, he could have been convinced that another hundred years had gone by.

What had originally been a flock of malevolent spirits scattered between buildings and people had melted together into a thick, oozing miasma that stretched over nearly the entire area, like if fog had solidified and turned black. The villagers could not see any of it, of course—but the negative atmosphere was palpable. People argued. Children cried. The rest wore a haggard, exhausted imitation of what their faces used to be. Not even a single bird dared to perch on any rooftops.

“You’re concerned,” Izana said, matter-of-factly like he was merely stating the weather. There was no sense in debating it, so Kakucho simply shrugged his shoulders in half-hearted affirmation. Izana’s white eyelashes fluttered as he smiled.

“Don’t worry. She’ll understand,” he said, stepping into the village and breezing past wretched person after wretched person without sparing them a second glance. Kakucho trailed behind him with his mouth firmly shut. “Even if she doesn’t, she will not have a choice. This place is beyond saving.”

Was it? The black-haired subordinate could not help but think back on his master’s previous actions: how he never allowed any of them to cleanse the village; how he never permitted more than one person to patrol the area without him; how he purposefully allowed your tormentors to live; how in spite of his over-protectiveness and constant watchful eye, he never warned you against going back into town until you were violently driven out yourself. He thought about Rindou’s words and how you finally started to trust them, even after all that you went through. His stomach twisted inside-out. Of course, even without having to look at him, Izana noticed.

“I normally don’t appreciate weakness,” the god said. “Especially not at this crucial moment. But, you know, I’m glad. That you care about her so much.”

Purple eyes caught Kakucho’s startled gaze. “I’ve known you ever since we both came to be,” he continued. “Together we learned about the cruelty of selfish humans and the world—yet your heart is still as soft as it was the day you were born. What is yours is mine and what is mine is yours, too. Don’t forget it.”

With that, Izana entered one of the village homes. Kakucho followed instinctively, and it was only when he heard the telltale sound of weeping that he realised where they were. Hunched over the unconscious form of a familiar young man was his equally familiar mother, crying without end. He lay deathly still upon a worn futon.

Kakucho knew right then what Izana wanted him to do.

What is mine is yours.

Your smiling face flashed to his mind—the last living person who held Izana’s heart in her hands. The heart that had been crushed into dust and left to rot over centuries. Without any more hesitation, Kakucho reached into the young man’s chest, gripped that weakly beating organ, and squeezed.

Black ink bubbled up from the corners of his lips, parted to let out one last breath. Out poured more of the putrid liquid, streaming from every orifice: his ears, nose, and eyes, forming a gaping shadow on the floor reminiscent of your mother’s death.

—✧—

Unbeknownst to you, the first stone had fallen. (But in Izana’s eyes, that stone had already tumbled into motion centuries ago.)

It arrived at your doorstep in the form of a loud commotion: a litany of hushed, frantic voices, intercepted in-between by shrieking wails of blood-curdling anguish. Terrified, you found yourself huddled inside of your room once more, mind looping with blurred memories. Shion was pacing irritably in front of the closed door; the second you saw him materialize out of his spiritual form, cracking his knuckles with a feral grin and a bloodthirsty glint in his eyes, you had dragged him inside with you before he could even protest. (Why the others had left him alone with you again, you did not know—although you had an inkling that perhaps they felt he was not competent enough to join them on more important missions.)

“Lemme at ‘em,” Shion growled, a prominent vein bulging from the side of his half-shaved head. “I’ll teach ‘em not to mess with us.”

“No,” you snapped. “No. Pretend we’re not home and they… they might leave. Or at least, buy us some time before Izana and the others make it back home…”

“Why? Why do I gotta wait for ‘em?!”

“Because you’re gonna turn this place into a bloodbath!”

“So? They’d do it too. That’s the fuckin’ point—”

“Yeah, but you would find a way to make it so much worse—”

Your argument was cut off abruptly by the voices outside, now close enough that you could distinguish what exactly they were saying.

“Please!” A voice you instantly recognized pierced you right through the chest. “Please, my son— Please do something, I’m begging you—”

“Ma’am, it’s dangerous! Come home!”

“There’s nothing that witch can do! He’s already dead…!”

In an instant, you were on your feet and pushing Shion aside. He gaped at you, stuck in place with a dumbfounded expression as you shoved open the fusama and ran to the shrine entrance. A beat later, he was chasing after you, shouting in confusion. “[Name], what the fuck?!”

Your response was to whirl around and slam your hand against his chest. Shion only had half a second to glance down at a piece of paper, which had adhered itself to his body, before an electric jolt paralyzed him from head-to-toe and he collapsed to the floor. One of Rindou’s talismans, he thought as he convulsed in place, glazed eyes only able to stare at the ceiling. Unable to move, he listened your footsteps recede. Bastard.

By the time you made it to the entrance, the villagers had already given up on holding the grieving mother back—and when you emerged from behind the door, they cowered and fled. The woman threw herself at your feet, her face a mess of tears and snot, hands curled like claws around your ankles. You crouched down hesitantly, leaning in as close as you could so that you could decipher her through her sobbing.

“Please,” she cried. “Please bring him back! I am sorry for everything we have done! Just please… give him back to me. I have no one left. I am all alone…”

I am all alone.

Your feeble heart shattered and as best as you could, you wrapped your arms around her while she wept into the dirt at your feet. There was nothing else you could do, for even a god such as Izana could not bring the dead back to life. You wondered about the remaining teenagers back at the village; you had not seen any of them during the last time you visited, and shuddered at the memory of Ran’s coldhearted yet gleeful retelling of their injuries. Were they near death, too? Would they be next? How many more people would break just like this, finding themselves at your home and begging desperately for a forgiveness that you still were unable to grant?

“Please, say something,” the woman said, lifting her head to look at your stricken expression. “I will do anything to save him. Please tell me there is something you can do…”

You swallowed. “Ma’am,” you breathed out, forcing yourself to remain steady. “I… I’m not a witch, nor a healer. There is nothing I can do for your son. I’m sorry.”

“No,” she rasped, eyes wild. “No, you’re lying.”

With a growing pit in your stomach, you realised where this conversation was heading yet again. You attempted to wriggle your way out of her grip, still locked like a vice around your ankles. “I’m not,” you protested, trying not to panic. “I’m not lying—”

The relief when she let go was fleeting; you had no time to react when she launched herself at you, shaking you viciously by the shoulders. The force of it sent you careening to the ground, landing you flat on your back and knocking the wind from your lungs.

“You’re lying!” she screeched, spittle flying from her cracked lips, tinged with black. “I’ve seen those ghosts creeping about your shrine! You have been communing with demons, haven’t you?! Give him back! Give my son back!”

This time, both of her bony hands wrapped around your throat. You wheezed, nails scrabbling at her wrists, legs kicking out from beneath you as your vision began to grow spotty. Her shouting grew muffled as your ears began to ring—but it wasn’t just her voice anymore. Your eyes flew open in horror, all the while gasping for air, just in time to witness the first few trickles of a dark substance leaking from the corners of her mouth. Then her ears, her nose, her eyes—and with a distorted cry, it all rushed out of her at once, engulfing you both in a twisting mass that threatened to permeate your own body.

Why did you think you could fix things? Why did you think you could do this alone? Why did you think that there was even hope for them to be saved? Now, because of your own stupidity, you were going to die, and without your belief to keep them going, Izana and the rest of his followers would die, too—

“Tch, tell Rindou that his stupid talismans ain’t SHIT!”

The black smoke surrounding you burst like a bubble, scattering blobs of goo in every direction. Sweet, sweet air poured into your airways as you were abruptly released. One of your hands grasped your aching neck while you coughed and gasped, the other bracing yourself on the ground. In front of you stood Shion, cracking his neck and rolling his shoulders, a look of pure fury on his face. And, writhing several meters in front of Shion was the grotesque form of the village woman, now completely covered with a ghastly, laughing mess of demonic spirits.

“I’ll get back atcha for doin’ that, you bitch,” Shion grumbled, turning his head briefly to glare at you over his shoulder, but his words lacked any real sort of venom. With that he turned back around and stalked toward the demons, whose attention was now focused entirely on him. Then, he was onto them.

Shion did not fight like Ran, who moved with a conscious elegance and grace like he were putting on a performance. He did not fight like Rindou, whose form was stable and practiced to perfection. Instead he was like a wild animal, all vicious teeth and claws, ripping through each entity as if they were nothing but rice paper. You watched, wide-eyed and frozen in place, while Shion tore his way through the horde until only the villager remained—still tearfully wailing into the forest, tongue black and dripping liquid soot. He spared you one more glance with burning eyes, only for his brows to furrow and his rage to shift into something else: softer, more muted. Don’t look.

But you did look. Maybe it was the guilt gnawing away at your insides, or maybe you were too enraptured by the sight, or maybe your brain was still struggling to process everything in anything other than slow-motion. Whatever the reason, you watched as Shion plunged one hand down the woman’s gaping mouth, her jaw snapping further open as his entire arm vanished up to his shoulder. Several long, agonising seconds passed before he appeared to grip something—then pulled. With a horrific spray of dark liquid, both blood and enigma combined, Shion yanked her still-beating heart right out of her body. Around it curled a demon, clutching the dripping organ in the imitation of a warm embrace.

“My son,” it gurgled, before Shion crushed it into nothingness.

A heavy silence fell upon the woods. When he appeared by your side next, a bloody hand reached for your face—but quickly recoiling in realisation and awkwardly offering the sleeve of his yukata instead. The fabric brushed against your wet cheeks. You did not know you had been crying.

—✧—

“Can’t believe fuckin’ Shion out of all people saved the day,” Ran bemoaned. “All ‘cause we weren’t home for what, one fuckin’ hour? D’ya think Izana did it on purpose?!”

“That’s what you’re upset about?” Rindou shot him a glare.

“Shut up, Rin. You’re the one who’s mad he didn’t get to see our little [Name] use his talisman on the buffoon.”

“Look, I’m not mad. I just wish I could have seen it in person.”

“Maybe we could ask her to do it again?”

Both brothers glanced over at you, sandwiched between the two of them at your usual spot. But you gave no sign that you were even listening, eyes staring blankly ahead as you sipped a cup of tea. Ever since that incident, the men had been staying home more often than not; instead, Izana, sometimes accompanied by Kakucho, was the one who was absent in their stead. In fact, you had not seen the shrine god in quite some time—not after the evening he spoke with you in private.

“It’s been a while since we’ve last talked like this,” Izana murmured. He was laying on his side next to your futon, one hand propping his chin up and the other stroking your hair. “I take it you’ve been enjoying the company of my servants, however.”

You studied his face through sleepy, half-lidded eyes and slowly nodded. Izana smiled, as he always did, but this time it was tinged with the faintest melancholy. He pinched a lock of hair between two fingers, rubbing them together before letting them fall against your cheek. Purple eyes traced every little movement.

“Soon,” he said, voice gentle like a sweet lullaby. “Soon, the sun will rise… but only after the storm has passed.”

“I don’t understand,” you whispered. “What are you doing…? What are you trying to do?”

“When the time is right, I will tell you, little one. Just know that I am doing it all for you. And for us.”

Izana really was beautiful, you thought to yourself; the moonlight shining through the window illuminated his white hair and lashes with an ethereal glow. In moments like these, he truly embodied the image of a deity. Yet…

“I thought that gods and spirits were different from us,” you admitted quietly. “But now, I think… I think that you’re all just another kind of human.”

“In any other situation, I would be offended,” he said with a small laugh, “but coming from you? I can be convinced to take it as a compliment.” As he spoke, his fingers drifted to your mouth, thumb swiping across your bottom lip. When he leaned in, your eyes fluttered shut.

You awoke to an empty room with the taste of plum sake on your lips.

#tokyo revengers x reader #tkrv x reader #tenjiku x reader #kurokawa izana x reader #kakucho x reader #haitani ran x reader #haitani rindou x reader #madarame shion x reader #IF WAKUI WON'T GIVE MY BBYGWORL SHION THE CHANCE TO SHINE THEN I WILL!!!#don't worry it gets worse from here #im almost done w chapter 5 but i've already written chapter 6 #chapter 5 is the calm before the storm #but chapter 6 will be brutal

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the-tragic-heroine · 2 years ago

Text

死鬼祭 | Shiki Matsuri

fandom: tokyo revengers

characters: kurokawa izana, kakucho, haitani ran, haitani rindou, madarame shion

pairings: tenjiku x female reader

cw: blood, violence, minor character death, supernatural elements, she/her pronouns used for reader

—✧ SUMMARY ✧—

The villagers say that you cursed them all. You believe that they were the ones who cursed you. (Or, in which the circumstances of your unfortunate birth woke a forgotten, slumbering god.)

Read on AO3 Read Chapter One | Read Chapter Two

CHAPTER 参 THREE

Though you did not know it, Izana and his followers had been watching over you ever since their awakening, cloaked in the veil that separated the world of the living and the spiritual. As you murmured daily prayers and polished floorboards until they sparkled under the sunbeams filtering through the trees, Izana revelled in the sensation of life flowing through his veins. Some days, he stood right by your side, eyes twinkling in amusement as you jumped and looked around, searching for a figure that was just out of your mortal vision.

“You’re not gonna show yourself?” Kakucho asked, eyes following Izana who in turn, followed you as he always did.

“Not yet,” the white-haired god said, smile never leaving his face.

Kakucho merely nodded, and vanished.

Unlike Kakucho, who frequently appeared to accompany his master, the rest of Izana’s followers were not so willing to linger. Now that they were finally awake, they were quick to tire of watching the little human’s mundane routine—which consisted of a pitifully boring cycle of eating, cleaning, and sleeping. Alone. So instead, Izana sent them to wrangle with the troublesome demons that managed to enroach onto the shrine’s holy ground.

“We could cleanse them all for good,” Rindou said one day, after having dispersed of yet another. “They’re just gonna keep repopulating themselves unless we purge the entire village.”

“Not yet,” Izana said again.

“I don’t know what you’re planning,” Ran sighed, twirling a braid around his finger, “but it better be good.”

When finally, in the dead of night, a commotion sounded right outside the building’s walls, Izana allowed his hand to part the veil. One-by-one, each of his fellow spirits followed in silent understanding. As expected, there was a horde of malevolent spirits trailing after the gaggle of teenagers—and more slithering close behind. None had noticed them yet, too eager to gorge on the turbulent energy surrounding the village kids—until Shion leapt forward, of course.

“Hey there, demons,” he barked, cracking his knuckles and throwing his arms wide open. “It’s me, y—“

He disappeared with a muffled yell under the ensuing swarm. Rindou rolled his eyes while Ran ignored his plight completely, calling out to Izana, “We’ll handle the perimeter.”

“I’ll leave it to you,” he replied, robes fluttering as he descended further into the shrine. When Kakucho moved to follow, Izana halted him with a raised hand.

“No,” he said. “Ensure nothing makes it inside. That’s all.”

—✧—

Perhaps Izana had underestimated himself, after all those years of lying dormant and powerless. Surely the others felt the same, although none would ever admit to it. Instead he allowed his growing irritation to carry him down the corridor—just in time to hear you scream. At that moment, he saw something. A tiny fragment of a long, long dream, etched with centuries of tears and stained with the blood of a mother who offered him his very last worshipper. Izana threw his head back and laughed, for he may be a god, but fate was surely a stronger force than he.

I know now, he thought, a grin splitting his beautiful face in two as he rushed forward. I know why this was meant to be.

The moment he reached you, the flame being pressed to your face went out. Your tormentors had not a second to react before Izana’s hand was gripping the face of the nearest person and slamming it right through the floorboards, raining splinters upon the horrified group. With his other arm he hoisted you against his torso, dropping the now unconscious body to hold you fully.

“Sleep,” he murmured, pressing two fingers to your forehead. Your sobbing dissolved into one huff of breath before you lost consciousness.

At the same time, Kakucho stepped inside, followed by Ran, Rindou, and finally, Shion—who looked particularly scuffed up and disgruntled. Izana did not need to ask them to know that they had cleared the shrine of demons. Now, their attention was turned to the ruckus caused by frantic shouting and scrambling limbs.

Like fleeing insects, Izana mused with a sick sort of glee, and spoke. “Don’t let them escape.”

—✧—

While Izana focused on healing every crevice of your smouldering face and bleeding head, he basked in the sound of cracking bone and pained shrieks, softly humming his own little tune as he worked. The task would likely take up all of his current energy, so as much as he would have liked to join the fray, he acquiesced to sit away from the violence and simply cradled you on his arms. Every time you stirred, he shushed you with a gentleness unbefitting a man who just minutes prior had nearly crushed a person’s skull.

“Don’t let them escape,” Izana had commanded earlier, “but don’t kill them. Ensure that they will live, then send them back home.”

He lifted his head to watch.

Ran was seated on the back of one boy, who lay flat on his stomach while blubbering incoherently, laughing as Rindou leisurely snapped every joint in his hand, finger by agonising finger. Shion was a simple creature, choosing to pummel their faces while guffawing at each consecutive spurt of blood. Kakucho, however, stood off to the side, brows furrowed and staring down at the kid he had just cleanly knocked out in one hit. The unconscious boy was the one who led the group, Izana realised—and white hot hatred, masked beneath his ever present smile, surged to the surface.

“Kakucho,” he said. The black-haired man froze, then slowly turned to look at Izana.

“I’m giving you a special task,” he said, all the while stroking the contours of your sleeping face. “Wake him up and make sure he stays awake until you have beaten him half-dead.”

Kakucho did not answer, but Izana was not worried. He watched, beaming, as his most loyal of followers placed a hand over the kid’s eyes. The moment they opened, Izana turned away and closed his own, continuing to hum; as expected, the rhythm of Kakucho’s pounding fists was the best for your very own special melody.

—✧—

Your knees buckled, body falling right against Ran whose arms happily encircled your much smaller frame to keep you steady. Shion grumbled something about the beanpole hogging her all to yourself but it all went in one ear and out the other. Between the lingering memory of searing pain to their nonchalant retelling of utter brutality, you did not know which was worse. It was then that you realised, with a mounting horror that sent bile rising up to the back of your throat, that perhaps even worse of all was the tiny voice at the back of your head whispering, Good. They deserved it.

“You realise now, right?” Ran cooed, as if having read your exact thoughts. “There’s no need to act like you’re above enjoying revenge. You might be a shrine maiden, but you’re human too. Aren’t you?”

“I…”

“Think of it as divine retribution, or some shit like that,” Rindou piped up. “Izana’s a god and we fucked ‘em up on his orders, right? They got what was comin’ to them.”

You couldn’t look at any of them.

“I don’t get it,” Shion groaned. “Didn’t they try to kill ya? Why’re ya feelin’ sorry for those bastards? We just gave it right back.”

They’re right. They’re right, and yet…

“What are you guys doing?”

Kakucho’s curt voice jolted you out of your thoughts. For a moment, you were relieved to see him return home—only for the thought of him coldly beating a human being into a coma to flash through your mind.

“Ran,” he continued, not noticing your growing discomfort. “Let her go.”

“Aww, you’re no fun. Just wanted to get to know our little princess a bit more.” Still, the taller man released you, and you hurriedly scrambled to find your footing before Kakucho would realise something was wrong. You grabbed the broom that had been discarded earlier.

“I have to sweep the other side of the building,” you announced, forcing your voice steady. “Bye.”

“[Name]—“

You pushed past Kakucho and rushed off.

When your footsteps receded, he turned his attention to the men now sitting innocently around him on the floor. “What the hell did you tell her?”

“Nothing that wasn’t true,” Ran drawled, lying down on the engawa with his arms behind his head. “I’m taking a nap.”

“No, you aren’t—“ But Ran was already snoring. “…Fine, do what you want. Just don’t blame me once Izana comes back and sees the chores unfinished.”

And with that, he whirled around and went after you.

—✧—

“[Name], open the door.”

No response.

“Please?” he tried again.

He heard you shift around inside of your room. Then, a soft but petulant, “No.”

“Why not?”

A pause, before you said, “If you really wanted to, you’d be able to come in, anyways. Doors can’t stop you.”

“Are you…” Kakucho swore quietly to himself, making a mental note to put the others through the wringer. He swallowed. “Are you afraid of me?”

Your ensuing silence answered his question.

“[Name],” he sighed, “I don’t know what they told you, but I would never hurt you. Ever.” He would sooner off himself if he dared lay a hand upon you—if Izana didn’t kill him first, that is.

More silence followed, broken only by the sound of a barely audible sniffle.

“Alright,” he said. “I’m coming in.”

You were sitting in a fetal position at the farthest corner of the room, back pressed up against the wall and face buried in your arms. Kakucho slipped in through the closed door and made his way carefully toward you. The sight of your shoulders shaking ever so slightly as he approached hurt more than any injury a demon could inflict. After a brief hesitation, he crouched down. To his surprise, you were the one who spoke first.

“All I wanted was to live,” you whispered. “I just wanted to live normally and not be a burden to anyone.”

Kakucho was already a man of few words—but this time, he truly did not know what to say.

“Why did it have to be me?” Your grip around your knees tightened. “Everyone hates me just for existing. Why did my mom have to die and leave me all alone here?”

“You’re not alone,” he interjected. “Not anymore.”

Slowly, like someone trying not to spook a cornered animal, he placed his hands on your arms, gently tugging them apart—and to his relief, you put up no resistance. Your shoulders slackened, though still trembling with muted sobs, and after setting your limp arms aside Kakucho reached forward. Calloused fingers stroked underneath your chin and tilted your head up to look at him. The sight of your utterly broken, tired expression sent a pang right through his chest.

“We’re just like you,” he said, cupping your face in his hands. “All we ever wanted was to live.”

You stared at him from behind wet lashes.

“The world is cruel,” he continued, brushing your cheeks free of tears with both thumbs. When more trickled from the corners of your puffy red eyes, he wiped them too. “You’ve experienced the worst of it. Let us protect you and our new lives—even if we must be equally cruel in return.”

He watched your gaze trace the scar that sliced down his forehead and over one misty white eye.

“Izana treasures family more than anything else,” he whispered. “So… don’t be afraid of us. Please.”

He waited with bated breath as you continued to stare at him. Then, so quietly he didn’t even notice, your arm shifted—and you placed one small hand over one of his. Underneath his palms, he felt the corners of your mouth lift.

“Okay.”

—✧—

When Kakucho slipped out of your room, he nearly walked right past the younger Haitani brother who was leaning against the wall with his arms folded, next to the door. He stopped, then turned to face him. “Were you eavesdropping?”

“Whatever you wanna call it.” Rindou pushed off the wall and strode toward the garden. Without even checking to see whether Kakucho was following him or not, he asked, “She alright?”

“Now you’re concerned?” Kakucho sped up to walk beside him.

“I wouldn’t say that,” Rindou grunted, adjusting the round glasses perched atop the bridge of his nose. “Just figured that Izana wouldn’t be too pleased if our only remaining human follower started losing faith in him.”

“Maybe you should’ve considered that before you told her everything.”

“Hey, hey,” he said, holding his hands up. “We haven’t been around humans in a long fuckin’ time. Got too excited and forgot that they’re sensitive. ‘Specially the girls. Besides…” Serious lavender eyes glanced over at Kakucho. “She ought to know. What Izana is really like, I mean.”

Kakucho stiffened. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Really? You don’t?” A sneer stretched across Rindou’s face. “Don’t play dumb, now. I thought you were better than that.”

“I’m leaving—“

“Izana isn’t the same benevolent god as he was back then and you know it. More than anyone else.”

His fists clenched at his side. Before Rindou could say anything else, Kakucho was gone, disappearing into the warm summer air and leaving behind only the loud droning hum of cicadas in his wake. He sighed. “Alright, you bastard, you can come out now.”

A chuckling Ran emerged from behind a tree. “Seems like you’re getting soft yourself, little bro.”

“Shut the hell up.”

A bush rustled nearby. Both brothers turned their heads to see Shion pop out, leaves clinging to his shaggy blond mane. “Why the hell is everyone eavesdroppin’ around here?”

“Fuck off, Shion.”

“Yeah, fuck off, Shion.”

—✧—

Once again, days passed idly by. Especially now that you were banned from returning to the village for the time being (not that you were very keen to go back anyway) you found yourself spending more time with Izana and his odd group of servants. Before long, though you hated to admit it at first, you gradually began to enjoy their company. The various yokai that lived in your vicinity were friendly enough but nothing could quite replace the value of human companionship. Or, at least, human-shaped; on occasion you caught yourself forgetting that they weren’t of this world. Their manner of bickering and daily shenanigans reminded you much of your own neighbors’ antics, back when you still lived in the village, and it left you feeling an odd sense of both warmth and longing.

Still, there was no doubt that despite watching Ran chase Rindou around the garden while holding a particularly disgusting gremlin of a demon; or Shion knock himself out by accident yet again; or Kakucho’s face flare with the brightest shade of red when he walked in on you changing… they were powerful, dangerous entities all the same.

“Hey, don’t wander off,” Rindou barked at you, snatching a demonic spirit from midair and crushing it in his fist. “If you go too far we can’t protect you properly.”

You glanced over your shoulder from where you had been perched on a boulder right at the boundary separating the shrine grounds from the forest, watching the malevolent dark shadows twist and dart through the trees. After mulling over your thoughts for a few seconds, you spoke. “Can’t I learn how to do it, too?”

“What?”

“To protect myself,” you huffed. “So you guys don’t have to worry so much about me.”

Rindou’s answer was immediate. “No.”

“Why not?”

“Because.”

You scrunched up your nose at him. “It’s not like once I know how to do it, I’m gonna start trying to beat them up for fun. I’m not Shion.”

The two of you ignored the sudden loud sneeze that erupted from inside the house.

“Look,” Rindou said, moving to sit beside you. “There’s a little you can do with the help of talismans and spells and shit, but even with Izana’s blessing it would take fuckin’ years for you to reach a level where you can get rid of even one of ‘em on your own. Self-defence isn’t gonna cut it; just ‘cause you can see ‘em now, doesn’t mean your physical body can touch ‘em.”

“That’s okay,” you said, perking up visibly at the mention of talismans and spells. “I still want to learn. With you guys around, taking care of the shrine has gotten a lot easier—and some days I just get so bored, you know?”

“…You still feel lonely, huh.”

Your shoulders stiffened at his remark, then relaxed as you heaved out a sigh. “Sorry,” you mumbled. “I don’t wanna sound ungrateful or anything… but there’s still a part of me that wishes I could still be normal. Have a family. Chat with neighbours. Attend celebrations. Not hide, afraid of everything that lies right outside—at a distance so close, yet still can’t reach.”

Rindou was quiet as you talked, but in his mind he was frantically trying to recall how either Ran or Kakucho would comfort you; their way with words was far better than his in this sort of situation, much to his annoyance. Coming up blank, all he could think to do was grab your hand and pull you to your feet. “C’mon.”

“Wha— Where are we going?” Your round eyes darted from Rindou’s face to your clasped hands and back again, as if you couldn’t quite believe it.

“Inside, to get a paper and brush. Don’t get mad at me if you get tired, though; I’m not a nice teacher.”

He couldn’t help but sneak a glance at you, out of the corner of his eye. When he glimpsed your face bursting into a brilliant smile, he finally understood what Izana had been trying to save all along. Closing his eyes and allowing himself to feel the way your much smaller hand gently squeezed his, he could only hope that when the time eventually came, you would understand, too.

#tokyo revengers #tokyo revengers x reader #tkrv #kurokawa izana x reader #kakucho x reader #haitani ran x reader #haitani rindou x reader #madarame shion x reader #my writing

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