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It's laughable now to think back to a time when you were frightened by the King of Curses. When you had been so encompassed by your fear that you couldn't so much as bear to look at his body while you washed him. A time when you would become sick to your stomach at the thought of tending to your newly assigned duties as a bathmaid.
It's not that you don't fear him now...have faith, my friend, you do. There's just a certain level of trust in your dynamic now. Your reverence around him was a sign of your unease, but also of your loyalty to the King. He rarely made violent motions in your presence, hardly spoke at all, really.
You knew his ways had not altered; no, he still came to you smelling of coppery blood, his eyes aglow with diminished rage, his motions slow as he eased himself into the baths. But around you, he carried a lulled boredom. Speaking only to hear your thoughts on random, needless ideas that came to him in your pool.
As the seasons faded, you became content to simply lie with Sukuna and share each other’s presence. He spent lots of time reading, performing calligraphy, or envisioning new ways to decimate opponents in battle. He had no trouble staring off into space indefinably with that old mind that needed little for entertainment.
He began calling on you for other tasks, things disguised as anything other than a desire for company. He would speak mockingly to those who traveled to see him, closing his eyes and blocking out whatever requests they might have. Servants could have even thought him asleep in these moments if not for his hand tickling its way lazily along the hair by your ear.
When you would rinse him down or prepare the water for his soak, he started requesting you to tell him things. Anything at all. A story or a notion. A truth or a lie. He would hum passively like a harmless cat and you would wonder if he heard anything you said.
And so you became somewhat close. A cruel and uncontrolled monster and his little trusted employee. Your heart no longer pounded with dread when you were called upon; your curiosity about his rapport with you might never be explained. And that was okay; it was not your place to be inquiring about such a man.
--
It remained true that you were a bland and obedient little thing. You never overstepped your boundaries or overstayed your welcome. You were respectful to a fault. Nobody would imagine you behaving otherwise.
But you had never partaken in the sacred wine before either. A maid was not fit for such fineries; In fact, to even be placed at such an esteemed station as the right hand of the king was a wonder in and of itself.
You spoke little, only enough to compliment the meal and reply to Sukuna's query about whether or not you were pleased. But see, the high alcohol content of your drink took no time at all to invade your bloodstream.
After some time and very few sips, your pulse slowed to a tired pitter, and you relaxed in a way you never had before your King. Sukuna, of course, took notice of your open-mouthed stares. Finding your weak tolerance nearly amusing. You played with your hands and huffed a little as you finally allowed your posture to ease against the wall behind you.
You spent a languid few moments simply looking at him from the space on the floor upon which you were sitting, sharing no response at all to his comment about how you seemed to only be seeing him now for the first time.
You should have said something, it's unbelievably rude to not respond to your employer, it's not that you hadn't heard him, the words just... wouldn't come. You were too distracted by everything in that moment.
Time moved differently, and eventually, Uraume helped you up. Other servants were cleaning the meal from the tatami chabudai, and you felt a bit guilty at the sight. Shouldn't you be helping them?
Sukuna would smirk at your blatant wobbling as Uraume tried to rouse a response from your inebriated brain. He had not ever before seen you so off your guard. So pliant and at ease in his presence.
--
That evening, however, his spine would snap ramrod straight at the innocent touch of your fingers on his being. Never had he experienced the touch of a servant so bold that they might handle him without his explicit demand, and he certainly had not expected it from you, his taciturn and compliant attendant.
He watched in amazement as your hands slid all the way from his bicep to his neck to the rouge hair on his head. Not a word he spoke as you explored the expanse of him. Perhaps he was stopped short by your audacity, or perhaps he simply could not will himself to break the spell.
His body would jitter the way a feline's does when you snake a touch down their back. Unmoving, he had all four widened eyes on you. But you did not meet any of them. All too focused now on the four large appendages you apparently had just taken notice of.
Sukuna watched, muted as your mouth dropped open, a subtle gasp escaping you. He squinted as you rubbed your eyes, only to find that, yes, he does, in fact, have four arms. Your hands wasted absolutely no time examining if your eyes had somehow fooled you.
A small, unnoticeable smile would grace the king's lips. You, who so docily followed his orders and paid him only the utmost respect. You who not so long ago had been so sure that they lacked the prestige to wash their king's hair, was freely swiping their hands across his arms, as though to check if they were real.
Swaying to your knees now, you lifted yourself to leave a whisper of a touch upon his chin, his jaw, under his eyes, and finally, his forehead. Your foreign and tender touch traced his features until you stalled for a moment.
It seemed as though a thought had struck that dizzying mind of yours; you shuddered a moment, tripping on the way up, but in no time, you were clinging to his chest, your back arched to crawl over his maddeningly wide shoulder as your face turned and teeth sought purchase on the back of his neck.
If nothing had shocked Sukuna thus far, this truly did. You slid down him as his frame tensed around your own, an unbelieving look in your eyes, and you pulled back to examine him. He had jerked his hand back to find the precise black marking you had just teethed at, his own eyes lucent.
You stared at him like he wasn't real, a slow, "I just... wanted to...?" leaving your lips with a flimsy nod. What an explanation. Your hand came back up to trace more of his markings when, without warning, a mouth appeared to meet your fingers, coming out to chomp at you.
You jerked away, a mix between a whine and a gasp escaping your lips. One of the king's palms reached up to catch the middle of your back, a disciplinary look on his face.
And then you burst into giggles.
He's never seen you do that before...
Sukuna just watched you, closer than ever, as you stared at him for the first time with no hesitation to meet his gaze. His lips twitched, and not a moment later, as if perfectly normal, he bore witness as your body lulled, eyes fluttering, and with the anatomy perfect for an embrace, allowed you to nap within his stupefied frame.