A Delicious Feast

Prologue

The sky turned darker with every second that passed. Stars appeared above the quiet village you call home. Even though the night was beautiful, your heart was filled up with anxiety. Something so calm as the moon can be very dangerous.

Holding the hand of your nephew is what worries you the most.

 You began power walking, accidentally making the boy stumble a few times. "Oba, why are we running?" Sukoshi exaggerated, making you chuckle. "We have to hurry up or else your mom will get mad at me." You replied.

The truth was a dangerous person had corrupted your peaceful village. There have been children disappearing for almost a week now. You couldn't say that to the child or he would get scared about ever coming out of the house.

"Then let's race!" Sukoshi exclaimed before trying to run away only to be yanked back. You held tightly onto his hand. "I'm taller than you, Suko. You'll lose immediately." You grinned with false pride.

The child gave you a pout. "Nuh-uh! I'm a big boy! I'll win." His words made you chuckled which made him puff his cheeks in anger.

He started bragging about how he was the fastest one out of his friend group to persuade you to race against him. You only hummed in response as you kept an eye on your surroundings, trying to see if anything strange happened.

Gladly the house wasn't far anymore. A few more turns and your cozy home will be there to greet you.

A gust of wind caressed your face making a small chill go down your spine. The temperature was leveling down. The nights were chilly but never enough to make somebody shiver.

Sukoshi moved closer to you, trying to reach for a slight warmth. You looked down at the shivering boy with a bit of guilt. You scooped him up and held him tightly in your arms. He let out a small giggle as he nuzzled on your shoulder.

The temperature went down at a rapid speed until you could see your breaths take the form of the wind. This type of weather was unusual for the area.

You rubbed your nephew's back to give him a hint of heat since you heard him chattering his teeth. Both of you had to head home fast.

Before you could make a run for it a huge amount of pain attacked your calves, making you drop to the ground. You winced at the pain. Looking back at what caused it, you were only met with your blood-stained kimono.

Sukoshi whispered out for you as you looked for anyone near you. There was no one around. Snapping back into the reality you slowly stood up and began walking faster.

Home wasn't far, yet it felt like it.

In a second, you felt the same sharp pain on your back, making you fall on the ground again.

You tried to stand back up with all your strength, whimpering at the torment your body was giving you. Stumbling, you kept walking once more.

"Stop being so fucking stubborn." A feminine voice cursed behind you. With a forceful push, your face met the ground. Sukoshi held your clothing tightly.  
"We'll be okay, oba." His quiet attempt of comforting you only made you chuckle. It was quite pitiful the child was telling the grown-up everything will be okay when it should be the other way around.

You were suddenly yanked up to your knees. Your eyes finally met your attacker. It was a woman. She wore an indigo kimono that lovingly hugged her curves, short black hair, pale skin. But what caught your eyes was her facial features. Her purple orbs held thin pupils like a snake, and her wicked smile showed off fangs.
If it weren't for her trying to murder you, you would say she was attractive.

You hugged your nephew tightly as you back away. Your injured legs didn't cooperate with you so your action was worthless.

The monster stepped on your feet and leaned in until your faces were a few inches apart. "I'll be taking him." She grabbed Sukoshi and tried to pull him away from you.

You couldn't say anything back due to the fear; you only kept holding the child. The monster giggled at your attempt at protection.
Her razor-sharp nails dug into your arms, ripping the sleeves of your kimono. She dragged them to your hands. You held your breath and bit your bottom lip.

Your blood stained both your and your nephew's clothing.

Tears formed in your eyes.

Even with the deep cuts on your arms, your strength didn't dare to leave. You weren't going to let whatever this woman was take your nephew no matter what.

The monster growled in frustration. She raised her hand, ready to scratch your face. Your hand crept towards Sukoshi's small head. The tears finally dropped.

"Someone. Please save us." You cried out quietly.

After those words, the woman finally lashed your face, but the pain never came.

Her hand had stopped midway. Your eyes widened in fear as you saw her head slowly drop from her neck to the ground. The corpse turned into ashes.

You looked up, scared of what killed the monster.

You were met with gorgeous piercing eyes with the same color combination as his hair. Beautifully decorated with warm colors.

"I mean no harm. You and your son are safe now." His gentle smile and voice calmed you.

The mysterious man crouched down to your level, eyeing your bloody injuries.

Sukoshi tried to look behind him; you pushed his head down with soft force. "We're okay now, Suko." You reassured him. You didn't want his poor sight to be traumatized by your cuts.

The man's hand grabbed your ankle, tracing his fingertips to the cut that tainted your calf. He noticed your other leg was in the same condition. "Anywhere else?"

You nodded your head. "My back."

"I'll fix you up." The blond's smile never left. He didn't have the proper equipment so all he could do was clean your cuts and wrap them up, hoping the cuts wouldn't bleed anymore.

You placed your nephew between your legs when the fiery man moved on to your back. Sukoshi noticed the bandages around your limbs. He grabbed your hand and leaned his small back onto your stomach. You carefully put an arm around him and pat his chubby tummy. "I'm fine, don't worry." You convinced him. He sadly mumbled an "okay."

The man delicately slid the kimono down to the sides of your shoulders. The way he traced his fingers on your back sent shivers.

The fiery male stood up and bowed. "I'm Rengoku Kyojuro." He introduced himself with such honor. "L/N Y/N. This is L/N Sukoshi." You spoke softly to the loud man. The little boy looked up to see his savior. He shyly waved at Rengoku, making him laugh a bit. "I will carry you two back home." He warned before picking you up in bridal style. Sukoshi laid himself on top of you.

You gave him the directions. It only took three turns to arrive.

Loud voices of panic could be heard inside the house. Footsteps were walking towards the door, it slid open. It was your sister, Higuma.

She was met with Rengoku holding her son and younger sister. "Mama!" Sukoshi held out his tiny arms to his mother, tears threatening to fall down his plumpy cheeks. She picked up the small boy and hugged him tightly. Then she saw the bandages around your four limbs. Her eyes widened.

"What happened?"

Rengoku carefully put you down. He held you by the waist so you wouldn't stumble down. "A demon attacked them." You whipped your head to stare up his golden eyes. Is that what the woman was? "She protected the little one. He has no injuries." The permanent smile kind of comforted Higuma. She gently guided you inside the house. "Thank you for saving my son and sister." She bowed to the pillar before closing the door and entering back to the cozy house with her family.

Rengoku's tilted his head in confusion. "Sister?" He mumbled out. His wide eyes stared at the wooden floor for a minute. Was that girl the boy's aunt?