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Atsushi speed-walked down the path from the forest to the village, Kyoka alongside him. "Kouyou-neesan wanted to teach me how to brew a poison-inflicting potion when I got back. I have to go now," the small girl muttered.
"Of course, Kyoka-chan. Thanks for all your help." She nodded once to him before skipping off to find Kouyou-san's house.
He stilled for a moment. He stood in front of his village's statue. It was a humoungous statue that displayed Fukuzawa and Mori, their Gods. It was in the middle of the entrance to their village. Their village was quite small, in all honesty. After branching out from the forest, a thick cobblestone path led to the statue, a circular ring around it. The cobblestone path continued to the left and the right, houses lining the streets until the end, that finished in farms. The cobblestone path continued forwards after the statue to a row of houses.
It had been raining a lot recently, which gave the sky a murky gray look, and the earth a soggy feel. The forest was thriving though, a deep vibrant green contrasting the dull colours all around. There was a humid feel in the air.
He continued on his path around the statue towards one of the houses in the single row behind the statue. Akutagawa's house. He had been tasked with finding various ingredients for Akutagawa's potions earlier, and had now a bag in one hand and a flower in the other.
He shoved the unlocked door open with one arm, and removed his boots before stepping inside. All their village houses were humble, to say the least. Inside was an entrance, a kitchen space, and a single bedroom. There was a bathroom for chamber pots, behind the house was a pit toilet, and there was a large lake behind the village that all used for bathing. Akutagawa's house was not very decorated. It was the opposite of Kunikida-san's house that was decorated with calendars, ideals, and ideas for spells. He had the bare minimum to function. He spent most of his time in the underground chamber, a crucial part of all houses, due to storing cauldrons there. Atsushi closed the door behind him, locked it this time, and walked downstairs towards the chamber just left of the door, where he could hear Akutagawa moving around.
He stepped into a steamy room, with Akutagawa walking back and forth, reading potion ingredients on shelves and using measuring tools to calculate how much of whatever that slimy green stuff he needed in whatever hellbent potion he was brewing now. Akutagawa's gaze snapped towards him the moment he entered. "Jinko, what took you so long?"
Ah. It should probably be mentioned that Atsushi, unlike most at his village, was not a wizard nor a witch. The complete opposite really, no matter how hard he tried (and he tried very hard, believe him) he could never seem to grasp his mind around the magic wizards used. Whatever potions he brewed just ended up causing really bad stomach-aches instead of turning him into a cat. Whatever spells he tried to cast just ended up with him spraining his wrist as a result of flicking the wand too hard. He couldn't specialize in healing like Yosano-sensei, nor could he raise wildlife like Kenji-kun, so he was mostly an assistant to those around the village, or a sort of bodyguard for it. After all, he was a weretiger. He was still practicing using his powers though, but he had gotten better after arriving at this village, almost like the very presence of Fukuzawa and Mori were enough to convince his tiger to try out a more domesticated life.
"Maybe if you hadn't filled the list with so many confusing ingredients, I would've saved time not having to figure out what each and every one of them meant," Atsushi retorted, setting down the bag filled with said ingredients and the flower on a table.
"You blame me for your lack of knowledge on such basic trials? Cough. Pathetic." The older man walked over and looked through the bag. "You just missed Dazai-san. He came to ask me if I had finished any potions yet so he could evaluate them. Thanks to you, I let him down." His seething tone alone could've killed a regular child.
"Jeez, then, sorry! What does he even need all these for, anyways?" Atsushi gestured to the nearly endless amounts of ingredients he had to collect for him. "You seem to have enough stuff on your shelves already!"
Akutagawa looked up, meeting his gaze. "He's preparing."
Atsushi stiffened at the serious tone.
"He thinks that there is foreign cult who is planning to try and steal the book from us. An old rival of his, he said."
At the mention of the book, Atsushi gaped. The book. It was supposed to be a mere legend to outsiders, a book that contained humanity's darkest spells, its most powerful potions, its riskiest, yet most tempting summoning rituals- though mere legend it was not.
It was hidden deep beneath Fukuzawa and Mori's statue, beneath a long descending spiral staircase filled with booby traps and tainted with various curses. It was nearly impossible to retrieve unless you knew each and every single booby trap that was going to attempt to shoot an arrow through your skull, every step you had to hold your breath on in order to keep the invisible gas out of your system, each prayer to keep the voices out of your head.
Yet not long ago, they had almost lost it.
As the village surrounding it, it's their job to guard it, and keep it safe from the greed of the outside world. However, maybe a month or two ago, a seemingly-mythical band of wizards had nearly managed to get ahold of it. Their strategist had predicted nearly every single one of their traps and curses down the stairwell, making their chances of crossing it much higher. Atsushi and Akutagawa had had to fight its leader - Fitzgerald - all on their own while the other villagers dealt with the rest of the wizards and witches.
To think that so soon after the incident, when they were still recovering, for God's sake, there would be word of another attack.
"I see. So these are all as reinforcements for the upcoming battle?"
"Hmm... Perhaps you might have a shred of intelligence in you after all, Jinko," The man said with a cough.
"Oi, what was that?! I'm plenty smart! Just cause I don't go around making fancy potions while wearing my old-fashioned hat and a widower's robes doesn't mean I'm not smart!"
"These robes are and have always been essential to wizarding culture! Dazai-san taught me himself, and only a fool would question him!"
"Only a fool would take everything Dazai-san says at face value! He messes around with people, Akutagawa! You can't take him seriously all the time!"
"Cease your disrespect for Dazai-san now, Jinko, before I give you a more useful purpose and turn you into a tiger rug!"
"Ghh- I'm done with this. Go back to your oh-so-wonderful potions," Atsushi said sarcastically, turning around to leave.
"Dazai-san mentioned that he and Chuuya-san would need help with finding target practices for their experimental spells. Go find them a couple frogs or such," Akutagawa said, dismissing him.
Atsushi rolled his eyes, because really, since when is Atsushi just his personal servant? Though he started up the staircase with the intention of doing so anyways. A sharp Jinko had him turning around at the top.
"Jinko, nowhere in my list did I ever mention needing a dandelion. Have you lost your few remaining braincells and forgotten your flower here?"
Filled to the brim with annoyance, but also with a sudden sheepish feeling, he shyly muttered, "Well, it reminded me of you. So I wanted to give it to you?"
"How does a bright yellow flower remind you of me? I am not dressed like a flower," Akutagawa replied, skeptical.
"Well- well you know flower symbolism and stuff! Kouyou-san was teaching Kyoka-chan about it, and so Kyoka-chan taught me- and. Dandelions represent happiness and health, which don't really match you. I mean- well you're always coughing, and I don't know if you're depressed or something, but-"
"Get to the point," Akutagawa interrupted, coughing and narrowing his eyes.
"But, well, they also mean power, perseverance, uh, endurance and- and determination, which I did think matched you a lot, and made me think of you, so...yeah," he finished off quietly, avoiding eye contact.
Because of this, he wasn't able to see the faint gleam that shone across the older man's eyes for fleeting moment. "... Jinko, I have no use for meaningless sentiments from you. Do not waste my time with such foolish acts again."
"Right. Of course," Atsushi murmured, shame and embarrassment crawling up his spine at once. He defeatedly marched up the stairs, setting his mind on going to help Dazai-san and Chuuya-san. He deeply regretted thinking Akutagawa was capable of appreciation.
Unbeknownst to him, Akutagawa placed a condition sealing spell on the flower the moment Atsushi left.
Unbeknownst to him, Akutagawa had the flower sown onto the inside of his coat, always remembering what Atsushi said when he gave it to him.