仮面の裏へ - (Kamen no Ura e - To The Hidden Side of The Mask)

Oni

One movie turned into three, and when Chie opened her eyes, it was morning.

She blinked a few times, vaguely remembering dozing off at some point.

She then realized she'd dozed off against Seiji.

She was resting against his shoulder, and her heart hammered when she realized his arm was wrapped around her, his hand resting gently on her hip.

Chie pondered what to do.

It wasn't as if she was doing anything wrong if she just laid there a while longer – it was his arm around her after all. That, and she had nowhere to be.

Unfortunately, Seiji woke up in that moment, and he looked at Chie before pulling away the arm wrapped around her like he'd been burned.

"...Sorry..." He grumbled.

Chie cleared her throat as she sat up. "...Me too."

Seiji got up and stretched, then looked at the clock.

"...Do you have somewhere to be?"

Seiji shrugged. "The oni I'm looking for probably wouldn't go out during the day."

Chie's eyes widened. "Is he weak to sunlight?"

"Huh? No, it's just harder to pick people off in broad daylight." Seiji clarified. "He might be immortal, but he's only marginally stronger than a regular oni. He couldn't fight off the entire police force. He'd be detained, his human boost would wear off, and he'd be mortal enough for them to finish him.

Chie nodded slowly, then looked up at Seiji. "You could get him with a pitfall trap!"

Seiji snorted. "What?"

"If he fell into a hole that was deeper than he could immediately get out of, you could bury him!"

Seiji's eyes widened. "With enough dirt covering him, there's no way he'd be able to claw his way up before he lost his boost!" His expression soured. "...but pitfalls only work when I know where he's going to walk."

"...Which is easy to predict when you have bait."

"No."

Chie frowned. "Why? You just said it would work!"

"It would work if he walked into the hole. Not if he leaped at you, or dropped down on you from above."

"You'll be there!" Chie insisted. "If he steps over or around it, you could just throw him in!"

"He could kill you in an instant, Chie."

Chie's brow furrowed deeply. "Then it's worth it to get rid of him."

Seiji covered his face in frustration. He then let out a breath. "Only if I'm there too."

"Wouldn't...that have been the case anyways?

"What? No, he would've been able to smell me and he never would have fallen for it."

Chie frowned. "Then why's it a plan now?"

"Because your plan is good, but I don't want you to die." Seiji grabbed his chin in thought. "Maybe I could get myself to smell human enough that he won't be able to smell me?"

"How?"

Seiji grabbed his jacket and handed it to Chie. "A lot of deodorant, and you wear my stuff all day."

Chie felt stupid as the prospect made her blush. Seiji then took the jacket back. "Wait...I need to wash my scent off it first..." He thought for a moment. "And off me, too..."