My Divinity, My Eternity
“Those that remain liars shall find themselves living one for all eternity. It takes but a single truth to let it unwind.”
DETAILS :
written in english
pt. 1 (?)
scaramouche // kunikuzushi // wanderer x gn reader
notes : reader is a puppet made to replace the divine guuji should a situation arise that miko is unable to perform her duties. this is after kunikuzushi becomes the wanderer. this is written before the 3.3 update and anything that happens here is strictly non-canon.
the petals falling from the sacred sakura were beautiful, the puppet decided. they were called ‘sakura blooms’, as their divinity had told them. cold hands pressing on their back, urging them forward with a gentle voice. ei, she had told them to call her. yet, they had refused with a shake of their head. their divinity, their creator. two titles created for the sake of calling her something other than her true name. it was unbefitting for a mere puppet to do so, was it not?
as the evening wind caused the bells to chime around them, the puppet raised their gaze away from the sakura tree. their gaze lifted, footsteps leading them to glance behind them. as they spun on their heel, a figure in blue stopped in his tracks. lavender met an array of color, dull and lacking in genuine existence, not unlike what his once were.
taking a step forwards, the blue trails along his kasa swayed in an absent wind. the puppet lifted their gaze away from the traveler, locking eyes with a person of golden splendor. the golden adventurer stared back, mouth partially parted and eyes dilated. another puppet? another attempt?
had ei truly learned nothing of what had happened the past times? this one was different. devoid of life and a soul, truly a mere dream of what ei could have wanted. it had taken so long for nahida and them to convince kunikuzushi of the importance of emotion. now, however, he was faced with a puppet lacking in everything he had.
the puppet was very small, clearly meant to be just that; a mere performance puppet. staring up at the elder puppet, they met him halfway. a sharp intake of breath from the sun-kissed traveler and their eyes shifted away, meeting lavender once again. the stare of absolute horror in his gaze, matching with sorrow and sympathy. bitter agony pulled at the heartstrings of the former puppet.
then, they smiled. eyes softened, despite a lack of existence or comprehension. a hand lifted from the folds of their yukata, pressing against the wanderer’s pale cheek. fingers passed over smooth porcelain, ignoring the gasp he let out. this wasn’t right. this was a puppet, just like him, and yet no life breathed from them. there wasn’t a heartbeat, not even the presence of the strings once holding him here. the strings of emotion tying them to this shrine was nonexistent, only the strings of purpose.
the puppet stared up at the wanderer, eyes filled with curiosity and genuineness. soiled not by the emotions kunikuzushi had faced, but soiled instead by the obligations. created for a birthright they had no choice in. the truth hit the anemo user at once. they were in the shoes he was made to fill, except that it was for a woman who had long discarded all feelings for the puppets and their iterations.
“hello, kunikuzushi.”
the puppet spoke. for a brief moment, the wanderer felt like he was on cloud nine. regarded as a castaway, a rejected project, now held by the hands that the shogun had blessed. how funny, he thought to himself. the creator discarded of him, yet the prized creation seemed to adore him despite not having met in person.
“…guuji (name), huh? a title for those who worship mother. don’t tell me you actually started believing in that. i’ve only been gone for a short while, little ghost.”
a softness reserved only for the two puppets to ever see of the other, excluding the traveler that had reunited them. kunikuzushi leaned into the puppet’s hand, lavender eyes slowly softening as he realized. very few people knew of his existence. a small list, yet at the top, had been a puppet thrown aside just like him.
a puppet that had rushed into the rain after his dismissal, soft purple wagasa in hand. who’d sheltered and protected him, even when the lightning struck just by the small town they’d resided in. who had held him, prepared to fight for him.
indeed, (name) was but a mere ghost to him. a puppet with the hint of emotion, yet an eternal devotion to the liege of their choosing. the very puppet who’d torn their mechanical heart out, cutting the threads all so he could breathe again. holding them in his arms while their eyes grew dull and lifeless, just as a puppet meant to be.
yet, here they were. standing before him. adoring him, just like they were but fresh creations. holding him as if an eternity could be found in those lavender eyes of his. that hint of gentle emotion shining behind plastic eyes, warmth seeming to emit from their porcelain.
“welcome home, my eternity. we have a lot to discuss, don’t we?”
