/jp/ - Otaku Culture

>>46208241
He was worried, of course he would be from everything being said. “Suzu, are you okay? I heard about what happened” I hold up a hand and walk over to the kitchen, slumping at the table.

“Water” I say.

Kato nods and fetches me a cup of water, putting it down in front of me as he takes his seat. I gulp it down eagerly being more thirsty then I thought. “Where are the kids?” I ask when the cup is empty.

“Out playing last I’ve seen them. I don’t know if they know yet. Are you fine? Did any of them hurt you?” He said, concern etched on his face.

“None of us got hurt, but they all barged in with guns. They left without a fight, but it was really close” The reality of how close I was to death came back to me and twisted a knot in my stomach. I breathed in, trying to relax.
“I’m glad you’re safe, but you know how dangerous that was. Do you think you should be staying with them? It was one thing helping Keine with her adopted babies, but now you’re being held at gunpoint and there’s all this talk about allowing youkai to live with humans. I’m worried for you”

“I know, I know. But I just can’t back out. Especially now I told my intentions to stay. It might still be dangerous, or that might have been the last action of a desperate man. I just can’t abandon them. All of the stories I’ve heard, the things I’ve seen. I just think the way things are going are wrong. So many youkai are just normal, like us but they have to be treated with scorn. People like Keine have to suffer because of the delusions of one man that holds so much power, its just wrong” The words come out a little bitter as I know I’m not really telling the truth. I’ve know youkai could be reasonable for years, even before I met Kato. Granted, Aya and Mamizou did threaten to kill me when they revealed themselves, but that was years ago and they’re proven themselves to be friends since. So had other youkai as well. But he never knew, I had kept that from him, the man that had given me so much. It was strange, all those years ago I almost died just to keep up the division between man and youkai, and now this same division was wearing thin, on the verge of collapse if it had just a bit of a push. Could I really just admit to him that I had lied to him for years?


Kato holds my hand “But couldn’t you just try to keep out of danger? Just help them without sticking your neck up, I know you stood up to the Heida patriarch , and that’s bold of you but couldn’t you just play it safe?” I’m briefly annoyed at him for trying to dissuade me, but he was really just worried.

“I’ll keep my safety in mind. Keine has Mokou, remember? She won’t allow a hair on our heads to get out of place. I’m not going to take any more unnecessary risks, I can tell you that” Kato chuckles a bit and I feel guilty. I already might have doomed them all to die because of my foolhardy actions making Yukari aware of me.

“Fine, but just promise me the moment it gets too risky you pull yourself out of danger. This is serious business. All this talk about letting youkai in, it’s unbelievable. What’s Keine’s plan for it”

I wanted to tell him to just go and ask her, but that seemed presumptuous of me. His wife had just come home from being held at gunpoint while meeting to discuss upending the village and helping youkai live better lives, when so many already thought of them as our enemies. It was a lot to take in, and I was just too exhausted to explain it for now.

“She has one, it’s not as bad as it seems. Could I just get take a nap? We can talk about all of this later”

“Sure thing” he answers. I give him a peck on the cheek before heading off to the bedroom. Not even bothering changing out of my clothes, I flop on the futon and in moments, I’m out.

----

I awake somewhere other the my home. I don’t remember going here, but something about it seems familiar. A white mist covers the landscape, making it hard to see but I can hear the sound of running water. Squinting, I can just make out a river a few yards away. But there’s no other sounds, not of any animals or the wind or any humans. Just silence. Well, no matter where I am sitting here isn’t going to do much. I get to my feet and follow the river. I walk on and on, my only sign of progress being the feeling of my feet moving forward one by one. The landscape still hasn’t changed, how long have I been walking? When I’m wondering if I should change my plan, I spot a faint glow in the distance. I increase my pace, heading towards it. The glow grows bigger and brighter, and I see it to be a lantern hanging onto a food cart, like the one Mystia runs. It looks out of place in this white abyss, but I take a seat, happy to see something recognizable at rest and wanting to rest my legs. Nobody seems to be staffing it and I scour the cart for any sign of being used. As I focus, I’m startled by a voice. It’s one familiar to me, one I’ve hadn't heard in many years. One I missed.

“Kosuzu. It’s been a while"