ᴛᴏᴍᴏʀʀᴏᴡ, ᴀᴛ ᴅᴀᴡɴ |Nanami Kento X Reader|

24 - The nightmares within

It was not a nightmare that woke you up nor Oshinokouji's hand on yours but the blaring sound of an alarm piercing the eerie quiet of the room you had been sleeping in. You jerked awake, sitting up straight as the door slid open, revealing the fox yokai who had changed into an outfit wholly different from the gracious kimonos you were used to see him into. Fitted pants and a large shirt as well as black large boots, he looked utterly different.

"What's going on?" You asked, feeling well rested even though you had barely gotten a wink of sleep.

"You should see it for yourself." He replied, brows furrowed.

Quickly putting on shoes, you followed him across the many hallways until you reached the room in which you had been discussing Nanami's plans only hours ago.

A holographic screen was cast on a wall and you barely noticed the people in the room as your stomach dropped in the bottom of your belly. Masamichi Yaga's face was being broadcasted on the screen with dates right beneath his picture, followed by images of some sort of ceremony. You tightened your fist, your nails biting in your palms, unable to form a single thought.

You heard Nanami curse as you watched a woman step on a dais in front of the Hub, her raven hair falling in waterfall over her frail shoulders, she offered the crowd a tight smile.

"How ?" Nanami asked, and you knew he was asking you even though you could not see his face. "We found her body and my mother's... We..."

Standing before a large crowd, was Suguru's mother, who looked the same as she had all those years ago. She cleared her throat, chasing an invisible tear on her cheek with her pale fingers.

"My name is Haruka Masamichi. I am..." She huffed. "-was, Masamichi Yaga's wife" and someone gasped in the room. "I am devastated to announce that my husband died last night. I would love to give you heartwarming words about his death but it was anything but peaceful." She raised her head, her warm brown eyes looking right at the camera and you could not help noticing the similarities between her and Amane.

"Remember when I said it was someone from your side and you laughed at me ?" Oshinokouji drawled. "I bet it's not as funny now, is it ?"

You heard shuffling and then Nanami was at your side, his hand reaching toward your arm and you took a step back from him. He frowned at that, his lips a flat line. "How is she alive ?" He demanded.

"How would I know ?" You bristled. "I told you what happened. I took Amane and I left. I never saw her die. You're the one who said you had found her body."

"Because I, we did." He barked, his eyes searching yours. You looked back at the screen, the onyx haired woman still talking about Masamichi.

"We found churned bodies... I recognized my mother, I'm sure of it. But Haruka... Suguru said it was her ring, the one our father gave her... He would never have lied about something like this."

"That was the only proof you had ?" You asked, not hiding the bitterness in your tone. "Did she have a reason to pretend she was dead ?"

He did not need to answer as Suguru's mother started again on the screen. "My husband was killed by the yokai's Prince." Haruka Masamichi declared, some sort of fixed, unnatural pained expression on her face. "We have evidence to prove he has been pretending to be human and infiltrated our lands for years now. Last night, he and several monsters managed to murder my husband during a planned attack." She paused then, as if measuring the impact of her word on the crowd. "I know what you're thinking ; how long are we going to let those demons pray upon us and not resist, not fight back ? How long are we going to let them kill our husbands, our children ?!" Her voice boomed in the growing tension, the people standing before her nodding, some screaming their agreement.