a/n : hey,,,,,, hey,, how y'all doin,,,
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'i am to be wed to a god... what a joyous day...'
you stared ahead at the blurry path with half lidded eyes, your thoughts like strange murmurs fading in and out of your mind. though it was supposed to be your wedding day, you found yourself with a lack of excitement. you looked from side to side drowsily, observing the multitude of stone statues crowding about off the edge of the path.
it was a child's crying that broke through your lightheaded daze. you peered past the stone statues curiously, wondering where the source could be. how could someone be so sad on such a special day?
you spotted a dark haired girl donning a large lavender bow, huddled behind the statues and shaking with her cries. she couldn't have been older than four, though there was a lifetime of sorrow in the way she held herself.
"nobody will talk to me." the little girl sniffled, large tears rolling down her chubby cheeks. "they won't look me in the eye. i don't even know what my father or mother looks like..."
she turned her attention to a boy beside her, one that seemed only a few years older. he didn't look at her either, instead watching a little sparrow peck at the dirt a few feet away.
"will you stay with me?" the little sumire- how did you know that name, you wondered to yourself?- asked, blinking her watery eyes at the boy. "will you help me when i'm in trouble?"
the boy- you knew him, as well, he seemed scarily familiar- was quiet, before sighing.
"...sure, i guess. it's m'job to take care of you, after all."
the little sumire blinked up at him, wiping her tears on her sleeve before reaching for the older boy's hand. she smiled, cheeks rosy as she tipped her head.
"it's a promise, then, hakubo kun..."
and then, through the mist filled haze, you saw that sumire was older; about your age now. you watched as she clasped her hands together, praying to a group of little statues.
"they tell me one of these statues is made every time a girl like me is offered up to the gods." sumire murmured, resting her hands on the grassy floor beneath her. "when i go to the gods for my marriage, do you think they'll make one for me?"
the dark haired girl blinked up at her friend, who also seemed to have aged a bit; no. 6- hakubo- stared back blankly, before shrugging.
"i mean, yeah? that's just what the akane family does."
"listen, you." the girl scolded, standing up and placing her hands on her hips. "that was your chance to say, 'no, that won't happen to you,' whether it's true or not." sumire huffed, crossing her arms. "you're always so honest! but i suppose that's one of the things i like about you."
"uh-huh." the boy stared blankly past her, watching a rabbit run across the clearing. sumire scrunched up her nose, though immediately stopped- how very unladylike of her. standing on her tiptoes, she gazed at the boy with a curious tilt of her head.
"tell me... do you like me?"
hakubo gazed back. "does it matter? i'm only takin' care of ya 'cos my master ordered me to. nothin' more, nothin' less."
"come on, that answer's no fun!" sumire whined, clinging to hakubo's sleeve and burying her face in the fabric. "if i have to get married, won't you take me as a bride? you're much more tolerable than anyone else in this village."
"that'd be fine by me." hakubo replied without missing a beat. sumire froze, face flushing red as his words set in.
"w-what?!" she pulled away from him, unable to contain her large grin as she ducked her head.
"mmm. nah." hakubo shoved his hands in his pockets, looking away with a shrug. "i was lyin'."
sumire snapped her head back up in shock, her expression quickly contorting into one of anger. balling her hands into fists, she unleashed a flurry of punches onto her companion.
"ugh! forget it!" she spat, as hakubo was unfazed by her tantrum. "leave me alone!"
with that she turned and dashed away, cheeks burning in embarrassment as her friend looked after her. her thoughts echoed around your mind as if they were your own.
'stupid, stupid, stupid!'
as you stepped into the dark cavern, guided by the strange villagers who had kidnapped you in the first place, you couldn't shake the feeling that you had been there before.
the bells on your bracelet jingled.
'is this a dream...?' you pondered to yourself, and your thoughts were suddenly your own for the first time since you had been taken. 'or are these memories....?'
"come this way, kannagi sama." one of the women whispered, leading you up the rocky path. the only light in the cavern with you were the candles illuminating your way.
ushering you towards a wooden gate arching over the cliff's edge, the woman guiding you released your hand.
"this is the gate that leads to the opposite shore. you will now begin your journey to the home of the gods." she murmured solemnly, ducking her head. "you have our congratulations, sumire sama."
without a hand to keep you steady you swayed on your feet, stumbling forward. you wondered briefly if he would mourn your death- and then felt confused as to who you were thinking about.
"congratulations..."
you reached out. the bells on your bracelet jingled.
and then there was a crack of lightning, flooding through your veins like fire.
"ow!" you spat, yanking your hand back. "what the fuck?!"
the villagers exchanged confused looks with each other as you shook yourself. you glanced around at the unfamiliar terrain, eyes wide. where the hell were you? how did you get here? and... what had you been about to do?
cautiously you peered past the gateway, and the sight made your stomach drop. water lapped a hundred feet beneath you, penetrated by sharp stalagmites. you paled, stumbling back without a word before turning to face the villagers that dared bring you here.
"an akane girl rejected by the gate..." one of them muttered, stiffening as they glared at you.
the one beside him nodded. "this has never happened before!"
"then she must be an imposter!"
you bristled, balking your hands into fists. "i'm not sumire san, jesus! has your hearing gone off?! this isn't a wedding! this is attempted murder!!" a sick feeling made its way into your stomach. "you were going to kill sum—!"
you broke off as a sharpened bamboo staff was thrust toward you, stopping mere centimeters from your throat. the crowd was now speaking over top of one another, each voice more panicked than the last.
"what do we do about the ceremony?"
"did it fail? what happens to the village when the ceremony fails...?!"
"gah, this girl's good enough! seize her and toss her through!!"
"yeah! has to be better than nothing!!"
"no, no! you don't want to sacrifice me!" you spluttered, backing into a wall as the crowd advanced on you.
your face burned in your distress, and you slowly raised a hand to your ears to feel them sharpening to a point. if they didn't have a reason to kill you then, your unfortunate curse would certainly convince them. as they spotted those unwelcome features, another outburst arose from the villagers.
"a fiend!"
"a devil!! it was an imposter!!"
"kill it!"
"no!" you shook your head, feeling a bit like cornered prey as they closed in on you. you scanned the crowd for an opening, ready to fight your way out at this point.
spotting a space between two of the villagers, you took your chance. as one of your attackers swung at you, you ducked, zipping through the gap and weaving your way past the crowd. shouts of surprise erupted from the people around you, and just as you thought you had at last evaded the strangers, a cold hand grasped the back of your top. you let out a choked sound, tripping over yourself and tumbling to the floor as your momentum was broken.
you glared up at the masked person who had captured you, rubbing your throat before swinging a punch towards them- one they blocked with ease, and with a humorous glint in their gaze. they pulled you to your feet, hand tight around your wrist as they dragged you through the crowd. you dug your bare heels into the floor, but though their stature was smaller than you, they pulled you along with ease.
"good, you caught it." one of the villagers held out their staff and jagged it towards you. "now eliminate it!"
"please, don't!" you blurted, trying- and failing- to yank your hand away. "once i get loose, i'll- i'll—!" tears filled your eyes as you realized that you probably weren't getting out of this, and you opened your mouth in a final desperate wail. "hanako!!"
the person pulling you along turned to face you, dark tufts of hair sticking out from the hood they donned. they lifted their mask just enough so you could see their smile, and suddenly your heart felt lighter.
"i'm right here~!"
hanako stuck his tongue out at you, winking as you stared back dumbfounded. tears started to slip down your cheeks, and you lunged forward to wrap him in a hug. he squeezed you back, resting his chin on your shoulder.
you sighed in relief as you pulled away; everything would be alright after all.
"sorry i'm late, dear." the boy smiled at you, and your cheeks erupted with heat. covering your face, you scowled, ignoring the teasing nickname.
"...took you long enough."
the sweet moment didn't last, though- a series of shouts came from the crowd around you, breaking the two of you out of your reunion.
"he isn't one of the villagers! who is that—?!"
"sorry, but—" the seventh mystery spoke over the clamor, throwing off his disguise and leaning against your shoulder. "this 'wedding' is off." he tipped his head, grinning cheekily. "i can't have some nobody out there take my girl as a bride, right?"
hanako drew his knife, readying himself to fight through the crowd of angry villagers. you braced yourself as well, narrowing your eyes at the oncoming enemies.
unbeknownst to the two of you, a certain dark haired girl looked on. her blue gaze gleamed with sorrow at what was to come, watching quietly as the wrath of the gods came to flood the overhang.
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you wondered how you and hanako could escape the situation you could yourselves in- though the boy beside you was a powerful school mystery, so it wasn't like you were doomed.
you took a step backwards anyways; he might've been powerful, but there was no way the two of you could fight off all these people on your own.
'but... they won't let us go peacefully, so fighting is our only way. then again, should we really be violent towards these people? they're all pretty old- and yet, they did kidnap me, so they deserve it a little—?'
the sound of whooshing air broke through your racing thoughts, and you glanced up to see black clouds of smoke billowing into the cavern. looking past it, you saw that smoke was already swarming over the villagers' feet. you took another staggering step back, glancing around.
"what is that stuff?!" you exclaimed, the stench of decay filling the cavern. coughs echoed from the crowd of villagers, and one raised a trembling hand to point at you.
"you have invoked the gods' wrath!" he shouted, falling to his knees as the smoke overtook him.
"they've been angered...!"
"please forgive us!" a woman screamed, digging her fingers into her mask.
a voice rose to a shriek, louder than the rest. "this is all your fault, demon!!"
you turned to see one of the masked villagers charging towards you, his sharpened staff raised above his head and ready to strike. caught by surprise, you froze- but so did the man, stiffening in shock. you stared back at him in confusion before the mask he donned started to melt, peeling away to reveal a yellowed skull with patches of rotten flesh still attached.
you raised a hand to your mouth, fighting the urge to vomit as the man's skin fell to the floor in chunks. in just a few heartbeats, all that remained of him were tendons and bones. a quick glance around confirmed that the other villagers were meeting the same fate.
screams erupted from the crowd around you, but what was worse was the silence that came after. their bones clattered to the floor, and the two of you were left in the midst of their decomposing bodies. hanako stepped in front of you, narrowing his eyes as he swept the area before you.
"...what happened to them?" you breathed.
"that smoke... it did something to them." hanako held a hand over your nose, pulling you back. "don't breathe it in, misfortune."
you nodded, grabbing his wrist and exchanging a worried glance with him. "how do we get out?"
"we'll figure it o—!!"
the rocky ground heaved beneath the two of you, cracking and breaking into pieces. you squeaked, clinging to your companion as the two of you began plummeting down the side of the cliff. you grabbed a hold on the rocky wall just in time, clinging to hanako's hand as his legs kicked helplessly in the air.
"don't worry, i've got you!" you called down to him. he gazed back at you in alarm.
"let me go!" he insisted. "i'll be fine, but it doesn't look like you can hold on much longer!"
"are you a dumbass?! dead or not, i won't let you fall." you retorted- but he was right. your grip on the cliffside was slipping. you dug your nails into the hold, wincing as your skin scraped against the stone.
the two of you dangled in silence, and just as you realized you couldn't keep your grip any longer, a woman's voice rang through the air.
"it's alright." you looked up to see sumire staring down at the two of you, an elegant smile gracing her features. "i'll end all of this right now."
the dark haired girl leapt from the cliffside, plummeting past the two of you in a blur of lilac fabric. you heard a distant splash, and then darkness flooded your vision.
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