•Tomoe x Reader: Book 2•

8. Two hours

The pit looked to be reminiscent of some type of sinkhole which had collapsed long ago, so long that vegetation had grown on the shelves of the dirt and rain— did it even rain in the underworld?— had worn the edges dangerously smooth.

However, as if intentionally, there was a thick green vine lush with blossoms and leaves which reached seemingly all the way down into the dark abyss. However, if you really squinted, it seemed like there was some light down there somewhere.

"That's... not right."
Tomoe lifted his head. "Wow, the human woman has a brain. Obviously that vine is not natural. This entire forest is brown with decay, and yet it clings so firmly to life that it can even start to reproduce."

You arched a brow. "Odd choice of words. You're thinking about the reproductive capability of a plant? They're just flowers."

He rolled his eyes, and gently bumped his fist to your forehead. "Not like that, human."

He began to size up the vine, how firm it was, and what was down there. His eyes were much better than yours, him being a yokai and all, and he seemed... confused. "There's a wooden table at the bottom, with something placed on it as decoration. Any doubts we had that this was made by something sentient are no longer valid."

He ran his hand through his hair, and then pulled the hand away in order to gather blue fire in his palm and drop it carefully down the pit.

"Are you sure your Katabasis leads down there?"

"Ye-... aAH!" You screeched a bit. He'd suddenly moved his arm around your waist, and you were dropping, it felt like your stomach had risen to where your heart was supposed to be.

It was a frightening, weightless experience, and the fact that Tomoe was literally the only thing between you and death had you wrapping all of your limbs around him.

It was many moments after he had landed before you were able to move again.

When you did, it was to swat him on the head. He caught your hand in midair, however, his warm palm pressed to your wrist.

"Careful."

You got off of him, flustered. Tomoe had lit his flames to cast a ghoulish blue glow across the bottom of the pit. It was rounded and had no exit-... no tunnels, nothing. Just smooth granite and a lonely table with a corked bottle atop it.

"This is kind of like some Alice in Wonderland type-..." you paled. "Oh, nice."

There was a piece of paper pasted onto the table with wax. You read it aloud.

"Half demon, He
Speaks only lies and mischief.
Drink from the heavens
And Secure
that which is legend."

You almost laughed. "That's cryptic and frankly sounds like a four year old poet tried to write something. I don't think you speak only lies."

Tomoe's brows had drawn.

"I don't think that being poisoned in a shady cave is-..."

A rumble began in the ground, the dust from the walls beginning to shake from where it had settled, and in moment's Tomoe's body was pressed over you, his chest inches above yours and his face just as close.

"Brace yourself." He was out of breath.

The world was loud, full of crashing of rocks and grating of stone, but you didn't feel any impact hit Tomoe. Your hand had drifted up to the side of his chest, holding there to make sure his body didn't tremor from the energy of a rock hitting it. Not that you you change of it did, but your worry had made you think irrationally.

There was silence, a silence so complete that you could hear each other's ragged breath.

You were growing increasingly aware of the contact point where his hip had touched yours.
"Are you... ahem... okay?" You asked, knowing he was.

He pulled back, and brushed dust and debris off of himself.

"Neither of us are."

The reason the silence was so complete was that the sky and sound of rustling trees above had been entirely blocked out. The only crack of light streaming down fell on the ominous bottle of blue liquid on the table.

Tomoe gave a bitter laugh. "The ending to that poem... is this the 'or else'?"

You swallowed thickly, not wanting anything to do with whatever that... stuff was.

"Maybe... we can dig out that tiny little hole."

He looked back, struggling with his hundreds of years of knowing that solid granite did not just... dig.

"Maybe."

He tried, but to no avail. An hour of hacking and chipping yielded not much more than a few scratches.

He tried fire next. It would have worked... if it were only him down here. However, the temperatures to melt stone were high enough so that they made the entire small room-sized pocket of air you both were in into a lethal environment for a human.

He looked back to the bottle again. Air would run out. Whatever supernatural forces were doing this didn't seem like they were playing around-... god.

You didn't even see him do it until he was downing the last drop.