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Douman is Douman, and Sakuya is Sakuya.
I've always told myself that. However, I still feel this emptiness in my chest.
I killed him, and I don't regret it. Everything was spiraling out of control.
I watched him grow up, watched him become the man he is now.
Even though I was scorned for being a youkai, the only person I knew who would reach out to me was... that lowborn kid with a shikigami.
"Seimei... how did you manage to do that?" Douman asks, amazed.
"It's no big deal," Suzaku grumbles. "I can do it better."
The kitsune smiles maliciously at the god's taunts.
Seimei's claws, stained with blood, watched the lifeless body. He looked at Suzaku, who was glaring at him.
Seimei thought, the memories painful, as he remembered his counterpart from this dimension.
A four-year-old, on his way to kindergarten, was staring at him defiantly.
"Are you a bully?"
"No..."
"What's your name?" Suzaku interrupted.
I forgot about him.
The child just sighs as he steps on the adult.
"Sorry, he didn't mean to."
"You're right to be wary of us," Seimei tried to explain, crouching down to her level. "But we're friends of your parents."
"I don't care. I don't talk to strangers." The reincarnation of Douman bites Seimei. "And that's exactly what a creep would say."
"Worthless fox." He hears Suzaku mockingly curse him.
Seimei's eyes twinkled with amusement. He was finally seeing Douman again; what did it matter if it wasn't the Douman? He wasn't the Seimei of this world either.
But with this chance they'd been given, at least he could enjoy raising and spending time with Douman, and with Suzaku, Byakko, Genbu, and Seiryu.
"You know, Suzaku?" Seimei murmured, watching the little one walk away. "Douman is still Douman."
Suzaku crossed his arms, but couldn't quite hide the smile that played on his face.
"But... he's still distrustful."
Seimei burst out laughing, for the first time.
Suzaku didn't find it strange. But Seimei did. It was the first time he'd laughed without feeling the pressure of being the best onmyōji.
"Huh?"
"..." Suzaku had put a cap on him. Seimei looked confused.
"Your ears are showing," Suzaku mumbled under his breath, nonchalantly.
"Again," Sakuya (Douman) thought. He'd noticed those two adults spying on him, hiding behind the kindergarten.
(Should I call the police?)
Nah, they're pretty cute animals.
That's all it was. He could see Seimei's ears and Suzaku's wings.
(Are they real or fake?)
Curiosity killed the cat, or rather, curiosity drew the cat in.