#ler!gorou

Aether was known for many things and had received many titles throughout his adventures across Teyvat - Honorary Night of the Knights of Favonius, Hero of Liyue, Paladin of Breezes and Bells, Tumaini - the list could be continued almost endlessly, just as his deeds. So, it wasn’t surprising, that many rumors and myths entwine themselves around the blonde man.

However, in certain circles, a particular rumor is currently a much-discussed topic: Aether, the Traveler - they say he isn’t ticklish. That myth had conquered every nation by now - from the flower fields of Mondstadt, to the deserts of Sumeru and the faraway lands of cherry blossoms, Inazuma.

Many and tried, many had failed… Old gods as Venti had tried. Tricksters like Lyney had tried. Even Xiao had poked him once, accidently of course. But no matter who, the Traveler had never cracked a laugh. Instead, he had snorted or blinked, or rolled his eyes, before he took revenge. Now, it wasn’t like he didn’t laugh at all, that would be a lie.

It was just that it wasn’t through tickling, an action he himself loved to deliver onto others a lot. So, it didn't take long that a group of brave individuals had formed, all in alliance to test out if these rumors were true and to pay him back with his own medicine.

They all had once or repeatedly being involved in tickly happenings with him - only on the receiving end of course. Preparations had been made, techniques and plans discussed and detailly planned. A certain flying partner bribed with sweets... all was ready and today was their final gambit…

...

Aether stepped through the grassy field of his teapot, two hands covering his eyes from behind, as Bennett guided him to their destination. "Are we there already?" the blonde asked, curious what the other had planned.

"Hehe, we're almost there, be careful you don't trip~" "Shouldn't it be you that should be careful?" he teased back and Bennett gave him sly smile. "Oh don't worry about me." You should rather worry about yourself, he finished in his mind. They walked for another minute or so before Aether was suddenly pushed forward. "Ups… my bad~"

But rather than falling to the ground, he was caught by two pairs of arms that guided him to the ground. "WhoHh... h-hey what the-" Puzzled, Aether opened his eyes, blinded by the sun at first, before he felt more hands on his body, gently but firmly pressing him into the grass.

He blinked a few times and then he saw them: The ones that caught him in their arms turned out to be Gaming and Gorou who were grinning down at him. "Hello Traveler~" "We haven't seen each other in a while, it’s good to see you friend~" Raising his head a bit, he could also see Ororon and Freminet who were kneeling by his sides. "Surprise Grandpa~" "...H-Hi..." Lastly, there were also Wanderer and Razor, who were seated by his feet. "Hello..." "Traveler, friend, Razor happy to see you~" Bennett stood before him, arms crossed and a huge grin on his face. "Traveler, I'm happy that you decided to join us today for our little gathering~" he announced, before he sat down, straddling him as he sat onto his chest.

"E-Everyone, what's the big plan?" Aether stuttered, feeling a wave of nervousness and excitement rising inside him. As happy as he was to see his friends, they were looking at him with these impish smiles that didn't bode well. "You will see in a second~" was all Bennett said before he and the others glanced at each other, nodding.

"Don't worry, it will be funny..." Gaming reassured him, leaning his head above his "...at least for some of us~" he added with a wink and before Aether could've had a chance to ask what he meant, he already felt how his boots were tugged off and discharged on the ground and then it dawned on him: They were going to tickle him!

Panic rose in him and he began to squirm. "W-Wait, guys, y-y-you don't have too- pffFtft noHOho waHAhit!" he broke midsentence as fourteen hands began to wiggle, slid, and scratch over him, seeming to explore every inch of his body. His mouth opened and light giggles were bubbling out of him that got louder and stronger with each passing second.

"He's already giggling, guess the rumors weren't true after all..." Gorou commented, amused, holding one arm up so that he could wiggle his fingers into the blonde's bare armpit, his tail wagging excitingly. Gaming did the same on the other side, both tickling the sensitive spot in sweeping motions. Freminet looked delighted. “So he’s… really ticklish?” he asked innocently.

"*Sigh* What a letdown and here I thought breaking him would take longer..." Wanderer comment, almost seeming disappointed, as he stretched his foot with one hand while sliding his fingers from his heel up the arch and to the toes with the other. The action made Aether's sole twitch, but the dark-haired had a strong grip, making escaping impossible.

"HaAhahhah noHoHohoo g-guHuhuys n-noHoot thHEhehre!" "Where grandpa, you have to be specific. Does it tickle here?" Ororon asked all innocently, squeezing his hip. "Or does it tickle, here?" he added, squeezing his knee this time.

"Yeah, "Grandpa" tell us where it tickles, hehe~" Bennett teased, as he wiggled both hands into his sides, pressing them in-between the blonde's ribs. He was surprised that Aether had cracked so quickly, but it only benefited him and the others. In made the whole situation even better and made their actual plan - to get him back - already a huge success.

"Ahhahahaha I- ehEhehHEeh I caHahahn't!" Aether squealed, not able to concentrate what the others were saying. The ticklish feeling all over his body was almost unbearable and yet he didn't really hate it, strange as it was. "AHAHhAHAHAh heEHEHhHEhe s-stoHohop iIHit!"

He had always been very ticklish, but could easily hide his sensitivity when only one spot got tickled - like in the many tickle fights he had in the past, with - ironically - all of them and many, many more. Though, only his sister and Paimon knew how ticklish he really was, well up till now at least.

He swatted weakly at each attacker though not truly resisting. Eventually, he tried pivoting to wrestle back but he wasn’t just strong enough to go solo against them. “UhUhuhnfair! This is ehHEheheh… goHohood strategy but unfair! AHHahAhah!” he gasped between laughs.

"Razor likes Traveler's laugh. I want to hear more of it," the grey-haired commented, eagerly scratching his toes. "You have to do it more gently, here do it like me," Wanderer guided him and Razor watched how he did it, copying his technique. His fingers got slower and he gently wiggled under his heel, making his laughter high-pitched.

"WHahh thank you Hat Guy, Razor is happy to find a new tickle buddy~" "Hnng, I'm NOT your- arhgh this is your fault," Wanderer cursed and clawed his fingers in-between Aether's toes. "HAHAHAHAh whAhhHy is thhHis m-myhYhy fauHualt?!" "Just because..." Wanderer said, pulling his hat a bit into his face to hide his blush.

Freminet, who hadn't joined the verbal teasing yet, only squeezing gently at his knee, which felt more like a massage, but didn't matter much with more than twenty fingers there to help out, then said, "...But Razor is right... I mean," he hesitated, "he does have a cute laugh... I can't wait to tell Lyney and Lynette about it~" he mumbled, blushing as well.

"AhHahahah doOHon't you daHaahhre!" "Oh don't worry about it," Gaming said, scathing his fingers under his chin, before leaning down, "we'll make sure that tomorrow allll of Teyvat will know about it," he whispered into his ear, before blowing hot air into it, making the other squeal. "HnnHGng waHAhahAhhHh~"

"Hehehe don't be too mean to him, or you'll regret it later on..." Gorou commented. "After today, I'm sure we don't have to worry about it too much, right, Mr. I'm-Ticklish-Everywhere~" Bennett teased as he slid one hand down his chest, gliding over his bare stomach and right into his belly button.

"AHAHAHAHAH OHOHO MYMY AHHAHAHRCHOHOHN! I- AHAHAH I HAHAHTE YOHOHOU!" Aether laughed as he sucked in his stomach in hope to ease the ticklish feeling. But he quickly realized that it only made things worse for him. All Bennett had to do was waiting for him to breath in some air and voilà, there he was, playing right back into his waiting hands.

Tears of mirth were streaming down his flustered face. He felt hot, his head felt light and fuzzy, as if he had drunken a bit too much after an evening with Venti and the sensations were driving him crazy.

"We know you don't, but I guess we got what we wanted, right guys?" Gaming said. "We sure did, but I guess another minute wouldn't hurt," Bennett teased. Aether managed to eke out a breath, still pinned across multiple angles. “DoHohon’t- I’m head spinning!” he protested breathily, though the oranges in his cheeks gave him away.

“Because … I’m so good? Is that it?” the white-haired teased again and Aether made a mental note that he would be the first to feel his "wrath". Gaming leaned in. “We don't want to kill him here, ten more seconds is enough,” he suggested, all while he continued to wiggle his fingers against his neck this time, making the blonde lean against them.

The action made Aether flinch. They all laughed, while he continued giggling. The last ten seconds felt like an eternity and the fact that all of them - even Wanderer - counted them down, didn't make it easier. "...2...1... Time's Up!" One by one they stopped the tickling and finally released him.

Aether lied there, blinking, his chest heaving, his uniform totally messed up and his entire body prickling. He slowly sat upright, his knees to his chest and looked at each of them. He rubbed his face, breath catching in his throat. He didn’t glare, no he… just smiled. "You all … tricked me," he exhaled, "I should’ve known..."

However, in the final hush, Aether said softly, in honest affection: "...Thank you. Truly. For getting me-" Bennett tapped his foot. "For getting you to laugh at last by us tickling the hell out of you? You’re welcome~" Gorou wagged his tail, his eyes sparkling. "Now we know." Razor nodded. "You’re a strong friend, but a ticklish friend too~" Wanderer just crossed his arms and gave him a smirk, visibly satisfied. Freminet, tucking a strand of hair behind his ear, added, "You gave us the best laughter we could ask for, Aether. T-Thank you…" "You’re still cool Grandpa, even if you’re super ticklish," Ororon simply said, content.

Aether hugged his legs, pulling them even closer and hide his face in them, cheeks lingering red. He dared one look around. Their grins were still there - kindness, playfulness and affection pouring from their eyes.

What sign was this? That after countless adventures, explorations, heartbreak and heroism they could still get him laughing? Still bring out the giggle he never thought they’d witness, at least not in a way like that? He closed his eyes briefly, savoring the moment. Then he leaned over lightly and swiped a finger at Bennett’s side.

“Stupid rabbit.” Bennett yelped and a spiderweb of laughter sparked again. “For archons sake, was it worth it?” he mumbled. They all laughed again. They’d witnessed the myth fall and best of all? The Traveler, humbled at last and fully human.

To what, he didn’t know. But the determination to help was there.

When he rushed over, he wasn’t expecting to be in the presence of the one he remembered called Hat guy, who was currently occupied with trying to push Aether away from him. Gorou was confused, who exactly needed the help here?

“Uh, what’s going on?” Gorou questioned over the grunts and fighting of the other two males.

“Nothing that concerns you!” Hat guy scowled. “If you know what’s good for you, you’ll walk away.”

There was something about Hat guy’s voice that always managed to make Gorou feel nervous, whether it was the tone or the aura he seemed to have.

“Don’t listen to him, Gorou, help me pin him down!”

“Why do you need me to help you do that?” Gorou’s fuzzy ear twitched in visible confusion and confliction. “What’s even going on here?”

“I said walk away,” Hat guy sneered.

Gorou thought it would be fun to chill in Aether’s serenitea pot and get to know his friends from other nations, but how this was not one of those times.

“Stop being rude to Gorou,” Aether chided, but was pushed down to the ground. “Ah! Hey!”

“I was being honest; this doesn’t concern him. This is between you and me and looks like I have the upper hand here.” Wanderer let out an evil chuckle as he gazed down at his pinned prey.

Aether’s eyes looked over to Gorou’s, begging and desperate to help him out.

Gorou almost whined, unsure what to do. The two were friends, as far as Gorou was aware, so hurting him would be out of the question. What to do? What to do??

“Now, do you admit defeat? AH!” Hat guy startled an unexpected squeak as he felt two fingers jab into his sides. His head shot back around to stare down the culprit. “The hell do you think you’re doing?!”

“I’m helping Aether!” Gorou declared, albeit quite nervously. In his panicked state he resorted to the least harmful counterattack he could think of and continued to tickle Hat guy’s sides. “I hope…”

“I tohold yohou to stay out of this, mutt!”

Gorou’s ears flattened in anger at the use of that word and growled as he began to tickle with renewed vigor. Hat guy cackled mixed with an angry growl trying to protect his sides using his arms.

Because of this movement, Aether was no longer pinned by the anemo user and successfully managed to get back up. Gorou wasn’t sure what he was expecting to happen once Aether had been saved, but he was now conflicted if he should stop tickling or not.

Hat guy was laughing hard at this point, Gorou was too scared to stop. What had he gotten himself into? Was this how he ends? He knew for a fact that Hat guy wasn’t going to be happy with him once the tickling stopped.

“Uh, Aether?” Gorou asked over Hat guy’s laughter.

“Yeah?”

“What do I do?”

Aether chuckled nervously. “I honestly don’t know. I didn’t expect you to take this approach.”

“Huh?!” Gorou yelped. He cautiously brought his fingers to a halt and lowered his ears nervously. “I should probably go now…”

He went to stand only to feel a hand grab onto his wrist tightly, startling a yelp from the doggy general.

“You think you get to walk away now?”

So first and foremost, we’ll start with the vs Itto dynamics. My boy has encountered all of them in my fanfics

Ayato

(Lee)

If anyone else was to tickle him, they wouldn’t get much of a reaction. But he lets himself laugh when Itto tickles him

He thinks it’s nice to let loose and let his worries melt away at the hands of Itto. It helps him relax as long as it’s gentle and playful

His laughter is full of joy and he’s really ticklish on his waist and lower back

Other spots make him chuckle or giggle beautifully

He doesn’t like to be tickled for long and will be very upset if his “stop” isn’t heard

Itto sometimes blows raspberries on him, which isn’t super effective but it does result in amused giggles

Itto is gentle with him most of the time, but also loves to make him laugh his head off by tickling his weak spots. Scribbling and squeezing work the best, and Itto always showers him with compliments:

“Your laugh is so… nice, y’know? You sound so happy!”

“Hehe! You’re very pretty~”

“Aww, your giggles are adorable!”

“Your laughter is like music to my ears…”

“Kitchy kitchy coo~ haha!”

(Ler)

He’s the biggest tease to ever exist, stopping at nothing to make Itto blush like a tomato

Bullies the shit outta him like ???

«EHEHEHAHAHA!! IT TICKLES!!» “Aww, I know, darling.. I know.”

“Oh dear, is this a bad spot~?”

“My, my, you sure are fiesty, hehe~”

“Tickle tickle tickle~”

He’s a gentle but merciless tickler (unless you’re Itto; he will dig into your ribs)

He pays close attention to Itto’s facial expressions while tickling him silly, to make sure he doesn’t overdo it

“Sounds like you’re enjoying yourself, hehe~”

“Are you having fun, dear?”

He’ll sometimes tickle Itto to cheer him up. First he asks him to smile. If he can’t smile, or if his smile isn’t happy enough, Ayato hugs and tickles him to help him “recover”

“Aw, there’s that smile! You’re so beautiful, honey…”

Will deliver several kisses, nuzzles, nibbles and raspberries with no shyness whatsoever

He has a really mean method of tickling, where he’ll hold one of Itto’s horns to keep his head still and tickle his neck, under his chin, his jaw or (especially) his ears

He may also hold both horns in place to kiss all over his face and nibbling his jaw

It doesn’t last very long usually, since Itto prefers to move freely while getting tickled. Otherwise he’ll get really upset

Gorou

(Lee)

He is extremely ticklish and squirms like crazy to escape

The only one he trusts to tickle him is Itto, because he knows he won’t kill him, y’know?

Since he’s such a cutie patootie, his most ticklish area is his tummy

He both loves and hates being tickled at the same time

Though he does sometimes want Itto to tickle him. The most common thing he does to communicate this is to lie down face-up across his lap and stare into his soul

His laughter gets louder and higher in pitch the worse it tickles, also squealing and kicking a lot

Itto loves to tickle and tease him:

“Aww! Who’s a good boy? Haha!”

“You’re so cute!”

“Tickle tickle tummy~!”

Itto always keeps an eye on his tail and face to make sure he’s not in distress

Gorou wags his tail like crazy when he gets tickled, especially on his tummy even though it kills him lmao

His face gets red every time Itto teases him and/or tickles him gently

Itto often cuddles him really close before tickling and blowing raspberries on his tum

He gets all of the kisses, nibbles, nuzzles and raspberries!

He can’t take it for very long unless it’s soft and playful

Can’t win a tickle fight to save his life

Itto is mean sometimes, pinning Gorou’s arms above his head for the sake of bullying. This doesn’t last too long though, but it makes him shriek and squeal

(Ler)

He’s often too shy to tickle Itto, but he’ll learn

He’s also nervous to do so because he knows he’ll get revenge

However, Itto sometimes annoys him on purpose to get tickled, provoking him into starting a tickle fight

Gorou likes to mercilessly nuzzle him, to show affection and to tickle him at the same time. It’s great because Itto barely fights back against it

He can use his tail to tickle too

His tickling is rutheless if he’s annoyed enough, making Itto laugh his head off until he apologizes

Otherwise his tickling is very playful

Thoma

(Lee)

Thoma is very ticklish, he’s a little embarrassed about it

He laughs and giggles a lot when he gets tickled

He runs out of breath pretty quickly though, so tickles don’t last very long without breaks

His giggles are simply adorable and his laughter can heal any soul

Itto has the upper hand since he’s got the claws™️

Ayato sometimes tickles him too, usually starting off gentle before suddenly switching to rougher tickles, making the poor man laugh hysterically

Sometimes he teams up with Ayaka to destroy him, which is a fun game they’ve played since they were younger

One must be gentle to avoid tiring him

(Ler)

He’s very gentle and kind

“Are you alright?”

“Is this ok?”

“Should I stop?”

“Are you having fun?”

“Tickle tickle!”

Won’t tickle for very long unless told otherwise

Doesn’t tickle hard unless Itto “isn’t laughing enough” (he gets more mischievous when Itto is his target)

Will use tickling to cheer him up

Because he’s so gentle, he can tickle someone for ages without exhausting them as much

Thoma is the only one able to convince Itto to raise his arms while tickling him, but Itto would rather die than admit it to anyone

He’s too nice to dig into Itto’s armpits without warning, so he just lightly scribbles instead to test his endurance (it still makes him laugh a lot though)

Sara

(Lee)

Oh she HATES being tickled

She’ll only ever accept soft tickles from Itto

She’d kill him if he tried to tickle her more than that (aka tickle him to tears)

He always respects her boundaries and does his best to make sure she’s comfy and happy

Though there are times where he tries to tickle her more to make her laugh for a few seconds

It’s a bad idea every single time and always results in revenge tickles

She doesn’t mind him being silly like that, even though it gets on her nerves

She’s too embarrassed to show her unfiltered laughter

(Ler)

If Itto has made his death wish, aka tickled Sara more than gently, she’ll quickly turn the tables

She’s strong enough to wrestle and hold him down

She shows no mercy with her revenge tickles, which often leads to the poor oni howling and flailing with laughter

She likes to tickle him because he’s adorable so like what else is she supposed to do

But also he’s annoying sometimes and tickling the attitude out of him works

She can barely comprehend how he somehow manages to have fun despite being “punished”

She’s strong enough to temporarily hold one arm above his head to commit murder (aka tickle his armpit)

She can also use any of her fallen feathers to tickle him with, or straight up use her wings depending on their positions

If they’re both merely chilling, she’ll sometimes plant ticklish kisses on Itto’s neck to make him giggle

Not that Itto realized Gorou was actually the writer behind those advices, which was something Gorou would never admit to him either. After having mentioned that Gorou did look like Ms. Hina -- which sparked their meeting in the first place, Itto seemed to be more keen about bothering Gorou with the very own advices he had written.

Gorou groaned. "I'm not rushing, I am just busy.” 

“It's also not good to just be too busy all the time! You should take a break, I can join you!” Itto said, chasing after him for absolutely no reason at all.

“No! No need,” Gorou said. Still, somehow he did end up taking a break with Itto by his side, after failing to shrug him off even as he exited the city. The two of them sat on the beach near the water, and he sighed, accepting the lollipop that Itto had fetched on their way, and he tasted it. Hm. Not bad.

“Heh! Feels nice to take a break, doesn’t it?” Itto sighed. Gorou rolled his eyes.

“Just why are you following me around anyway?” he asked, enjoying the lollipop. Itto looked at him and shrugged.

“I don’t know. You’re nice company! I like you,” Itto said bluntly, causing Gorou to almost choke, and he coughed softly. 

“I see... I see,” he muttered shyly, wondering why those silly words made him feel like this. Itto chuckled and sucked on his lollipop, looking dreamily ahead of him. 

“I know you said you don’t know her, but I can’t stop thinking about Ms. Hina and the words she wrote to me. Ever since I started writing to That’s Life, and heard her words of advice and encouragement, I’ve become a better man,” he said, chomping off the final bits of his lollipop. 

Gorou wanted to groan. Why again Ms. Hina talk! This had to be his curse for fooling people like this with a false persona, a curse directed at the wrong person because this wouldn’t be happening if it wasn’t for Yae Miko!

It all started with her forcing him into this situation, where under the alias of Ms. Hina - an alias that was not even created with his approval, he would run a column for her popular magazine, in which he would offer advice and support to readers, helping them in their times of need.

How could he have known the columns would gain so much popularity, and attract so many fans? With gang leader Arataki Itto being his biggest fan? Gorou could. not. believe. it. And he was already thankful that Itto did not seem to suspect anything about his identity, but it seemed that there were other ways to be punished and tortured, such as Itto following him around and reciting every bit of advice Gorou himself had written for him. Talk about embarrassing.

“What are you frowning for? Hey, cheer up! Today is a sunny day!” Itto said, suddenly poking Gorou’s side, making him shriek like a cat whose tail got stepped on. 

“Ho! Ticklish? Heehee, Sorry. Oh but that’s good! Ms. Hina also says you should laugh out loud at least once a day! I am ticklish too, we can make each other laugh! I can go first?” Itto said, spreading his arms. Gorou was too busy being flustered though, bending forward and hugging his tail defensively.

“I’m not ticklish, and I don’t wanna lau-GHhAHhahah!” he giggled when he could feel how thick fingers started to poke his sides. 

“Oh alright then. I don’t mind if you want to go first! Laughing is healthy. Even if there’s nothing to laugh about, it’s good to let it all go,” Itto lectured, and suddenly he was all over Gorou, his fingers wiggling against his sides. Worst of all was that Gorou remembered writing all these exact same words. This really was his way of getting cursed! 

“Pfffahahah! Hehehey!” Gorou laughed, and he tried to jump away in surprise, but Itto held him tightly and pinned him down in the sand. 

“Theeeere is that laugh! This is nice. Ticklish people are made to get tickled,” Itto said matter-of-factly. 

“You’re crahahahazehehe-aahahha!” 

Gorou couldn’t remember the last time he got tickled like this, but definitely didn’t remember it could make him cackle and snort like he was doing right now. His own lollipop lay miserably to the side where he had dropped it in the sand, and he still had his arms wrapped around his middle which was his automatic reflex that did not help him at all.

“Heehehehee Ittahaha! Waha-wai-wahahait!” He kicked his legs and shook his head hysterically, and he howled when Itto started to pull at his arms, trying to uncover his tummy.

“Plehehease not thehehere!” Gorou giggled. Itto had only tickled his sides so far and he did not want to know what it was going to be like if his tummy would get the same treatment. Itto was too excited though, and he continued to try to pry Gorou’s arms away.

“Just for a little! I promise that after I’m done, you can tickle me!” It did not make things better, but Gorou’s strength failed him too as Itto finally managed to break through his barrier to tickle his stomach. The ticklishness he felt was absolutely insane, and truly he couldn’t remember ever laughing this loud.

“AHahah! Hahahang on nahahaah! Wahahah!” His hands desperately chased after Itto’s fingers, but the ticklish shocks surged through his body and in the end all he could do was laugh. 

“Whew! That was so cute,” Itto said when he finally lifted his wiggly fingers off Gorou’s shuddering body. Gasping for breath, Gorou clutched his chest and couldn’t help but still giggle.

“Y-you’re ー uneblievable,” he panted.

Itto took it as a compliment and said, “I know right? Feels good right? You know, you actually have Ms. Hina to thank for this. She is right. It’s good to laugh everyday, so even if nothing funny is happening, it can be done through tickling. We are blessed to be ticklish, it is a like a gift from the Archons,” Itto said. Gorou blushed and clutched his chest tighter, trying to calm down his racing heart. 

“Well? Are you not going to tickle me?” Itto said, spreading his arms. Gorou blushed. How was he supposed to...? All his eyes could focus on was that bare skin he was too shy to touch. 

“I surely can’t tickle myself,” Itto said impatiently. Gorou knew that. He shyly reached out and started to poke Itto’s lower side.

“Heehee!” That was fast. Gorou hesitated and looked at Itto who was smiling like an idiot.

“Do it again,” Itto encouraged. Gorou rolled his eyes and started to tickle him with more determination. It was hilarious how Itto flopped back, laughing like a child. 

“That tihihihickleeees!” It felt as if he was exaggerating, but the moment Gorou started to feel less shy and actually dared to climb on top of him so he could attack him with fierce tickles as a payback for all that nonsense, it sounded absolutely genuine. Itto was indeed very ticklish.

“Hahahahaha! Ohohoho feheheels gohoood to lahahaugh!” Fortunately no one was out fishing today or hanging around at the same place, because it must’ve been the strangest sight.

“Yeah? Ready to give up yet?” Gorou asked, wishing to tickle Itto at least until he would surrender, but seemed like this ridiculous oni had no such plans. He shook his head and laughed freely.

 “Keeeheheeep goiihihing!” he laughed. Gorou couldn’t believe it when in the end, he was the first one to stop the tickle attack, he was too flustered to continue. Luckily Itto didn’t persuade him to tickle him further, and he rolled onto his side and watched him with a smile.

“Thank you, Ms. Hina,” he sighed with a smile. Gorou blushed and gasped. “Wha?!” he yelped. 

Itto shook his head. “I was just feeling thankful towards Ms. Hina. Thanks to her advice, I got to have this tickle fight with you. Who would’ve thought? It’s crazy,” Itto said dreamily. 

It was indeed crazy, Gorou thought.

“So, tomorrow again?” Itto suggested. Gorou frowned, but Itto continued: “Like Ms. Hina said, laughter is good for you at least once a day. I think this is my favorite way to laugh. Just a good old tickle fight, and I can do it to you as well,” Itto said, poking Gorou’s side and making him squeak.

“J-just... no! Ms. Hina is wrong,” Gorou protested with a blush on his face, but this earned him to have a vengeful oni pounce on him.

“Whaaat did you say?!” Itto roared as he started tickling Gorou again. 

“NAhaahah I sahahaid she’s wrohohong! GAahahah!” And thus continued Gorou’s apparent mission to dig his own grave. 

Then again, something inside him told him he didn’t mind that much to spend so much time with Itto, and now that he seemed to have this new mission to include lots of laughter in their meetings, he couldn’t help but feel warm and fuzzy. 

Honestly? Gorou's had fun! His relationship with Itto is still fairly new, but he's had a good time. They've spent time together, cuddled to sleep, kissed, and Gorou's learned a lot about Itto. For example, he learned that Itto snores when he sleeps. Not the loud dad-type snoring, but the soft snores that Gorou finds quite endearing and cute. He's also learned that Itto loves physical contact. Any chance he gets, he'd cuddle up next to Gorou, and even have Gorou hold him at night when they sleep. Not that Gorou minds at all...he actually loves that about his boyfriend.

However, one of the things he's learned that he's not very fond of is that Itto is a heavy sleeper. A very heavy sleeper. In fact, almost anything Gorou does to wake him up seems to not affect Itto's sleeping at all, which is why Gorou is currently getting a little worried.

Having tripple-checked that he packed everything, Gorou looks over to their bed. He needs to wake up Itto so he can get ready to leave for the airport. "Itto~," he says softly, "it's time to get up~ We have to be at the airport in a few hours. Itto?"

With no response, Gorou tries again, a little louder, and a little firmer. "Itto. You need to get up."

'Ugh. This is impossible.' He thinks to himself when he notices Itto's bare foot poking out of the covers, upturned from sleeping on his stomach. 'Well...if my voice won't wake him up, maybe this will.' he thinks, a smirk appearing on his face.

Something else Gorou had learned about Itto on this trip? He's very ticklish. One night when they were cuddling, Gorou put his arm around him, and layed his hand on his side when, suddenly, Itto spasmed, and squeaked.

"AHH!" he had yelled, jerking away from Gorou's hand and into his body. "What did you do that for?" he had pouted, turning his head to look up at Gorou.

"O-oh. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to do that." Gorou had replied, suprised to see his muscular boyfriend react to such a light touch in that way.

"I-its fine. Just...warn me next time, yeah?" Itto had smiled back, not mad about the accidental tickle.

So, having learned that precious information, Gorou's now approaching his sleeping boyfriend's foot in hopes to tickle him awake.

Like the rest of Itto, his feet are quite large, size 13, which, to Gorou at this moment, just meant that there was more to tickle. So, sitting down next to his leg, Gorou gently glided a single finger from Itto's heel, all the way up to just under his toes. Itto's foot twitched, his toes slightly curling, then fanning out, then returning to normal. Gorou noted that his foot was quite soft too, which doesn't suprise him. Even though he is very muscular, Itto takes very good care of his entire body, from his horns, to his painted nails, and even down to his feet.

Doing the same movement, this time with his nail, Gorou drags it from Itto's toes down to his heel. Looking up to the head of the bed, Gorou sees the faintest ghost of a smile on his boyfriend's face. 'Cute...' Gorou thought to himself, giggling.

Adding another finger, Gorou switched up his tactics. Instead of just going up and down, he swirled both fingers in circles from the heel to the toes, staying at the toes for a few moments before he heard a giggle come from Itto.

Looking back at his head, Gorou now saw a smile on his boyfriends face, who is still very much asleep, though his other foot snuck out of the blankets to rub the foot that is currently being tickled by his partner.

Having both of Itto's feet now, and still no sign of his boyfriend waking up, Gorou lowered his other hand to the foot Itto just brought out, scraping his fingers across his toes while also adding yet another finger to the other foot, causing both feet to scrunch and toes to spread. Another giggle came from Itto, followed by a sigh.

Realizing that tickling just his feet alone probably wouldn't work, Gorou peels the blankets away from his slumbering boyfriend and straddles his thighs, using his claws to gently flutter over Itto's bare sides while his tail dusts over Itto's soles and toes, occasionally swiping between his toes, earning him cute giggles from his oni boyfriend. "C'mon, Itto~ It's time to get up~" Gorou says softly.

Beggining to finally rouse from his sleep, Gorou hears Itto say something through his giggling. "Whahahahat? Mmmphehehe! Nohohoho! Let me sleehehehep! Eeek! Nohohot my tohohohoes!" Itto squeals, burying his quickly reddening face in his pillow, squirming and beggining to kick his legs, though it's clear to Gorou that he's using no effort. It almost seems like he's enjoying this. 'Cute.' he thinks once more, enamored with his boyfriends cute reactions.

Sighing, he responds to the now giggling Itto. "No, Itto. You need to get up and get ready so we can be at the airport early. You can sleep on the flight if you're tired." He slowly climbs his hands to Itto's underarms, exposed from his hands being under his pillow.

"Plehehehease!" Itto pleads. "Juhuhuhust five mohohohore minutes! Hehehehehe!" Itto's still not fighting back, leading Gorou to beleive that maybe...just maybe...his boyfriend really does like this.

"No, Itto. You need to get up now. Or do you want me to keep tickling you?" He punctuates his sentence by quickly dusting his tail over all of Itto's toes, tickling between and under the sensitive digits.

"EEEK! NOHOHOHOHOHO!" Itto laughs, his voice still being muffled by the pillow, though Gorou can see the darkening pink on his ears. "PLEHEHEHEASE! IM TIHIHIhihihired!"

Slowing down, Gorou says, "I know, baby. But you need to get ready. Ive already packed everything and I even let you sleep in. I've been very nice. Don't make me be mean." He says playfully, reaching under Itto, seemingly hugging him from above, only to vibrate his hand on his belly.

"Okay! Okahahahay! I'm up! I'm uhuhuhuhup!" Itto sqeals, turning his head from the pillow.

"Good boy." Gorou teases, still lightly tickling Itto's sides and feet while kissing up his strong back to his neck, then face, where he peppers kisses all over it before finally planting one on his lips before rolling off of his boyfriend to lay beside him.

Scooting over to his boyfriend, Itto wraps his arms around Gorou's waist and, smushing his still-red face against his chest. Panting, Itto says, "I love you so much."

Tail wagging and giggling, Gorou replies, "I love you too, you big ticklish dork." before prying himself from Itto's hold, kissing him on his forehead before getting off of the bed. He grabs Itto's clothes and throws them at him after opening the curtains to let the morning light in, hurriedly saying, "Hurry up! Shinobu and the rest of your gang just texted that they're ready!"

Itto finally sits up, rubs his eyes, and looks at his boyfriend, stretching, saying, "I'm so happy that your mine, puppy."