Ikémen Sengoku: The Goddess of Life

A Light Extinguished

It was that night when Kenshin and Shingen decided to release Irey from her cell. Hardly even leaving the dungeon, she was met with a stoic Sasuke and an ecstatic Yukimura.

"They let you go?!" Yuki exclaimed in a sense of surprise.

"They did." She beamed, pulling the two men into a hug. "Thank you for convincing them to see me again."

At this, their cheeks had begun to burn a bit. The two glanced at each other over the small girl's shoulder, unsure of what to do. But finally, they decided to mark their lips with a gentle smile, taking hold of either side of her and pressing her into their bodies gently. She felt there warmth and affection, clinging to them for a moment longer before pulling herself away.

"Oh! I almost forgot." A small gesture with her hand summoned two of the four other cherry blossoms that followed Shingen and Kenshin, whisking them before the ninja and vassal. "Keep these on you and you will always be protected."

Eyes wide at the floating flowers, they offered their hands out so they could fall gently into their palms.

"Aw, this is so sweet!" A voice gushed from above them. Tilting their heads back, the five of them gazed up at a girl dressed all in pink; her fox ears twitching as her tail curled.

"Ai!" Irey grinned. The Goddess of Love hopped down from her spot on the tiled roof, landing perfectly on her feet before embracing her younger sister.

"You did it. I knew you could."

"Ai?" Shingen inquired; his brows raised in surprise. The fox-tailed girl turned towards the Tiger of Kai; her face a guilty smile.

"Shingen!" She beamed. "Wow, I didn't see you there." It were as if he'd awoken from a dream.

"Wait... do you two know each other?" Irey intervened. For a reason she wasn't sure of, it was all so sudden. These warlords blinked rapidly, breathing a heavy breath. What was happening? Why did they look as though they were making a new realization?

"Yes..." Kenshin began. "She's the woman Shingen's been keeping to warm his bed. I don't know why he wanted to keep her for so long, but I agreed he could have her so long as she didn't get in my way. Though... I can't help but think that wasn't my intention in the first place."

"That's because it wasn't." The goddess said sourly. "I came asking for hospitality and you turned me away because you didn't want any 'pesky women roaming around' your castle."

"Of course."

"Well because I needed a place to stay, I manipulated you and made you take me in with the power of love."

"Ai, that's not what you're supposed to use your powers for." The younger god scolded.

"Well, I made a mistake. Lesson learned, I'll never do it again."

"But... but you manipulated me." Shingen sounded rather offended.

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, it probably wouldn't have worked out between us anyways." She smiled light-heartedly.

"I've never been used by a woman before..." He scratched the back of his head, unsure of how to feel. "She twisted some of my memories around. I'm starting to remember all the things she made me forget... like the other night when you blurted that you were Irey's sister."

"Sister?" Yuki spat. "They look nothing alike. One has a tail, for crying out loud."

"We were born from the same star, it counts!" Ai exclaimed rather aggressively.

"I apologize for my sister's actions. It never really crossed my mind where it was she was actually staying. But Iyari would give you a pretty stern talking to if she knew what you'd done, Ai."