Moonlight [Indra Otsutsuki x Female Reader]

Chapter 8

"Today's our boy Indra's birthday?!" you were shocked at the sudden news. Riko nodded her head. You sighed. You hadn't even prepared a present or a speech or anything for him. What were you gonna do?! Riko giggled slightly.

"I see my boyfriend is troubled about what to give her crush. I only told you late since Hana asked me to. I was gonna tell you anyways, but I wanted to see whether you liked him or not." Riko said. You seethed in rage. Haanaaa bissh you internally cursed at her. Was she so jealous of the fact that you'd grown a bit closer to Indra and that he talked to you normally now? Hana shouldn't have done such a petty thing. It was really really dumb. And unforgivable.

"Nuh uh, he's not my crush, but he's my friend so I'm naturally very, incredibly angry." you said. Hana told you that the celebrations would start at night. You only had twelve hours to pick or make a present for him.

You wondered what Indra liked. Definitely dango or something, but you didn't really want to give him food. You wanted to make something for him that'd stay with him, if he kept it. Maybe a bracelet. Wait no, that was too common and kind of girly for him. What would be good? What did he want? Ugh, this was so hard. Wait a second . . .

"How about a handmade omamori?" you asked Riko, hoping it was acceptable as a present. You'd read before that an omamori was a kind of talisman or accessory that warded away evil and protected the one who wore it, usually imbued with spiritual power. You definitely couldn't put in some spiritual power, but its the feelings that matter, right?

"Ohh, in that case, you should head with me to the shrine of Izunokami. Although Hagoromo-sama is a God for us, there is a small section that believes in Izunokami, as the God who created all beings, including humans. Hagoromo-sama greatly respects the religion as well, and the followers have increased over the years. The priestess at the shrine can cast a spell for your omamori." Riko smiled. You punched your fist in the air. It hadn't been that hard to get a present, surprisingly. You thanked the days you read various articles on the internet to understand Japanese culture.

You followed Riko chan out of the estate, and noticed the preparations for tonight's feast going on, as well as an extremely busy Saneki and Mira. Hana trailed after them, trying to do some work. Asami sauntered right up towards you, and caught your hands excitedly.

"Nee, nee, what romantic things do you think Naki-sama will do for Indra-sama?" she whispered excitedly while shaking your hands crazily. She was a fujoshi, a girl who liked two particular men together, and ever since Naki had come, she'd started obsessing over how Indra and Naki looked so perfect together. Which was very very weird, in your opinion, considering how much those two fought.

"I don't think he's gonna-" you were cut off by a scowl from Asami as she adjusted her hair ornament and walked away. You sighed as Riko giggled and continued leading the way to the shrine.

After several roads, came the shrine. It was situated at the edge of the village, and a huge red torii entrance gate stood at the foot of the winding lane which led to the stone steps that ascended towards the shrine. A sign with Japanese letters, probably the name of the shrine, stood proudly at the entrance. You passed the torii and made your way up the steps. Your feet ached as you continued walking on, and you noticed Riko chan was kind of tired as well. After what seemed to be an eternity, you finally reached the top.

The chozuya, a place for rinsing the hands before entering the shrine, stood proudly beside a trash can on the ground. Riko held out a ladle to you, which you extended into the chozuya to get water, and rinsed your hands with it. Riko chan did the same, except for she took some water and sprinkled it on her face at the end, then continued walking onwards. The area of the shrine was enormous, and a small river too, dashed across the ground. It was artificial, made to increase the beauty of the place. A bridge with red planks crossed over the river, making it look absolutely gorgeous, like something from a painting. Cherry blossoms dotted the grounds of the shrine, and two lion statues stood at the entrance of the massive building, with red pillars, black and white walls, and a standard black Japanese roof. You took off your slippers and stepped onto the smooth wooden floor. Shrine maidens bowed to you as you entered, and you bowed back. Sitting near the idol of the god, which was quite intimidating with the head of a lion and body of an eagle, was a thinly veiled woman in her thirties, whose golden locks were visible from the semi transparent, crystallic veil.