•Tomoe x Reader: Book 2•

2. Nightfall

The tug in your chest lead the both of you to the outskirts of town, but Tomoe's eyes drew to the sky, he sighed lightly.

A red orb had began to rise in the sea of black that was the sky, looking a bit like a blood moon.

"It's growing dark in the human world... we should head back into town and check into a room, there are a few semi-permanent dwellings for creatures passing through."
He arched a silver brow. "I believe you humans would call something like that-... an inn, or a hotel."
He cringed slightly at the mundane words on his tongue, and a swishing of his robes came with his turn, Tomoe's hand had drifted away from yours not too long ago so luckily your arm wasn't yanked from the socket at this moment, though turning your head to watch him almost gave you whiplash.

You turned with him and walked silently beside him, taking this time to try and absorb further the surplus of information shoved at you the past few days.

Mizuki's lamp had sent you back in time to speak with an elderly priest who refused to give his name, a man who lived alone on a section of mountain in search of inner peace and had been greatly irritated for your rude intrusion.

After you had explained your situation, the man had gone silent, and it was a long while before he explained to you your situation.

The ability to be pulled to the underworld at seemingly random times was known as Katabasis, a call for a hero or destined person to move towards their purpose at a... quicker pace. It was actually quite common with gods and yokai, especially now that spirits were seen as only legends by the human world.

Apparently, being close to someone who you were supposed to be completing this quest with was what began to trigger it.

Which... had been Tomoe.

So now, following some shitty internal compass that tugged on your stomach like a sharp string, you and Tomoe were in the underworld searching for... whatever.

Neither of you had any idea what it was.

You snapped from your thoughts when Tomoe stopped, you almost collided into him but managed to catch yourself from doing so.
Your mask had tilted, you adjusted it and observed the building you stood in front.

You didn't have much time to look at it, though, as Tomoe grabbed your wrist and tugged you inside, what would be the equivalent of a check-in desk was just a bunch of pegs, all empty except for one with a key on it, Tomoe grabbed the last key and turned down the hall, taking you with him.

The walls were wooden and plain, the area dimly lit, and it was almost hard to navigate, you followed Tomoe's swishing white tail and then almost ran into him when he stopped.

"Here we are." The male murmured.

He unlocked and shoved open the door to his room.

It was decorated in whites and reds, with a dresser, a closet, an attached bathroom, a cabinet of complementary potion bottles for various things, a nightstand, a few chairs, and... only one bed.

Tomoe sighed heavily upon realizing that.

"I have a confession."

Thank god you had the mask on, your mind jumped to conclusions and your blush was mad underneath it.
He didn't mean it like that, he couldn't-...

Tomoe looked incredibly reluctant to speak.

"I-...."

There was a long pause, his expression unreadable, ears flat.

"I'll just show you."

Your mind went blank. "Eh?" You made a noise of questioning, Tomoe set down his fan and pipe onto the dresser, moving over to it, his back to you.
The male began to undo the sash of his yukata, and your mad blush returned.

What the hell is he-

The clothing slipped off a bit, revealing his muscular shoulders and back, through a mirror angled on the wall you could catch a glimpse of his toned stomach and faint abs.

I'm going to die.

Quite suddenly, a puff of mist surrounded the male's body, and his clothing fell to the floor in a heap, Tomoe was now nowhere to be found.

"What the he-..."

The bundle moved, and a fuzzy snout poked out of it.

Within a few more moments, a large white fox about the size of a German Shepard had untangled itself from the clothing, completely white save for purple eyes suspiciously the same shade as... Tomoe's...

The fox crawled up onto the bed, laying down with a huff.

"There's room for you now." Tomoe's voice, echoing directly into your mind via some sort of telepathy.

You moved a hand forward, Tomoe growled.

"You touch me, you die, human." The voice growled, you laughed lightly and pulled your hand back.

"Goodnight, Tomoe, if I can even call it that." You called cheerfully, and took off your mask, setting it to the side and crawling into the open part of the bed.