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Ei never understood why she wasn’t allowed to visit when Yae was transformed.
If Yae was the electro Archon’s familiar, she deserved to see her own familiar’s animal form.
As far as she heard, when Makoto was still the Archon, she was even allowed to hold Yae in her arms. Yet, strangely, when she asked Makoto herself about it, her twin would cover her lips with her fan and hurriedly excuse herself.
And as Ei entered her deep meditation, she would still ponder the mystery surrounding Yae’s fox form.
Even now, after they had reconciled after the Traveller and Yae pulled her out from her plane of Euthymia, every time she tried to bring it up, the kitsune was still quick to dismiss or distract her from discussing it further. As such, for over 500 years, her confusion remained unanswered.
.
.
Lately, their relationship had picked up its former intimacy, with lingering touches (on her part) and playful flirting (from Yae), giving the Archon hope that Yae would be willing to finally allow her to witness her fox form and relieve her growing frustration over the matter.
Her hopes were ultimately crushed when she was turned away from the kitsune’s room by another shrine maiden, who despite looking rather afraid of her furrowed brows and scowl, remained firm about keeping her out of Yae’s personal room.
Ei was close to resorting to force when she realised that Yae would be displeased with her if she did harm someone just to barge into her room. Thus, the electro Archon decided to leave the Grand Narukami shrine and confront her familiar another day.
.
.
Their relationship had progressed further into warm embraces and stolen kisses (from both, in privacy) and rather than being frustrated, Ei was now concerned that she had given Miko the impression that she wasn’t accepting of her fox half. She resolved that she had to try and catch her off-guard, using the kitsune’s own signature slyness against her seemed to be her best chance at this point.
As such, when Yae mentioned that she wouldn’t be able to see her for a few days at the shrine, she replied by reassuring her that she would be too busy tending to some matters as the Shogun to visit.
When the day came, Ei deliberately arrived at the shrine early in the morning, confident that she would surprise her fox familiar. And surprise her she did.
Yae’s eyes widened and despite her earrings holding her ears down, they visibly twitched in alarm upon seeing her.
“Ei!” she exclaimed, “What-”, she took a breath, “What are you doing here?”
She tried her best to give an innocent smile, secretly very pleased that she had indeed caught Miko off-guard.
“My schedule cleared up unexpectedly, so I decided to come see you.”
Yae appeared to still be quite taken aback, nodding hurriedly.
“Ah- I see, that’s uhm,” she cleared her throat, “that’s great to hear!” she smiled, although the twitch in the corner of her lips gave away her nervousness. “You deserve to have a good rest every now and then.”
Ei nodded in agreement, “Yes, and what better way to spend a free day than with you?” she boldly added.
A light pink hue coloured Yae’s face, appreciative of how forward the Archon was with her words.
“That’s,” she reached out and grasped Ei’s hand in her own, “that’s really sweet of you to say.”
And as though cold water was suddenly poured over the shrine maiden, Yae dropped her hand and took a step back.
“But you have to leave, I’m incredibly busy today and I won’t be able to see you much.”
Ei frowned, “I came all the way here and you’re telling me to leave?”
“Yes, I uhm, it’s just not a good day.” Yae nodded.
Ei’s frown deepened and before she could respond, Yae grabbed her hand again, giving it a squeeze, wanting to placate her partner.
“I’m really sorry,” she drew the Archon into a brief hug, “I wish I could spend the day with you too.”
Ei returned the hug, breathing in the pleasant sakura scent of her hair and clothing.
She sighed, “I don’t see why I couldn’t turn away some visitors for you.” she pulled back to give Yae a look, “Unless… Are you hiding something from me?”
“What?” the kitsune broke the embrace, frowning. “That’s nonsense, Ei.”
The Archon decided to cut to the chase, “If you’re not hiding something, why are you so determined to chase me away from my own shrine?”
Yae opened her mouth to retort but Ei continued, not interested in hearing the shrine maiden’s answer before she got all her questions out.
“It’s because you’re going to be transformed during these few days right?” Yae’s eyes widened once again. “Why can’t I see you in that form?”
Yae cleared her throat, cutting in.
“Ei, maybe we should talk about this another day-”
“No.” she raised her voice, a frown once against marring her features. “You’ve always dodged this question and I can’t stand it any more.”
“Ei-”
“Miko,” she continued, undeterred by Yae’s uncharacteristic nervousness, “I’m getting both worried and frustrated that you keep avoiding this.”
“Oh, I know, hold on-”
The Archon suddenly took a step back herself, face shifting from one of displeasure to unease.
“Is-” she glanced downwards before meeting Yae’s eyes again, “Is it because I did something?”
Ei’s own distress began to grow, “Do you not trust me enough? I know I was gone for some time but I thought we’ve been able to move past it.” she paused, becoming more distressed.
Yae hurriedly shook her head, “You’re getting the wrong idea, I do trust you!”
“My fox form, it’s,” she took a deep breath, “it has nothing to do with your meditation.” She pulled Ei in for another brief hug before stepping back and continuing.
“It’s best you just leave for now, I promise.” she nudged Ei towards the entrance of the shrine, “I’ll see you in a few days!”
Ei, exasperated and alarmed at the thought of dropping the topic once again, firmly held her ground and grabbed Yae by her shoulders.
“Miko.” she took a deep breath as well, “No matter what, I accept all of you.”
“Ei-”
“It does not matter to me how different you might be. You’re still you to me.”
“That is quite sweet but-”
Her grip tightened, “Miko. Please.”
“You matter so much to me, I can’t stand the thought of this plaguing you and me any longer.”
“It’s not that bad, archons-”
“Please don’t push me away! Please, Miko. I can’t bear-”
“Enough!”
Ei bit back the remaining words on her tongue as Yae sighed, rubbing the side of her own head, she gently pried Ei’s hands off her shoulders and looked her in the eyes.
“I think I have to apologise, for keeping this from you for so long.”
“Miko-“
A finger pressed against her lips quickly as Yae hushed her.
“Will you let me finish?” Ei nodded. “Good girl.” Ei’’s cheeks seemed to flush slightly.
Yae smiled in response before she continued, “It wasn’t because I didn’t trust you or because you didn’t seem accepting. It’s-“ she paused, struggling to get the words out, “How do I put this?” She grumbled, feeling warmth rush into her face as well.
Ei waited patiently despite being confused by the kitsune’s sudden loss for words.
“I didn’t want you to see my fox form at the start because,” she chuckled, “well, I had quite the crush on you. And-“ she let out an actual laugh, “I guess I wanted to impress you and the more I liked you, the more I knew I couldn’t have you see me while transformed.”
Ei gently pulled Yae’s finger away from her lips, voicing her thoughts, “That’s… quite flattering.” She smiled, feeling warm at the confession.
Her brows furrowed, “However, I still don’t see any link.”
Yae sighed, covering her face in her hands as she mumbled a reply.
“What? Why have you suddenly gone soft?”
“… ‘m stupid.”
Ei frowned, not catching her words and craned her neck closer, “Repeat yourself please, Miko.”
Yae sighed deeply before uncovering her face and answering.
“I… I’m really dumb when I’m a fox.”
They were both quiet for a bit, processing what was revealed.
After a minute, Ei blinked, seeking clarification, “You’re stupid when you’re in your fox form?” She asked bluntly.
Yae nodded, slightly embarrassed. “Yes. I didn’t want you to see me doing something foolish since I was trying to get you to like me back.”
Ei nodded slowly.
Unbeknownst to Yae, she had long harboured a fondness for the kitsune before this issue arose. However, that was a revelation for another time.
“I see.” she hummed, touching her chin in thought, “Could I have an example of you being… not so bright?”
“I screamed at my reflection in the water for two hours before.”
Another beat of silence passed.
Ei cleared her throat, swallowing down what sounded like a laugh, “Ah, I understand how you could see that as being unappealing to me.”
The corners of her mouth however, were turned slightly upwards in amusement despite her best attempt at remaining unaffected.
Yae groaned, ears flattening against her head. “See? I had good reasons! How could you see me as a potential partner if your first few impressions of me were my fox self running into walls?”
Ei chuckled, “It would be amusing though.”
Yae shook her head, “No, it’s embarrassing.”
The electro Archon let a grin spread on her face, stepping closer to her partner, “You know this means I have to see you in your fox form now, right?”
Yae took a step back, shaking her head.
“No, this is the part where I insist you leave now that you know.”
Ei pretended to act worried, a grin still plastered on her face the whole time, “I couldn’t let my dear Miko run around aimlessly as a fox without proper care from a trusted individual, correct?”
The pink-haired shrine maiden let out a sound akin to a growl, “Yes, you could.”
“But I won’t.”
“You should leave.”
“But I won’t.”
“Ei.”
“Miko.”
Ei’s eyes twinkled with mirth, “I have to admit, I quite enjoy the reversal of our roles right now.”
“I can affirm that I don’t.” Yae huffed, “Please, you understand my reasons for hiding this from you, you should leave!”
“Now that is nonsense.” Ei shook her head, “I want nothing more than to see-“ she paused, retracting the rest of her statement, “I mean, to take care of you.”
They both remained staring at each other, neither refusing to budge in their position.
“You’re not leaving, are you?”
“No.”
Yae sighed, relenting.
“Very well then.” she turned, walking further into the shrine. She inclined her head to glance at Ei, “Come now, we’ll go to my chambers.”
The electro Archon followed her eagerly, surprisingly feeling a taste of victory despite having long been off the battlefield.
.
.
A great victory indeed, to be able to witness Yae Miko scurrying around her chambers as a rather small, pink and fluffy fox.
Upon reaching her personal quarters, the shrine maiden had simply huffed and mumbled, “You asked for this.” before promptly shifting into her fox form in a puff of smoke.
The fox stared up at her and Ei stared down back. Internally however, she cooed at how adorable Miko was, itching to scoop her up into her arms and scratch her behind those big ears.
Ei leaned down, moving her face and body closer to Yae. Her arms reached out, hands within inches of touching the smooth, pink fur.
Yae proceeded to scream directly in her face.
She flinched and immediately drew back, hoping that would calm her but to no avail, if anything, the fox seemed to yelp and shout even louder.
The door to Yae’s room opened, and the same shrine maiden from before who turned her away entered in a rush.
“Lady Yae!” she exclaimed, and upon realising who else was in the room with her, swiftly bowed. “Your Excellency! I did not realise you were also present, please excuse my behaviour.”
Ei, still startled by what had just happened, dismissed her concerns with a wave of her hand.
“It is… alright. Go ahead.”
The shrine maiden nodded before placing down a few items on the floor; a bowl, a plate and a rolled up mat.
“Lady Yae has graciously allowed me to provide necessities for her while she is in this form.” she began to unroll the mat, spreading it smoothly. “She had not mentioned to me that you were visiting, we are truly blessed today with your presence.” She smiled before resuming to set the bowl and plate onto the mat.
Ei shifted, feeling a bit uncomfortable with direct praise coming from someone besides the now silent fox.
“Thank you, uhm…”
“My name is Maki, your Excellency.” the shrine maiden stood up, “If you need anything at all, please do not hesitate to let me know.”
Ei nodded, “Thank you, Maki. Could you explain what you have brought?”
“Oh! This bowl is for water and the plate is for food and such for Lady Yae.” Upon explaining, she pulled out a bottle of water and began to pour it into the bowl and set some berries onto the plate. Ei had to hold back a laugh at witnessing the shrine maiden prepare such pet-like items for Yae.
She cleared her throat, swallowing down a chuckle, “Maki, could you leave Mi-the Lady Yae and myself? I will call for you should the need arise.”
“Of course, your Excellency. Please excuse me.” she bowed once more before swiftly exiting the room.
The corner of Ei’s lips twitched upwards in amusement, focusing once again on the pink fox sitting on the floor.
“So, this is what happens when you transform?” she chuckled, “More like a puppy than a fox, really.”
She watched as Yae moved closer to the bowl and expected the fox to take a few licks of water.
Only for her to sink her whole face into the bowl, causing water to spill over and soak the mat below.
“Miko!” Ei gasped, amusement shifting into one of surprise and slight horror.
The Archon quickly grabbed a towel from one of the closets and began to pat the excess water spilling out from the bowl. The fox finally lifted her head, looking pleased with herself despite water dripping from her fur. Her tail swished as she moved closer to Ei and before the latter could react, pressed her wet snout against the Archon’s dry robes.
“Miko…” she sighed, standing upright with a fox face-shaped damp spot on her clothes.
Yae only responded by yipping happily, tail still swishing.
“This is going to be a long afternoon.”
.
.
After a few active hours spent with a rather troublesome (albeit cute) small fox, Ei sat in a chair in Yae’s room, back slumping slightly in exhaustion. The owner of the room herself finally rested peacefully, curled up in Ei’s lap.
Ei closed her eyes, hoping to catch her breath after watching the playful fox all afternoon.
A brief minute passed before Yae began to shift slightly and in another puff of smoke, returned to her human form, arms wrapped behind Ei’s neck as she sat in her lap.
She yawned, stretching her arms over her head.
“Good evening, Ei.”
“... Good evening, Miko.”
“So, how was it?” Yae grinned. “Everything you hoped for?”
Before the Archon could answer, however, the kitsune suddenly erupted into a fit of coughs. Ei gently patted her on her back, trying her best to ease her through it.
“Oh archons, what happened to me?”
Ei frowned, “What do you mean ‘what happened’? Do you not recall what you did?”
“As a matter of fact, I only remember snippets of my time when transformed.” She hummed, “Rather troublesome, I know. Care to enlighten me as to what I did to cause a fit of coughing?”
“We were looking into the pond when you shrieked at your reflection and dove in to, I assume, fight it?” she shook her head, exasperated yet somewhat amused, “But you seemed to have forgotten how to swim and didn’t surface for quite some time until I realised you might have been drowning.”
“You let me almost-drown?” Yae exclaimed, aghast.
“Ridiculous, Miko, I just thought you were taking your time!” she huffed, “How was I to know you couldn’t swim as a fox?”
Yae grumbled, pink colouring her cheeks as embarrassment over her own past actions settled in.
“I told you I was stupid.”
It was Ei’s turn to grin, teasing. “Oh, I know you are.”
Yae laughed, slapping the Archon on her shoulder lightly. “Rude.” And made an attempt to get off her lap.
Ei wrapped her arms around Yae’s waist however, and held her in place.
“You did many, many silly things.”
Yae groaned, “Stop. I don’t want to hear it.”
“Sure you don’t want to hear about how you spill water and choke on berries?”
The shrine maiden pressed her forehead against Ei’s shoulder, effectively hiding her face away.
“I’ll have to think of some games to keep you entertained in the future. You were running around everywhere.” chuckling, she added, “You were also needy, whining when my attention wasn’t on you,” she smirked, “Not quite unlike your behaviour somewhere else-”
Yae pressed a hand against Ei’s mouth briefly, a silent plea for her to stop.
“If I promise to never tease you again, will you promise to never tease me about this too?”
Ei hummed, thinking it over.
She shook her head, “No. I’ll take my chances.”
“You’ll regret this, my dear Archon.”
“I’m sure I will, my dear familiar.” Ei smiled.
They sat in silence for a while, simply enjoying each other’s presence after playful banter.
Steeling herself, Ei pressed her lips against the kitsune's temple, before she spoke softly.
“Thank you for letting me see this part of you.”
Yae smiled, warmth filling her chest and tightened her arms around the Archon.
“Anything for you.”
.
.
Bonus:
“Are you mad?”
“Yes.”
“Hm, was it because we played fetch?”
“No.” A pause. “That was pretty fun.”
“...”
“Oh.”
“Was it because I pretended to throw the ball but I really hid behind my bac-”
“Yes! It was because you pretended to throw it but hid it behind your back! I never had my hopes dashed in such a manner! A cruel plan, really. How could you, Ei?”
“Miko, it’s a game.”
“I am not speaking to you anymore!”