Chapter Text
Kitsune were known to have a perfect memory. Something Yae Miko always quite appreciated. Memories were precious. To be able to remember the present, it was like keeping it eternal in a way. At least, that's how she perceived this. A trait she inherited from being Lady Saiguu's pupil. She always said that memory was no different from one's life. What is life, but memories ? Yae Miko agreed on that. But ever since the cataclysm, it felt more like a curse than a blessing. Memories were too vivid, too clear in her mind, only to remind her how lifeless the truth was.
Just as lifeless as the Puppet , she thought.
Yae Miko has never been able to cope with the loss of Ei. She didn’t trust the Puppet Shogun so she looked after Inazuma for Ei, for the day Ei would return. Because she was certain Ei would return. As she promised. There was no other way. She refused to believe otherwise.
All these years, she had to watch the puppet act as the Shogun. She talked like her. She looked exactly like her. Except... she wasn't her. She was nothing but a pretender.
Her eyes were merely purple orbs, when Ei's were glowing like thunder in a furious storm. Her voice was stern and intimidating, but Ei's was always soft and soothing whenever she called Miko's name. Her hands were soft, when Ei's were roughened by the centuries of incessant fighting but always so gentle.
Despite it all, she still looked like her. She looked so much like her that it hurt. She even has her memories. Their memories. All the fond, the fun, the love, the disgustingly embarrassing and excruciating painful memories she shared with Ei. Memories that a fox like her could never forget, no matter how hard she tried to.
She hated that Puppet. She hated her, what she represented, with everything she had in her soul.
The Puppet seemed particularly focused on her pursuit of Eternity, as it is why she was designed for. But oddly enough, she always put up with the Guuji's incessant teasing, her mean and sly remarks and her constant provoking. Miko noticed the lack of reaction, as it seemed she was really devoid of any emotion. Eventually she tried something else. If provoking her wasn't getting her anywhere, she'd push her buttons in another way . And so Miko started making advances to the Puppet who was confused at the sudden change of character. Miko didn't care, she wanted to get under her skin, find something, anything she could use against the Puppet. Anything that’ll force the Puppet to give away a hint about Ei’s whereabouts. So Miko kept pushing the Puppet, again. And again. And again.
And the Puppet never pushed her away. At best, she would simply ignore the priestess. Miko couldn't get under her skin. She hated whenever the Puppet would tell how "she is aware of Lady Yae's tendencies and therefore will not encourage her behavior by interacting whenever she is demanding attention". It was upsetting, the way the Puppet could simply dive into her memories with Ei like they were merely a pool of information with no emotional value. Those were the only thing that linked her to Ei as of right now, the only thing that remained of Ei.
“Are you skipping your divine duties again ?” The Puppet spoke, without even looking up to her.
How insolent. “Oh my, how rude of you.” She gasped, faking indignation -although she genuinely did feel attacked- and covered her smirk with her hand. “Isn’t coming to see my God a divine duty of mine ?”
“I am not your God, and I have no use for you today. You may leave.”
The Puppet once again didn’t even glanced towards the priestess. She kept writing whatever on her paper and spoke coldly to her. She contained her anger behind a smirk.
“You’re quite the difficult type. I like it.”
The Puppet paused her writing and slowly raised her eyes to meet the priestess’. She squinted her eyes suspiciously before looking back at her paper.
“I don’t have time for your games today Lady Yae.” She frowned.
“But right now you’re in my temple, Almighty Shogun. It is my duty to take care of our most precious guest.” Her tone was sarcastic, but her smile was insultingly polite.
The Puppet paused again. She raised her head and stared at the fox. Her empty eyes staring right through her. There’s a few seconds of silence right before the Puppet speaks.
“I appreciate your concern. You are dismissed.”
Miko likes to think she is very patient. Or rather, that's what she tells herself. However, she's had enough of the Puppet. After being dismissed, she stormed out of the guest room the Puppet was using for her temporary visit at the shrine. The very few maidens that crossed her path back to her room were being glared at, as she instructed to not be disturbed under any circumstances.
She locked herself in her room, found that sake bottle she had kept for Ei and herself to enjoy centuries before, and she drank to drown her annoyance, her anger, her grief. It was like talking to a wall. Just a shell, filled with everything she desired, everything she longed for.
Eventually she drank so much, one shrine maiden found her snickering with the Sacred Sakura Tree in the middle of the night, rambling about unintelligible things. She hugged the tree, claws out, and refused to let go. After another forceful attempt from the maiden, Yae Miko climbed up the Sacred Sakura Tree and growled at her -something about not coming back down until eternity is over. The scene made so much ruckus that the Almighty Shogun herself had to come and see what was happening.
The Shogun sighed, annoyed and tired. The Guuji was, very obviously so, drunk. Her face was all red, her ears were dressed on her head -something that seems to happen only when she is being very excited and that she was not keeping her composure at all. But as always, she put up with Miko's erratic behavior. "What is the meaning of this ?"
The young maiden bowed deeply, her head almost hitting her knees if she was flexible enough. "Your Excellency, I am very, deeply, absolutely, sorry for the disturbance !" The girl almost screamed at the Shogun, adding even more noises to the scene. "I, uh, it seems Guuji Yae has drank too much but I can take care of it, do not worry your Excellency !" The girl glanced at Yae Miko who growled at her.
The Shogun sighed again. "If you could take care of it, the problem would already be solved." The maiden gulped, her legs wobbling. "I shall take care of Guuji Yae. Go back to your room."
"But-"
The maiden froze instantly when her eyes met the Shogun's. She felt electricity run through her spine, like a warning. This was an order, and the Shogun wasn't known for her patience. So the maiden nodded and quickly took off, almost running.
The Shogun crossed her arms, shaking her head. "Lady Yae, that is enough. Climb down the Sacred Sakura Tree."
"Why are you calling me that ?" Yae Miko's voice was like a whisper, soft and frail. Vulnerability was easily heard.
"I always called you Lady Yae. Now, come down. It is improper of the Guuji to be clawing the Sacred Sakura Tree," the Shogun's voice was strict, but devoid of any anger.
"You used to call me Miko." Her ears flopped down.
"I will call you Miko if it makes you come down the Sacred Sakura." The Shogun sighed. She couldn't believe she was bargaining with a drunk priestess to make her climb down. Though she didn't expect the pink fox to immediately jump down as soon as she finished her sentence. Even less, that she jumped down on her. The Shogun was taken by surprise, and fell down on her elbows. The kitsune was sitting on her lower stomach, a beautiful smile on her lips.
This last observation made the Shogun internally slap herself.
"Alright Miko, time to go to bed." The Shogun kept her word, calling her name. Something sharp pierced her chest as she called her. But she let nothing appear.
"Are we now ?" The fox smirked at her, as if her tone wasn't flirtatious enough already. The Shogun did her best to remain as stoic as possible. She was good at it, but the Guuji was also very good at pushing her buttons constantly.
"Yes, you are going to bed. Get off me." The Kitsune's smile grew wider, her pointy canines showing. Her eyes sparked, in a way the Shogun recognized. She had seen this look before, that was the way Yae Miko would look at her creator under certain circumstances. She fought the urge to gulp as she felt warmth right where Miko was sitting.
Like a predator, Yae Miko very, painfully slowly, leaned down. The Shogun followed her movement and, as equally slowly, lied down on her back to avoid Yae Miko getting closer, unsuccessfully so. Her hot breath was intoxicating, although she couldn't tell what was the alcohol and what was Yae Miko that made her feel so dizzy. As if it wasn't enough, Yae Miko moved closer to the Shogun's ear.
"Make me."
The Shogun felt a wave of electricity shoot through her entire body. Unable to control herself, she grabbed the fox's slender and graceful nape. This made the fox's ears twitch in surprise. The Shogun sat up, completely unaffected by Yae Miko's body laying on top of her and suddenly reversed their positions. Miko let out a yelp of surprise when her back hit the ground, and the Shogun was now towering above her, amethyst orbs glowing in a way she had never seen before.
The Shogun's chest was lifting visibly, her breath heavy with feelings she refused to acknowledge. Seeing the Guuji Yae beneath her, looking at her the way she looked at her creator, made her heart sink if she had one. It took her a moment to regain her composure. But Miko had no intention of helping her. She just saw a glimpse of life behind the Puppet's eyes, a glimpse of her beloved, and she was absolutely not going to let it disappear before her eyes. Maybe it was the alcohol that made her confuse the shining eyes of the Puppet with the glowing ones of her Ei.
Miko cupped the Puppet's face, her thumb tenderly caressing that one mole under her eyes. And before the Puppet could realize, Yae Miko's lips were pressed against hers and her tongue was inside her mouth. She could feel, smell and taste the alcohol, but now she was certain Yae Miko was the one intoxicating her. She couldn't enjoy this, she wasn't allowed to. So she gathered all of her willpower to pull away from the kiss she only ever dreamed of receiving.
"Miko, you're drunk," is all the Shogun managed to say.
"I need you..." Miko responded without hesitation. There wasn't any teasing or sarcasm in her voice. The Shogun felt something warm spread in stomach. "It’s been so long, Ei," she finally added. All that warmth twisted into a sharp pain in the Puppet's chest. Of course , she thought.
"I know." The Shogun unwillingly let out a sigh. "But you need to sleep."
"I need you Ei." Miko purred again, seductively, as she pulled the Puppet again, desperately wanting to kiss her.
"I know." The Shogun almost gave in. But she shook her head and picked up the kitsune in her arms. Miko couldn't help but feel a hot wave crash inside her chest when she felt Ei 's arms around her. She missed the time Ei used her strength on her, when her calloused and gentle hands would caress every inch of her skin with devotion, and then ruin her.
The Puppet felt the intense and lustful eyes on her. She hurried herself to Miko's room, feeling her resolve wither with each passing second. She needed to get away from the fox. Just when she thought it couldn't be worse, she felt a tug on her yukata. Miko's cold hand slyly reached her collar bones and slowly slid down to her cleavage. This made the Puppet's body tense up. And soon, Miko's mouth was on her neck, kissing, licking and biting the sensitive skin.
The Shogun almost bolted to the room. And as soon as she arrived there, she threw Miko on her bed. She wanted to leave immediately, but Miko's arms quickly wrapped her body as soon as she turned her back to leave. She would've prayed to the Gods, if the God in question wasn't unfathomably infatuated with the same fox.
"I need to feel your hands on me," the kitsune whispered, neediness in her voice. She barely gave time for the Shogun to answer that her hands were already untying the obi to open her yukata. A fervorous kiss to her nape made her lose all of her resolve. The Puppet let out a moan.
Miko felt another wave between her legs. How long has she waited to hear Ei's moans again ? Although she sounded different than usual, she didn't care. Not right now. She missed her too much.
"Miko..." the Puppet whispered when she felt Miko's hand slide up her ribcage. Quickly she turned around, finally facing the kitsune. Her eyes were shining again and she devoured Miko's lips like her life depended on it.
She let her hands run free under the Kitsune's clothes. Feeling Miko moan in her mouth felt like heaven. She pressed herself into Miko's naked, soft, burning skin. She hungrily tasted the sake with her tongue, tasted her skin and her desire.
"Ei, make love to me" the kitsune pleaded, her voice cracking from the pleasure.
And that night, Miko's room was filled with moans, cries of ecstasy and an obscene smell of sex. Every time Miko would call out Ei, the Puppet would feel a stab to her chest. But tonight she was the one making Miko whimper under her touch, she was the one touching her, she was the one making her come. Finally, she had memories of her own with the kitsune that selfishly captured her heart. Memories that were not stolen, forcefully implanted in her mind like a curse. She wasn't thinking about what would happen afterwards. She's put up with the fox's advances for centuries, surely her Creator would understand right ?
The Puppet was made so she could work without needing to rest. But she felt restless that night, as the pink fox slept beside her, snoring a bit. She used to fully trust her Creator. She hand crafted her, made her into the perfect guardian of Eternity, made her into what she is. For better or for worse. So surely, if she is the way she is, it is because Raiden Ei had intended it this way, right ? But yet, she felt guilt crawling from her stomach to her throat. She lost control. She shouldn't have done that. The priestess was drunk, she thought she was someone else, she wasn't hers to take. And yet, she succumbed to her own desires. She didn't know if she felt relieved that her Creator wasn't aware of everything outside her plane of Euthymia, or if she felt worse.
After a few, long, hours of internal crisis, the Puppet decided it was best if the priestess didn't wake up naked next to her naked self. She left the priestess' room, hoping she would not remember any of this. A vivid image of the sly fox smirking at Raiden Ei appeared in her head "Now now, you do know foxes remember everything…" . She sighed in defeat.
Curse her perfect memory.
__________
The next day, the Shogun wanted to avoid the kitsune. It was an impossible task, considering she was there for an official event and Yae Miko, being the Guuji, is supposed to be the one talking with the Almighty Narukami Ogosho. When the sun rose, and the Shogun knew they had to walk through the formalities for the upcoming spring event, she heard a knock on her door. She sighed, she really didn’t want to see the kitsune today.
"Your Excellency ?"
She didn't recognize Yae Miko's voice. Put down her pen and looked towards the door, right in front of her. "You may come in."
The shrine maiden from yesterday opened the door, being overly polite and careful.
"Lady Guuji is awaiting your presence for the morning tea." She bowed 90 degrees.
"Understood. I shall be there in a few minutes." The shrine maiden bowed again before sliding the door shut. The Puppet sighed. Meeting Yae Miko has never been an issue before, although she always had to be aware of her tendencies and prepare herself mentally. Today was definitely going to be different.
When the priestess woke up, she shot her eyes open and sat up in panic, one hand covering her breast with the bed sheets. She soon regretted this when her head started spinning and aching like crazy. She definitely drank way too much yesterday. Unfortunately, her memory was still intact and she remembered all too well the events of yesterday's night. Another reason for her to be grumpy.
"I can't believe I just made a fool of myself."
She tightens her grip around herself, closing her eyes, unconsciously recalling the memories. It was definitely different from Ei, but it felt comforting. With the alcohol, she could pretend it was her. She could pretend she never left. She could pretend what they had was still there. She shook her head to get out of the daydreaming. She blamed her thoughts on the lingering alcohol.
Ei's hand moved all over her body, firm but gentle. They've been spending most of their time together but she never seems to get enough of her beloved's touch. She let out a gasp when fingers, a bit rough from handling blades for centuries, reached the swell of her breasts. A thumb grazed her skin, sending her shivers. She bit down her lip to suppress her moan.
Ei kissed her body, from her belly up to her collarbones, lingering on her breasts. Miko whimpered under her touch, vulnerable and needy. Ei traced her jawline with her tongue, slowly moving to Miko's mouth where they finally kissed. Their tongues moving with greed, their chests heavy with lust and desire, the lovers pressed their body together with every gasp and moan, wanting to feel closer to each other.
Ei's hand slithered down to Miko's thighs. She grabbed her and spread her legs in a firm motion. Miko moaned in response, as she turned her head away to break the kiss and catch her breath. She felt warmth between her legs from her desire, she felt warmth on her thigh from Ei's hand, and she felt warmth on her chest from the thousand lightning striking her heart every time she was with her lover.
Ei's glowing eyes stared deep into her lust-filled mind. Her sharp gaze manifested all of the foul thoughts she had for tonight, but the subtle raise in her eyebrows betrayed the soft nature of her feelings for the priestess. With a delicate hand, Ei cupped Miko's cheek, holding her with tenderness, as she leaned down.
"I have learned and enjoyed many forms of Art throughout my life... But Miko, you are the one I like to master the most."
Miko opened her eyes again, a lump in her throat. She could feel her eyes starting to burn. This used to be one of her most precious memories with Ei, before everything turned to blood and dust.
She missed Makoto. She missed Saiguu. But a part of her felt jealous of the two of them who didn’t have to live without the other. She remembered being by Saiguu’s side when she was dying, and when she felt Makoto dying. Another memory she wished she could forget.
___
The Shogun went to the room they usually used for breakfast, knocked twice. Her touch was lighter, more hesitant. Yae Miko picked up the clue and decided not to address it. Her head was still throbbing because of all the alcohol she drank. With a soft voice, she told her guest to come in. As she poured tea in the cup facing her, she lifted her eyes shifted towards the Puppet for a split second before she looked back at the cup and smiled.
"Good morning, your Excellency."
Silently the Puppet sat down, facing her. Miko poured herself some tea. She expected the Puppet to say something, to start the conversation as usual, talk about work and the upcoming spring festival. But she did nothing of the sort. Instead she simply sat there, completely silent. That made the fox feel incredibly uncomfortable, she felt like sitting with embarrassment personified.
Yae cleared her throat. "I heard from the shrine maiden I might have been a bit too generous when drinking yesterday and caused you trouble. I wanted to thank you for safely bringing me back to my quarters. I hope I have not inconvenienced you too much, your Excellency."
Yae sipped her tea, waiting. She noticed her guest's body tense up slightly. "Do you not remember what happened yesterday ?" The Puppet finally said.
The fox sighed, exaggerating her expression, putting on a dramatic tone. "Unfortunately, no. It is rare for me to not remember anything, but I might've indulged too much sake to make my mind so foggy." She lied. She didn't expect to fool the Puppet, but she had to at least save her face.
"I see. Well, aside from climbing the Sacred Sakura and embarrassing yourself before the shrine maiden, you've been fairly easy to handle." The Puppet lied, drinking from her cup. The tea was slightly bitter, but she likes it that way.
"Now now, I don't think I asked to be remembered, did I ?" Her tone was teasing, but the Puppet knew she was embarrassed. The twitch of her ears and the slight furrow of her brows betrayed her. "Let us simply discuss what must be done for this year's festival, hm ?"
"Agreed." The Shogun nodded, hiding her discreet smile behind her cup of tea.
_______
The Puppet had hoped that, since they quietly agreed to not discuss what happened, she could simply go back to her duties, and that their relationship would not change anymore.
That is, until Miko showed up in her room another night, drunk again, calling for Ei's embrace. She could've ignored her, dismissed her or rejected her. But the memories were too vivid, too pleasant, and once again she indulged. She'd swear to herself this would never happen again. But every time Miko would come to her, this was always how the night ended. With new memories and another broken promise.
Miko would feel terrible every time she’d wake up in her empty bed, naked. But she couldn’t resist the sweet calling of alcohol, especially when it whispered promises of comfort in Ei’s arms. If she squinted her eyes enough, if she closed her eyes, if she decided to ignore the differences, she could pretend she was being comforted by Ei. But time passed, and it became harder and harder to not notice the differences. She was so different, nothing like the Ei from almost 500 years ago.
She felt angry. Angry at herself, angry at Ei for leaving her without saying anything, angry that she feels this way. Her mood became more and more irritable, and for years on she would take out her frustration on the Puppet. She'd come to her room, whenever she felt angry she would fuck the Puppet's brain out until sunrise and leave her like that.
A part of her started to resent Ei, so much. She always wondered if Ei knew or saw everything that was happening. Would she feel jealous ? Would she feel angry ? Would she be hurt ? Selfishly she used the Puppet as a way to punish Ei for leaving her. And sometimes, her heart would throb whenever the Puppet looked at her with something that looked like pain in her eyes. But she knew Ei had made the Puppet emotionless, so surely she couldn’t possibly feel anything. She was just a tool for the Eternity Ei’s been chasing, the Eternity Ei left her for. No matter what she did to herself or to the Puppet, nothing seemed to make the pain go away.
No matter how angry, how frustrated, how heartbroken she was, she knew exactly why Ei did it. It was infuriating to know her so damn well. She couldn't hate her. It would've made things so much easier to handle if she could just hate her. But she still looked upon their shared memories with great fondness. And the fact that the Puppet could look at her precious memories with such a nonchalant attitude, it felt so unfair.
And tonight was no different from other nights.
Yae Miko let out a low groan, her jaw clenched in pleasure and anger. Her hand was firmly holding the Puppet's head, right beneath her. She'd pull the Puppet's hair to her will, putting more and more pressure as the ecstasy grew in her stomach. The Puppet licked, sucked and devoured her with fervour, moaning with every tug in her hair and every hip movement from the fox riding her face. Her mechanical body, lacking the need to breath, was one of the rare things the Puppet could do that Ei couldn't. The Puppet also revealed herself to be much more submissive than Miko expected. The thrill of power made her eyes roll to the back of her head as she moaned Ei's name. And when she came down from all this high, she left the Puppet again, still angry and frustrated.
The Puppet could barely bear it. Every time she touched her, she heard her Creator's name out of her mouth and every time it would break her mechanical heart. No matter how much she wanted Miko to be hers, she knew she'd be a fool to ever hope the Guuji could love anyone else but her Creator. After all, she’s seen it all. She knew the nature and the strength of their bond. But alas, she was nothing but a spectator of their love. Just a replacement. If only she never let her lust get the better of her judgement.
If only that first night she didn't surrender to her own desire, their relationship would've never become like that.
They wouldn’t be shells of their own selves, full of lies and resentment. The nights they spent together this last century, it didn’t mean anything. None of them could resist each other, eager to get someone neither could have. Just a pointless desire, a cruel dream, an illusion of poisonous bliss, slowly killing them from the inside.
Sitting in her room, the Shogun suddenly shot her eyes open.
"It was my desire that eroded our relationship."
And that's when the Almighty officially announced the Vision Hunt Decree, stripping her people from their desires and ambitions. And at the same time, had taken the difficult decision to no longer meet Yae Miko, as she didn’t trust herself to resist the woman she loved.
Of course, Yae Miko never agreed with the decree. But she wasn't fool enough to challenge the Shogun. When a certain Traveler appeared, she saw the opportunity to bring her beloved God back, and she seized it. She plotted against the Puppet, trying to bring back Ei. She felt slightly guilty for doing it all in secret, but she only cared about Ei. Or that was what she kept telling herself whenever her chest would tighten thinking about the Puppet's disappointment.
And when finally, she saw Ei again, the bond that's been severed for centuries suddenly crushed her heart. Ei looked at her, her beautiful glowing eyes open in surprise to her in the plane of Euthymia. The sky slowly brightened up as if the plane, Ei's inner world itself was greeting her.
"Miko…" Ei whispered as if Miko would disappear if she spoke too loudly, her voice moved by surprise and relief.
Miko cursed herself. She felt like a storm was raging inside her, all of the pent up resentment about to explode, and yet she couldn't help but think how much she missed seeing her, how beautiful she was and how sad she looked before their eyes met.
The purple and dark sky, the silent cry of her loneliness. And yet it lit up as soon as Ei caught a glimpse of her Miko. The purple turned to a Miko shade of pink, Sakura petals blooming on the dead trees, and a very subtle glow in Ei's eyes breathed life into her.
And just like that, the storm inside her heart calmed down as well, and when Ei's lips slightly curved upward to greet her, she felt warmth spread through her chest. She felt like she could cry right this instant.