A Thousand Years of War (Griffith/ Guts Fanfic)

An Oni Mask

Reino's eyes opened abruptly. She looked around expecting to be surrounded by passed out drinkers from the night before but sat in her room with a lavender cover pulled to her waist. She pulled a hand to her head and sighed. She must have gotten carried here by Casca or someone she was with them. ' I only remember dancing with Guts.' Reino thought back on it and almost cried as she remembered stumbling around with Guts and ending the night with hitting him and storming off. She hurriedly pushed her covers off and trudged to the center of the camp.

Per usual, all sat enjoying breakfast and chatting away. She saw a few faces she did not recognize but assumed they were members of the Banf of Hawks. She spotted familiar white long hair and ran towards it.

"Griffith, do you have any idea were Guts could be? I need to have a word with him." She said hesitantly. Griffith turned to her and explained that Guts was getting a hangover cure from Casca, seeing as he drank far too much the night before. She nodded and headed off to look in the tents for the pair.

After checking in all the yellow tents she found them in a green tent. Casca was pushing through a drawer looking for herbs and Guts sat with his arms crossed waiting patiently.Reino spoke up breaking the silence " If you are looking for herbs they are in the yellow tents, those are the medical tents this is a food bin." Casca nodded in shock and Guts stood up to move to a medical tent.

"I will help," Reino said as she walked over to the mustard tent. "No, you mustn't this fool got himself into this mess" Casca piped out. Guts nudged her and Casca shot a cold glare at him. Reino laughed at their antics and shooed off Casca's demand "No, I insist, most herbs belong to my Second in Command, Chro, and he has quite a few uncommon herbs. I wouldn't want you to get hurt."

Casca was touched by Reino's worry and nodded happily. As they walked Reino and Casca talked about things they enjoy and dislike, Guts was one of the things they had in common for dislikes. He cursed at them as they complained about his behavior and laughed at his anger." I knew this kid since we where much younger, I am actually a year older than him but he gives me no respect." Reino laughed out as Guts grumbled to himself.

"Here we are, a medication you need you can ask Chro for, he is that lug with the blonde hair. He is a medical expert from witch decent." Casca gasped at this new information. Witches were known to be very pale and luminescent, old folklore says this was to lure in young men to marry and keep their family line strong and they would kill the poor lad after the business was handled. Chromethos did indeed look radiant with his pale skin and light blonde hair his golden-blue eyes confirmed that he was of mystic lineage.

"Everyone at this camp is very diverse, A warlock resting with women peacefully is unheard of in towns, they would burn you." Casca rambled off to Chromethos about the dangers of living as he was. Chromethos puffed out his chest, snorting at her heavily." I wish those men would burn me! Oh, I would put them all in a deep rest, someone as great as I must live thousands of years." He haughtily went on with how amazing he was.

Reino sighed at his antics and saluted the pair." Bye bye, I will die if I do not eat so I must be going.:" Reino stumbled off away from the chattering group. She Looked around hungry for something sweet perhaps Dango or at least a mango. She spotted a wooden bowl of fruit and sprinted off towards the food.

She spotted a familiar orange-red and green hue and dived full force for it. A pale hand grabbed it before she could catch her balance and she fell face forward onto the floor. She groaned at the poor victim and rubbed the dull ache in her head. She looked up, meeting a "worried" pair of blue eyes. She stood abruptly and brushed off her night colored pants with her black gloves. He pulled his lingering helping hand back at her movement but smiled despite the obvious disappointment that he was facing just then.

" I am very sorry If you want you can have this. We are heading back to our camp soon to eat anyhow." He assured her only to get a gruff nod. She held her hand out for the fruit to which he placed it gently in her hand and cast his own atop her black-clad one." I bid you farewell, Reino." Griffith Sighed out to her releasing her hand and waving. She spoke monotonously as she bid him back " A farewell to you too, Band of Hawks."

And so the rowdy bunch split and Casca and Guts bid everyone a warm good day. Julius left with a great parting as well, leaving Reino with a cozy hug she gave back generously. She also greeted a few of the Band of Hawks meeting Pippin and Corkus, Corkus told her they worked under a Kingdom as of now and urged her to visit them.

"I am deeply sorry, but as of now, it is best for me and my soldiers to rest. Do not fear we will visit you all soon" She bowed to Corkus as he sighed and bit his thumb playfully at her. Guts heard her and pulled her under his arm.

"So if you visit I will dance." Reino's face didn't even flinch at his proposal, he grimaced at this and sputtered to make a better proposal." I will dance and sing a song about how glorious you are she then laughed and smirked while jabbing at his side. He pulled away and she held out her pinky finger.

"You will dance and sing that song and all of my men and yours will watch." Guts tched at her but still linked his meaty finger with hers. Reino grinned. She sauntered away from him and back to her quarters.

Reino entered the violet room and hummed blissfully. A malicious feeling interrupted her and cut the air around her. She looked around frantically to find the source.' There is no chance I can die now. I must live against that sword and against its being' She thought bitterly t herself.' It always attacks when you are alone or mobbed, what a coward' She pushed up and wiped the grimace from her face, walking out of the sheer purple tent. In the corner of her eye, she saw it, sitting there waiting for her to react but she refused to even look in its direction.

Its green mask embellished with bells and painted to look as if it was a kappa morphed, into a red oni glowering at her back as she walked off. Its sunshine colored kimono flowed as it moved around the space. Its long black nails playing with the yellow flower and string wrapped around its neck flinching only slightly as it flushed and set its hand ablaze.

The smoke drifting a purple hue from is wooden pipe enveloped the figure as it laughed darkly at her naive behavior.

"Girl, I was not put here to hurt you. Silly girl" It groused at her shadow. Its mask then faded into the mauve vapor, replacing its last with a yellow kitsune hollow."You act just like Morkenth"

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I finished two before my due date and yeah I am happy with it, So happy that I don't even know how to feel thank you for reading and making this book a little more than irrelevant.

To be frank the first few chapters are all going to be a bit playful and uneventful excluding the "masked figure' that I am so fond of (I seriously love the changing masks thanks to Mononoke the series for the idea)

I did want to mention that some of the main chapters will be much longer and so I will tell you all when it is time for them in the A/N's at the end. The reason I am mentioning his is because the next chapter will be one of those and will have a much darker tone, thank you for understanding.

Word Count - 1465

v(●'皿｀)o ~ Soki