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If Tetsuya’s counting had been accurate, then he had been staying in the Sky Palace for about a year now. He had spent two months recuperating on Akashi’s manor–on that, he was sure. Akashi had said that the manor was located on the mortal world, but it was on a different plane of existence. Logically thinking, time should flow the same in there the way it did on the mortal world. But, here in the Sky Palace, it felt as if the days were longer, and Tetsuya had had a hard time keeping track of time.
Tetsuya’s stay on the manor felt undemanding enough, because Akashi’s servants attended to his every need without him asking to. It was as if they knew everything he required and wanted. Honestly, he felt useless at the time, but he didn’t bother voicing it out because his mind was still too caught up on that night–the night when he almost lost his life.
It didn’t take Tetsuya long to bury part of it in his memories, when he arrived in the Sky Palace. Though not completely, he tried to think of that night as some sort of blessing in disguise. After all, he wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for that night. He wouldn’t have met everyone. He wouldn’t have gotten the chance to see Kagami and Ogiwara again, who were apparently serving another god–one who went by the name Aomine–now.
Ogiwara recounted the night he and Kagami fell from the cliff to Tetsuya, but not after he gave the latter a bone-crushing hug. They had been saved by Aomine, and the god had granted them another chance at life.
Kagami said they grabbed the opportunity, because they both thought it would give them the ability to save Tetsuya, to help Tetsuya escape from the village.
Even when they were about to die, they were still thinking of him. And for that, Tetsuya would eternally be grateful.
Tetsuya sighed, his arms crossed over the baluster. The balcony in the room he was currently staying in overlooked the eastern gardens of the palace. For him, it was the most beautiful one out of the four. Probably, because it was the only one with a flame tree.
Tetsuya’s heart clenched at the memory. He wondered if what he saw before was just an apparition or if it were just an illusion caused by his tired mind.
Underneath the tree’s shadow, Akashi stood all godly and regal. He was wearing the same kimono from when he and Tetsuya first met–the top a blood red, and the bottom of black color with a dragon curling around it and camellias scattered across the unfilled spaces. He was smiling at him, and Tetsuya couldn’t help but smile back. His scarlet hair burned like flames as wind breathed through it.
Then, before Tetsuya knew it, he was running towards him, his bare feet brushing against the grass. The smell of afternoon dew invaded his nose as each gust of wind touched his face. Soon, he found himself standing in front of Akashi. He lifted his head, met Akashi’s gaze, and held them. His lashes fluttered softly as he watched himself reflected in Akashi’s eyes.
And the vision ended there.
Akashi had lent Tetsuya his color, his emotions, everything, and he had never asked anything of Tetsuya in return.
Tetsuya occasionally wondered if there weren’t anything likable about him, but he would brush off the thought the moment he realized he was thinking it because it was plentiful stupid. And now he was thinking about it again, and he felt like a massive idiot thinking that the god might find something special in him.
Tetsuya sighed. He walked back in his room, passing the vanity near the arched opening. He stilled, for a moment, and watched his reflection. The marks were still there, coiling around his body like ropes, creating an endless labyrinth of red on his skin. He had it all over his body–his chest, his back, his, arms, his legs. They had reached even up to his neck. It was fortunate enough that it didn’t entirely covered his face, or else, he’ would be horrified every time he looked at his reflection. It was like a sea of flames on his chin, its flickers dusting his cheeks.
He looked horrible and ugly, utterly hideous, and even with just that he knew nobody would like him. He was useless. He was a failure. Only someone not in their right mind would want a ticking bomb like him. He was cursed, and he would bring nothing but sadness and calamity to those people who attempted to be close to him.
How could anybody love him, when he didn’t even know how to love himself?
He let the thought linger for another minute, shook his head, continued walking out of his room, and headed to the palace library–his source of comfort amid all these.
Even here in the Sky Palace, Tetsuya was treated like a royalty, and he had no idea how to cope up with that. He had spent all his life treated like some sacred prisoner and taught what to do. Now that he had been given free will, and the freedom to go wherever he wanted, whenever he wanted (though only limited in the Sky Palace), he was like a child being taught how to take his first steps.
Tetsuya had a lot he wanted to do. He could make a list of what those were and he knew it would never end, but even doing that seemed to lose its purpose, because Akashi wasn’t always there. He wanted to know more about the god, but their interactions were limited to casual talks over dinner, one of the servants informing him of something Akashi said, and a few hours a week when Akashi returned from the mortal world. Most of the times, the latter was spent reading books together in the library.
Seriously, what in the skies was he thinking? That he could romance with Akashi, with some god?
Tetsuya stepped on the bottom of his robe and stumbled on his steps. Someone caught him by the arm, and gently pulled him back to steady himself. He hastily turned to thank whoever it was and also to apologize for his clumsiness. His eyes widened, when he saw who it was.
“Lord Akashi,” he whispered like a prayer. Realizing the adoring way he spoke, he hurriedly stepped back and lowered his head to hide the flush on his cheeks. Great, his face would now be tinged with the same color as the curse’s marks.
“Tetsuya,” Akashi said. And, oh, how much Tetsuya loved the way Akashi said his name. “Is something bothering you? You seem to be deep in thought, since it appeared you didn’t notice my presence when I’ve been right behind you all this time.”
Tetsuya bit his lip to stifle a groan. He steeled himself, and willed his expression to become blank as it usually was. He raised his head and answered. “I apologize, Lord Akashi. I was… thinking about the book I finished last night. The ending has been haunting me for hours. And, as usual, you’ve found me again, when nobody in the palace would, not without having a hard time doing so.”
Akashi’s expression turned smug. “Of course, Tetsuya. I would always find you.”
Tetsuya’s heart didn’t actually skip a bit. No, it didn’t, thank you very much.
“Also, how many times have I told you not to call me that. It makes me feel very old.”
“Aren’t you, though?”
“…”
“I-I mean, of course. I meant no disrespect, I just wanted to know–”
Akashi sighed, and Tetsuya could hear the awkwardness in the way he spoke. “You might think and believe I’m old, but our–gods age slower than humans do,” he said. Then, he began walking, placing himself not in front nor behind Tetsuya, but beside him.
Tetsuya liked it. Akashi was always treating him as an equal.
Tetsuya decided to push his luck. It was a brave step, he admitted. “How old are you then? That is… if you don’t mind me asking.”
“You were 15 when I first met you, correct?”
Tetsuya nodded.
Akashi hummed, as if counting. “Then, I’m probably older than you by a year in human years,” he finally answered.
“And in god years?”
“Oh, a few hundred years,” Akashi said with a shrug of nonchalance.
Tetsuya didn’t bother hiding his surprise. Great, now he wasn’t just crushing on a god, but on a god that was a few hundred years. Just great. How many was “a few?” But Akashi said he was only older by a year from Tetsuya in human years. He was 16 years old now, so that would make Akashi 17. “But you look so young and–” He cut off, before he could continue what he was about to say.
“And what?” Akashi was smirking as he looked at Tetsuya from the corner of his eyes.
And handsome? And perfect? And not a few hundred years old? Oh, heavens, no. Tetsuya didn’t just think of that.
But Akashi’s chuckle said otherwise.
Skies above, Tetsuya hoped a hole would appear on the floor and swallow him whole right this very instant. But Akashi was beside him, so he might also get caught in the hole, and that would only aggravate the situation. He wouldn’t survive if he were to get trapped in a hole with Akashi. Though, Akashi was a god, so he would probably have some means to escape?
Tetsuya almost didn’t notice when they had arrived, if Akashi hadn’t spoken.
“We’re here,” Akashi said. The large doors automatically opened, as if it were expecting them.
The view inside still left Tetsuya awestruck every single time.
The palace library wasn’t as large as the dining hall, but it was the most heavenly place Tetsuya had ever seen in his entire life. Shelves covered the entire walls and stretched up to the high ceilings. The ceiling was vaulted, intricately painted with war scenes, and large chandeliers dangled from them. Three arched windows overlooked the western gardens. There was a wooden staircase on the far end which would bring you to a mezzanine floor filled with more shelves of books. Those which one couldn’t reach would be brought down by the familiars resting on the balusters on the mezzanine. The ravens reminded Tetsuya of that little one he had met years ago.
“So, won’t you tell me about that book you read?” Akashi said.
“I believe it won’t interest you that much, Lord–”
Akashi quirked an eyebrow.
Tetsuya cleared his throat, then quietly said, “Akashi-kun.”
The corner of Akashi’s lips curved upward. “So, again, fiction, it is?”
Tetsuya nodded.
Akashi shrugged. “Well, good for you, then. I’m beginning to love these stories of yours.”
Again, Tetsuya’s heart most definitely did not skip a beat.
Akashi walked toward their usual spot–the one near the middle arched window. It had the greatest view of the western gardens, and it was the most welcoming of the natural lighting and ventilation outside. Not that they needed that, but it just made the time they spent together all the more comfortable… safe… intimate.
They spent the entire afternoon like that. Reading together. Akashi asking how Tetsuya’s week had been. If Kagami and Ogiwara and Kise–another god under Akashi, like Aomine–had been bothering Tetsuya again. About the books Tetsuya read this week.
There weren’t any empty conversations at all. Whenever they were together, they would always find a common ground, no matter how irrelevant the topic was: Tetsuya forgetting how to brush his hair in the morning; Akashi misplacing his gold raven ear cuff when in all actuality he forgot it on Tetsuya’s room when he visited him last week; the flower Akashi brought him the same week still nestled in the glass vase on his bedside table (Tetsuya most definitely did not spend hours watching it, thinking about what Akashi was doing before going to sleep), the protective charm Kuroko had given Akashi months back still safely kept around Akashi’s neck, though hidden beneath the thick folds of his clothing, etc.
Occasionally, Tetsuya’s gaze would wander on the way Akashi’s lashes moved, jaw clenched, lips opened in wonder, and Tetsuya would think: How could someone be so… perfect?
And whenever Tetsuya wasn’t looking, Akashi’s gaze would find itself landing on Tetsuya–the mess of sky blue left uncombed but Tetsuya didn’t seem to care; the way Tetsuya’s eyes would brighten when he found a good scene or passage in the book he was reading; the way Tetsuya’s lips would unconsciously move as if he was reciting the words out loud. Then, it would travel to Tetsuya’s neck, the marks wrapped around his skin, but not really marring it. In fact, it only made him appear untouchable.
Akashi knew of Tetsuya’s insecurities, how Tetsuya felt about the curse despite acting as if everything were fine when he himself was breaking down deep, deep, inside. But it didn’t make Tetsuya any less beautiful. He was perfect in every way–kind, charming, strong-willed, but still maintaining his delicateness.
Akashi was afraid of touching him, afraid that he might break once he did, afraid that he might not want him, especially with Akashi being… well, Akashi. Akashi wasn’t just his own, and he wondered what Tetsuya would think once he knew that, once he actually learned that other side of him. Akashi returned to the book he was reading. Tetsuya didn’t need to know.
Tetsuya’s body hurt everywhere. He was back on that night. He was splayed on the bed on his back, writhing, wheezing at every breath his lungs barely allowed to let in. His fingers were tightly clenched on the mattress, the soft mattress which now felt like hot iron coals burning his skin, his bones, right through his core. He was being set ablaze.
Tetsuya could feel the curse pulsing through him, poisoning every vein, numbing his nerves with blinding pain, devouring him from the inside. It was strangling the air out of him, despite him willing his labored gulps of air to become normal.
Akashi said not to let the curse control him. It was a weakness he could turn into his greatest strength. And his mind was set to do just that before, but it was too much. Too much.
The thoughts of pain, of being burned alive as he was lowered in a fire fit, his wrists shackled with metal cuffs, were clouding his mind, blurring his vision. Tears prickled his eyes, even that out of his control.
He should’ve already gotten used to the feeling of the dagger being buried into his chest, but his attacker tonight was different from the one from all those nights the curse took hold of him.
Tonight, his attacker had manifested into Akashi’s form, and that mortified him, turned his entire body cold. His mind knew it wasn’t true, even now that he was losing, but what if, what if Akashi really did get tired of him and threw him away?
And the fact that the god was now the most important person–or god?–in Tetsuya’s life terrified him, because now Akashi would appear in his every nightmare. He felt like he was sullying Akashi’s divine existence, his own memories of him. The curse was, but Tetsuya was the curse now, and there was nothing that could stop it.
Except, except if Tetsuya let Akashi try to remove it. He wouldn’t have before, because it served as a reminder that he was here, that he had survived, still alive. But now that Akashi had come into the picture, now that the curse had taken Akashi’s form, Tetsuya wanted nothing but to end it.
Even the moon hanging majestically from the evening skies was lost to Tetsuya. It was slowly turning blood red, but it was a distorted picture in his eyes. He helplessly gasped on the bed, screaming at each lash of pain.
The marks began to shift, but within the haze, Tetsuya had failed to notice. His kimono had bundled up to his thighs, revealing the labyrinthine marks of blood red creeping, extending, down his left ankle, taking hold of him.
All Tetsuya could hear were the chants–the ancient language filling his head–like a never-ending melody of torment invading his brain. His throat hurt, all dried up because of his screams, and he was falling, falling. He reached for something to clutch into, but there was nothing but air left for him to grasp.
The door banged open and Akashi came striding towards him, all graceful, despite the frown decorating his handsome face. He hurried over to Tetsuya’s side, frown deepening as he assessed the bluenette’s situation, as he saw the mark reaching halfway through his left foot. He muttered a silent curse, before unceremoniously climbing the bed and straddling Tetsuya from behind.
His eyes were a mismatched color–blood red as the moon on that night’s lunar eclipse, an occasion the gods were very fond of, and yellow as the sun come morning light. He placed a hand on Tetsuya’s eyes, closed his own, and chanted.
It was a soft, gentle tune in Tetsuya’s ears. He was being pulled away from the fire. Away, away, away.
Tetsuya’s screams broke through Akashi’s concentration a few times, but soon they died down into silent gasps, whimpers, until the pain completely disappeared and all Tetsuya could feel was exhaustion.
Akashi heaved a sigh of relief, then settled down on one side of Tetsuya’s bed. He carefully rolled Tetsuya over, then threw commands for someone to fetch him a clean towel and a basin filled with fresh water as he reached for the blanket and covered Tetsuya’s body with it.
“Akashi… kun…” Tetsuya mumbled, still lost in the fog of the curse’s aftereffects.
Akashi sent him a look over once. He swept the locks of sky blue matted with sweat on Tetsuya’s forehead, then tucked them behind his ears. “I’m sorry, I’m late,” he said.
Tetsuya’s body relaxed at the gentle touch and the kind voice. He weakly shook his head, his breathing becoming normal each second that passed by. “Sorry… I’m… a burden…” He would’ve cried if he could, but his tears had already dried up from the torture he had just gone through.
“You aren’t.” Akashi’s voice was steely, reprimanding, and Tetsuya loved it. “You never will be. Not to me. Nor to… him.”
Tetsuya noticed that Akashi’s eyes had become red again. Him, Akashi said. He knew who he was. He smiled, finally closing his tired eyes. He placed his hand on Akashi’s, comforting the god as if it had been him who was hurting, dying, but a few minutes ago.
Akashi frowned, probably having read Tetsuya’s thoughts.
You are not dying, Tetsuya thought he had heard him say.
“We should just remove it. Why do you have to be so stubborn?” Akashi asked, his voice shaking at the end.
But, Kuroko was already asleep, still holding his hand. His face looked serene, calm. Nobody would’ve thought he had just gone through that torment if it weren’t for the sweat across his forehead, his cheeks, on his neck, and the tired rise and fall of his chest.
“We don’t want to lose you.” Akashi looked up to the sky. The moon had finally completed its phase. It glowed red, its reflection shifting within Akashi’s left eye. “Please, don’t take him away.”
A voice spoke in his mind. Why don’t you just take a part of it from him? Make sure it won’t hurt him as much as it currently does. Share the pain.
“He won’t agree. You know him,” he said.
He could feel his other self shrug. We could do it without him knowing.
“No, I don’t want to lose his trust. And I believe, neither do you.”
The voice kept quiet, then relented. “So, what do you suggest we do?”
“Believe in him. Wait for him.”
Those are just empty pretty little words. That won’t do you… us any good, Seijuurou.
“I know, but it’s all we can do for now. We can convince him, but I’m not sure if it’ll work out.”
But we could try.
“Of course.”
Akashi was a god and gods were supposed to grant wishes, but this time, he was the one praying for a miracle to come.
As it turned out, the thought had already crossed Tetsuya’s mind.
“My life is in your hand, you can order me all you want and I will obey, Akashi-kun. I will obey,” Tetsuya said.
They were back in the library, reading for who knew how many times since Tetsuya first entered those two massive doors. Unlike before, there was now familiarity, something warm, in the atmosphere.
Akashi didn’t miss a beat, when he said, “Then, I want you agree with the removal of the curse.”
Tetsuya couldn’t help the gasp that escaped his lips. He closed the book he had been reading–or was attempting to read but couldn’t, not with Akashi right in front of him. “But… why? What would you get in return?” He asked.
You. I want you whole. Alive. In my arms. Akashi wanted to say. “It’s hurting you, and we don’t want to see you hurt.”
Tetsuya didn’t bat an eye at the pronoun Akashi used. He knew. He knew since a very long time ago of the other existence inside Akashi. “Why?” He asked again, fists clenching and unclenching on his lap.
“Because we care about you, Tetsuya. You might find it to be disconcerting, but we do.”
Tetsuya believed everything Akashi said. It was himself he was afraid of. He shook his head. “You can’t. I-I’m broken, Akashi-kun. I’m not the one for someone like… you.” His voice was a dreamy wisp as he said that last word. “I’m cursed, ugly.” A derisive laugh escaped his lips as he traced the marks on his arms with his eyes. “I’m just waiting for all this to end already.”
He could feel the seething emotion reverberate from Akashi. “No, you aren’t,” he said with finality, and again Tetsuya couldn’t help but believe in those words. “You aren’t. Far from it. No matter how many times you fell, you stand back up… and I think… we think that’s beautiful. Those marks… you’ve learned to accept them, and we think that’s beautiful. And no matter how you look, Tetsuya, you’re you and that’s all that matters. You’re beautiful. You might be marred with scars for all living beings care, with this curse, but that won’t change the fact that you’re the most beautiful person we’ve ever laid our eyes upon. It’s what you have within that makes you shine brighter than the others. So, stop selling yourself short. You’re not broken, you’re not ugly, you’re not any of the things you’re thinking. And I… we…” Akashi paused, blinking, almost looking shocked about what he was just about to say.
Tetsuya’s heart was full, so full. And he could feel the emotions welling up inside of him. He couldn’t help it. He didn’t want to keep it hidden in the dark. Not when Akashi was being kind to him, not when he was treating him as if he were something valuable, something akin to a priceless treasure. And so, he let go. “I’m so sorry… but I love you.” He said, almost like a whisper, a hopeful prayer.
Akashi blinked once, first at nothing, then to Tetsuya. “We… What? What did you just say?”
Tetsuya curled his fists, leaving crescents on his palms. “I know I couldn’t–shouldn’t, but I can’t help it when you treat me so kindly, when you help me piece myself back together every time I break, every time I shatter. Not when you give me a reason to want to live, to want…” He weakly gestured his hands to himself. “…this, despite everything.” He didn’t remember when he started crying, but the tears in his eyes felt like comfort. “You’re a god and I’m just… I’m just a lowly mortal. And I know I’m useless to you, but… I just wanted you to know.”
Akashi was just staring at him, unblinkingly.
Tetsuya bit his lip, bowing his head so low. “I’m so sorry.” He closed his eyes and hoped for that hole on the floor to appear again. This time, Akashi wouldn’t be caught up in it, since he was sitting in front of him.
“No,” Akashi’s voice quivered. He reached for Tetsuya’s cheek, brushing the wet tracks the tears left with his thumbs. “Look at me,” he said.
And look Tetsuya did, because he couldn’t fight Akashi. Not Akashi. It wasn’t a command, but Akashi was something he would always be willing to obey.
Akashi cupped Tetsuya’s cheeks. He had a smile on his face, so gentle, bordering in disbelief, almost as if he himself were about to cry.
Tetsuya’s heart clenched, unclenched... then it soared.
“Listen, you really have exceeded our expectations, Tetsuya,” Akashi said, then he stood up, leaned forward, tilting Tetsuya’s face just a little bit upwards, then he kissed him. It was their first, but it felt as if it were their last.
Tetsuya didn’t mind if he would combust into flames after this, so long as this would last for another second, another minute, another hour, or day even. He didn’t mind, because right now Akashi was kissing him and it was all, everything that mattered.
Akashi pulled back, just enough space for him to watch Tetsuya’s face. He traced Tetsuya’s lower lip with his thumb, and it made Tetsuya shiver. “I love you, too. We… We love you, too, Tetsuya.” He blinked as if only realizing the feeling right now, as if it were an emotion so foreign he didn’t think it possible for him to have, as if he couldn’t believe he only realized it just now. “How couldn’t we?” He added.
“But this is…” Tetsuya began. He had known the consequences of removing his curse from a long time ago.
Only a god can.
Tetsuya had lost all hope before. How could a god even bother herself or himself over a lowly mortal like him?
And they would lose their essence, their godliness, in exchange.
How could Akashi even do that? Exchange something great for a disgrace. Tetsuya must be dreaming. No, this must be a nightmare–a sweet, sweet nightmare. And he could live in it forever. Despite forever being a brittle word.
“We’re willing to take the risks, everything, for you,” Akashi said.
Tetsuya almost chuckled. There Akashi went again, reading his thoughts. “But why?” He didn’t know when it happened, but somehow, Akashi’s holding his hands now. And it was a great feeling. He thought he could live a hundred years with just it.
“Because we love you. And love doesn’t need any reasons, Tetsuya. Even if you were a god.” Akashi said, then he kissed him again.
The ceremony happened just a few days after that.
The room was dark. Only the dim shine of the moon from the opening on the ceiling lit up the expanse.
They both stood facing each other in the middle of the room.
Tetsuya’s heart pounded inside his chest. He wondered if Akashi could hear it. It was possible with the surrounding dead quiet he himself could only hear ringing in his ears.
Akashi took Tetsuya’s hands and held them in front of them. “This is it, Tetsuya.”
Tetsuya wanted to cry, but he wouldn’t. This wasn’t it, he wanted to argue, but the words instantly died in his mouth. “I…” he began, but Akashi cut him off.
“No,” Akashi said. He drew circles on the back of Tetsuya’s hands.
Tetsuya wanted to relinquish himself to the moment.
“We would only be parted for the meantime. It isn’t really that different from the usual, is it?”
Tetsuya groaned. Akashi really had no sense of humor. He tightly closed his fingers around Akashi’s. “This isn’t the end.”
“It isn’t,” Akashi agreed, a smile on his face. His left iris changed at every blink.
Red, gold, red, gold.
Tetsuya laughed. “I can’t believe Midorima-kun even agreed to this.”
Akashi shrugged. “He also has become quite fond of you, even if he doesn’t show it. Also, he has someone waiting for him, too, I believe.”
“And the others?”
“They were fine with it, because they also don’t want to see you in pain by shouldering all… these. They would trade places with you, if they could, just like how I would if I also could.”
Tetsuya bit back the coming tears. “Murasakibara-kun?” He stalled.
“Already can’t wait to taste all the pastries humans make.”
“Aomine-kun and Kise-kun?”
“As long as they would be together, they didn’t have any problem.”
“Kagami-kun? Ogiwara-kun?”
“I believe, you already know the answer to that.”
Tetsuya couldn’t wait to meet them all again.
All of them would be different but the same, the same but different.
The carved letters on the walls began to glow as the moon slowly reached its peak. It shone bright right above them.
Tetsuya closed his eyes. He felt his surrounding tremble, crack, tear apart, then quietly dissolve into pieces. “I will find you. I promise, I will find you,” he cried.
Akashi wouldn’t remember anything about his past life, about his life as a god. Tetsuya would be the only one who would remember Akashi ever existed. He let his memories of them linger. The night of their first meeting, when he first arrived at the Sky Palace, meeting the others, the times he and Akashi spent in the library together, every single time Akashi took away the pain of his curse, the afternoon he decided to cross the line between a mortal and heavenly being and confessed his feelings, their first kiss, their second, their third…
“Not if I find you first,” Akashi said, and he pressed his lips against Tetsuya’s.
Tetsuya stopped holding back the sob, the tears. He didn’t open his eyes, but he could feel Akashi’s form dissolve in front of him, until he wasn’t holding his hands anymore, until he couldn’t feel the press of his lips on his anymore, until he was holding onto nothing but air.
He knew the moment the ceremony had succeeded, but it felt as if he had failed, as if he had lost everything once again.
When he opened his eyes, he was lying on a bed which felt unfamiliar but all the same familiar to him. He slowly sat up, trying to focus his disarrayed thoughts. He went to the bathroom and washed his face. After wiping his face dry, he looked at the mirror. He held out his hand, touching his reflection. The marks were gone now, just like they should be after the cleansing ritual.
The mortal world had become different, undistinguishable from what he could remember. Tall buildings stood everywhere, too many complicated creations around him, new inventions littered the streets, and even the way people dressed had changed. It took Tetsuya a great deal to cope up with these changes.
He was found by a lost couple in the forest. He knew the forest well, despite the transformation it had also gone through. He was in Seirin. He didn’t know if people still referred to the place like that. He had bruises across his skin, on where the marks of the curse once were.
The couple was suspicious of him at first, but he made up a story that he had been an orphan taken by strangers because they thought nobody would bother looking for someone like him. When he saw the chance to escape, he immediately took it, which explained his tattered robes, and bruised feet. He said he had been staying in a cabin which he had found for a few weeks now, surviving with what little he could have. The cabin he remembered Ogiwara telling him of. He knew it wasn’t there anymore with the long time that had passed. He was thankful the couple didn’t question him any further about it. He knew how to get out of the forest, but didn’t have anywhere else to go.
In the end, the couple brought him with them home. They were kind, generous, and they treated him with love as if he were their own son.
Humans were weird but fascinating creatures, he could hear Akashi say.
Tetsuya had turned 17 a few days ago, meaning Akashi should be 18 now in mortal years.
“Tetsuya, honey, your friends are here!” He heard his mother call out.
It had been about seven months now, when they finally decided to officially adopt him. It had been an exhausting process, with Tetsuya not having any record at all, but, in the end, it worked out.
Tetsuya hurried on to prepare himself for school. He was glad he had been educated in the village, or it would be hard for him to act like a normal teenager in this… period. There might be some flaws, but people thought it was just his… character.
Humans, Tetsuya heard Akashi say inside his head again. He could almost see him shaking his head.
Honestly, he couldn’t believe how he didn’t seem to have changed at all. He still looked the same. Except he was two years older now from when he and Akashi first met.
Time in the mortal world moved fast than in the Sky Palace. What seemed to be a year there, seemed to have been a century or so here.
He went down for breakfast, and immediately noticed the two persons dressed in the same uniform he was in already sitting comfortably in the dining room. Taiga and Shigehiro were already helping themselves with their own servings.
“I would never get tired eating the food you make, Auntie,” Taiga said, muching on a toast.
“Oh, you flatter me, my dear,” Tetsuya’s adoptive mother said.
Tetsuya could hear the clatter of dishes coming from the kitchen. She must be in there washing them.
“Don’t believe the words this guy says, Auntie. He’s just doing it for free food,” Shigehiro said, frowning at Taiga.
“So, you’re saying Auntie’s food isn’t great at all?” Taiga shot back.
Shigehiro blushed. “That’s not what I meant!”
Tetsuya smiled at the scene. There were his two best friends, finding him yet again in this new lifetime. “I would greatly appreciate it if you don’t add more to our food bills,” he flatly said, then took the seat across from them.
Taiga shrugged. “Not really much. Not when you eat like a squirrel.”
“No offense, but I agree with him,” Shigehiro said, raising his hands in front of him in a placating manner.
Tetsuya couldn’t help the smile on his face as he heard the sound of his mother laughing from the kitchen.
“Oh, yeah, before I forget,” Taiga began, then swallowed the piece of buttered toast he had been chewing. “Heard he finally asked you out.”
Tetsuya coughed, then glared at Shigehiro. The tattletale.
“Tetsuya, dear, are you hiding something from me?” His mother asked, her voice carrying from the kitchen.
Tetsuya was about to retort, when the doorbell rang. Literally saved by the bell.
Shigehiro glanced sideways, not looking guilty at all, then quietly whistled. “Speak of the devil.”
Tetsuya sent Shige another glare, before standing up and hurrying to the front door. He opened it, and for the millionth time, each and every time he had seen him, he still took his breath away.
He’s not the devil, he was a god.
“Good morning, Seijuurou-kun,” Tetsuya greeted.
And he found me just like he had promised he would.