It was finally Summer! You loved learning, but school somehow siphoned all the enjoyment from the experience. You entered the shrine, and narrowly dodged a flying shoe. Nanami and Tomoe were at it again. They were bickering like siblings.
"What's going on?" You sighed, sitting down against the wall.
"Tomoe won't let me go to the beach!" Nanami whined.
"Why not? I have already packed my bag for the trip." You replied, a little confused.
"What?! You will not be going either!" Tomoe growled.
"Who are you to try stopping me?" You smirked at the familiar.
"The ocean is filled with malicious creatures, and I am unable to enter the water. I will be incapable of protecting either of you." Tomoe grumbled.
"I can keep an eye on Nanami. If anything should go wrong I will protect her." You shrugged.
"I thought you were afraid of the water." Nanami cocked her head like a small child.
"It's not so much a fear, as it is I've never before gone swimming."
"How will you be able to keep an eye on Nanami then?" Tomoe inquired.
"Nothing to worry about. I'm a quick learner. Besides, I'm sure our uninvited guest would like to come as well." You smiled, looking towards the door.
Tomoe crossed the room, and threw open the door to reveal a familiar snake slithering across the porch. Tomoe grabbed the snake by the neck, and scowled at it. "What the hell are you doing here?" He spat.
"Put him down." You instructed the fox. Tomoe begrudgingly did as was told.
Mizuki transformed back into his human form, and looked at you with happy glittery eyes. "Thank you for that!"
"Don't mention it." You grumbled. "I'm sure you heard our conversation."
"Of course. I'd be happy to go along. I could use a day at the beach." Mizuki smiled happily.
Tomoe glowered at the snake familiar, looking like he wanted to kill him. Oh yeah, this is going to be fun.
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When you arrived at the beach, you were amazed. The ocean twinkled like millions of diamonds, and the sky was a brilliant blue. The sun was warm against your skin, and the sand soothed your aching feet. It was the first time you'd visited a beach, and you loved it. The only downside was your attire. You wore a light sundress over a swimsuit that revealed more of your body than you were used to. You looked nervously at Nanami and her friends. They were pulling off their shirts to reveal their swimsuits underneath.
"Aren't you going to show off your swimsuit?" Kei walked up to you, her eyebrows raised.
"I don't think so." You mumbled. "I've never revealed that much skin."
"Come on, just relax a little." Kei smirked, as she started to pull off the sundress.
"Hold on a second!" You protested, but she was fast for a human. Before you had time to react, the sundress was draped over her arm.
"Oh, (Y/N), you look so pretty!" Ami complimented.
"Where'd you get that swimsuit?" Kei asked.
"A-A friend of mine helped me pick it out yesterday." You mumbled nervously. It was a red two piece. It was basically a bikini with lace that draped down to form a skirt and crop top. You were glad that it hid some of the pale scars that still lasted on your skin.
"You look great!" Nanami smiled at you.
"Thanks." You glanced nervously back at the three boys who sat a short distance away. Mizuki was smiling like a fool, Ryuu was trying to take a nap in the sunlight, and Tomoe was glaring intently at a book. Tomoe's face was splashed with red, and you wondered worriedly for a moment that the heat was getting to him.
"Are you going to sit here with those three, or are you going to join us in the water?" Kei asked you.
"I suppose I could try swimming." You smiled.
"That's great!" Nanami beamed. "Don't worry, I'll help you figure it out!"
With that the four of you ran down the beach to the water. The second the water hit your feet, you felt a chill run up your spine. The cool water was unfamiliar to your bare feet after the burning heat of the sand. You waded into the water, until the water lapped at your lower chest. You glanced over to Ami, who was splashing around in her flotation device, and smiled. You took a deep breath, before plunging your face under the water. You closed your eyes, and felt the tide gently push and pull you. You'd never thought you'd get to swim like this. You glanced down at the necklace that shone like a star under the water. You finally had the chance to enjoy yourself if only a little.
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They'd been in the water for some time now. That bastard snake had even decided to join the girls. He loved getting under Tomoe's skin, and knew just how to do it. Tomoe glowered at the snake, as he came back up onto the beach. "Sea water really is terrible." Mizuki mused, as he dried his hair with a towel. "Oh, what's wrong, Tomoe?" The damn snake mocked him even more.
"Shut up you idiot. Nobody here cares." Ryuu grumbled.
Tomoe bit his tongue, and turned back to watch the shore. He spotted Nanami splashing around with the human girl in the flotation device, the other human was talking with two older boys, and (Y/N)... Tomoe sat up worriedly. He scanned each face in the water, fear beginning to grow in his chest. Where is she?
His sudden movement drew the attention of the other familiar. Ryuu looked at him, then followed his gaze to the ocean. He quickly scanned the water, and came to the same realization Tomoe had. (Y/N) was nowhere to be seen.
The two of them got to their feet, and walked to the edge of the water. Tomoe made sure to stay back far enough so that the water wouldn't touch his feet. He was scanning the surf, when something caught his eye. It was a small glowing blue orb being pushed along by the tide. Tomoe watched as the small glowing necklace washed up by his feet. He crouched, and picked up the forsaken jewelry.
Ryuu spotted the necklace, and growled. "Something has happened."
Nanami ran up to him. "Tomoe, are you going to come in?" She asked hopefully. It wasn't until she was right beside him that she noticed the necklace. "Isn't that (Y/N)'s..." Her voice trailed off, worry washing over her face.
"I can't go after her. She forbade me from entering the water." Ryuu hissed, kicking his own uselessness.
Without another word, Tomoe stepped into the water. "Are you sure about this?" Mizuki taunted.
"I can't just abandon her. She is a guest at the Mikage shrine, and it is my responsibility to watch over her." Tomoe replied. Before he could go any further, a dark aura washed over the beach. All the humans without spiritual powers collapsed. Damn, he already found me. Tomoe cursed.
"I'm so glad you decided to come, Tomoe." A cloaked figure emerged from the water. "Thanks to that, I've finally found you." The figure grinned. "I have come to collect some old debts. Tomoe the fox, and Ryuutaro the dragon." The figure pulled back his cloak. "I, the Dragon King, have come."
Tomoe looked back, and saw a worried look on Ryuu's face. What did that brat do? He wondered.
"What makes you think I'll go with you?" Ryuu growled. "You're kidding yourself if you think I'll go peacefully."
"Oh, but I think you will." The Dragon King snapped his fingers, and a giant clam emerged from the water. In the shellfish's tentacles (I guess that's what you'd call them) (Y/N) hung unconscious.
"Milady!" Ryuu shouted.
"(Y/N)!" Tomoe called to the unconscious girl.
"Don't bother, she won't wake up for some time." The Dragon King chuckled. "Unless you never want to see this woman again, you two will come quietly." He growled, as two more clams emerged from the water.
Tomoe and Ryuu did nothing, as the tentacles wrapped around them, and dragged them into the clam's shells. The shells snapped shut, trapping them.
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When the clam finally spat out Tomoe, he was thrown directly into a cage. Shortly after, Ryuu was spat into the same cage by the second clam. When the door of the cage was slammed shut, Tomoe ran to the bars. "Where is (Y/N)?" He growled.
The Dragon King stepped forward. "She's right here." He sneered, snapping his fingers. A pair of sea slugs pushed, what looked like an operation table, into the room. (Y/N) was strapped to the table with metal bands across her wrists and ankles. She still hadn't awoken.
"Milady!" Ryuu shouted. "What have you done to her?!" He hissed, rage boiling in his eyes.
"I'm keeping her sedated. It wouldn't be good for the goddess to awake. By sundown I will have my eye, and the two of you will begin to repay me."
"I don't know how you expect to make that happen." Tomoe barked. "The one who I gave the eye to is long dead."
The Dragon King smirked. "Your memory is quite poor, fox. The one who has my eye is right here." He gestured to the unconscious goddess. "That human girl also told me she would get me my eye, in return for your lives."
"No. She can't." Ryuu whispered fearfully.
"One way or another, by sundown, this will be the end of the troublesome goddess." The Dragon King cackled as he left the room, leaving his prisoners alone to suffer.
"What is going on?" Tomoe growled at Ryuu. "What did he mean?"
"500 years ago, Milady came in possession of the Dragon King's Eye. It was the only thing that saved her life. The only way that the eye can be returned is if it is forcefully taken from her body, or if it is retrieved before it is consumed."
"How is that possible?"
"The snake has a way of traveling back in time. If she uses that, and takes the eye before Milady can, she will die. She will vanish, and your life will go on as though she never existed. Should the Landgod fail to retrieve the eye from the past, he will take it by force. The eye, which has been consumed by the dragon on her heart, is keeping her going. Without it she will slowly deteriorate, until she is nothing but a husk."
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Nanami had done exactly what Ryuu had anticipated. She used Mizuki's incense burner, and went back in time to the day Tomoe stole the Dragon King's right eye. She now trudged around in the snow, Mizuki trailing behind her. She was about to give up hope, when she spotted him. He was dripping with seawater, and he had a wicked grin on his face.
"Tomoe, how dare you destroy our palace! Return the Dragon King's right eye!" Several creatures of the sea appeared from the shore, and attempted to attack Tomoe.
Without a second thought, his foxfire engulfed the creatures. "I do not have anymore time to waste with you." The fox growled, as he turned his back to the shore. That's when he spotted Nanami. He glowered at her, before he jumped on his foxfire, and shot into the night sky.
Mizuki picked up Nanami, and together they followed after him on Mizuki's snake. After a while, Tomoe landed beside a hut in the middle of the woods, and went inside. Mizuki and Nanami followed suit, and hid outside the door.
"Where did you go?" A weak woman's voice whispered from the hut.
"I went for medicine. I'm sure this will make you better." Tomoe's replied.
"That's... you foolish fox." The woman chuckled, but the laugh dissolved into coughs.
"Are you alright?" Tomoe's voice was panicked.
"I'm fine." The woman wheezed. "You shouldn't be so reckless, what if something had happened to you?"
"I won't just let you die. Even if it cost me my life, I'd protect you." Tomoe whispered, his voice trembling softly.
"I'm happy so long as you are here, whether or not I live much longer. If I lost you, I'd probably die from loneliness. So please, be more careful." The woman hummed. She once again broke down in a fit of coughs.
"Just hold on, I'll make you some food. Take the medicine! I'll be back shortly." Tomoe hissed urgently. Nanami peaked through a crack in the door to see Tomoe exit the room. She couldn't see the woman's face. She was lying on the ground, covered by thick blankets.
"Now is your chance, Nanami." Mizuki hissed in her ear.
Nanami pushed open the door, and hesitantly entered the room. When she was a foot or so away from the woman, she froze. The woman lying on the floor, wrapped in blankets, was (Y/N).