#shoyuumono

And... as usual for the sinister sector, ever so faintly of death.

Unless that is just him. The other few shadows who roam the streets don’t bother him: once he makes eye contact somewhere and watches a stranger quickly look away, almost fearful. Even here, he cannot simply be a lost child.

Though, tonight he is truly not a lost child. His asking around has told him exactly where to go, at last. He moves with purpose, short legs covering ground at an urgent pace.

(Even if he’s wrong, his time is better spent here than trying to sleep alone.)

The apartment complex is one of the more obvious buildings in the sector, now he knows what he’s looking for. He isn’t familiar with the concept of apartments, but it’s where his brother is said to be now. Where those scientists have chosen to keep him.

It must be another hour -- stopping people to question them, being stopped and asked where he’s going, slipping into places he doesn’t belong, climbing flights of stairs -- before he reaches the door to the right room.

A warm excitement rushes over him, but it fades quickly when there is no answer to his knock. Maybe he’s asleep...? He opens the door carefully.

“Niisama...?”

The room is empty of life. Sayo steps inside, searching for any sign someone lives here.

The bed (not a futon like he’s accustomed to, but the modern replacement they all seem to be given here) is unmade, and he peers into the closet to find clothes inside. None of them the distinctive outfit Souza wore on outings, but--

On the floor he spots an unmistakable string of beads, picks it up immediately. One of his necklaces...

Not a sign something happened to him, he insists. He just didn’t wear it today. And he... isn’t home, in the middle of the night.

A sound somewhere between a sigh and a whine escapes the boy, and he throws himself down on the bed, necklace still clutched in his hand.

He... has to wait here; he doesn’t have anywhere else to go. He buries his face in a pillow, the only comfort the light scent still clinging to it, like their room in the citadel...

It’s impossible to place when or how he falls asleep.

     “My, what a long and thick sword you have at your side.”

A wooden one - no doubt that this person was a newcomer to the city - but a little detail like that wasn’t worth mentioning. His attire was reminiscent of typical Hoshidan attire, though he doubt the man hailed from his world. 

Really, he only came up to him because he was bored and wanted to find someone to cure said boredom, and with a gloomy expression like that, he couldn’t resist. Though, he did have an awfully nice face.

🎖- Is your muse the “forgive and forget” type or do they hold grudges? 

It’s hard for him to forgive, but he does...eventually. But he never forgets. Eichi, he will burn in a ritual pyre.

🖋- If your muse was an author/poet, what kind of stories would they write about?

In his freshman year I can see him writing 3edge6u stuff or like...practical how to fortunetelling or advice based on your zodiac stuff???? ? ?

“Well, I did warn them.” His voice isn’t quite robust enough to replace the echoes of shots and screams already fading from the narrow alleyway, but that’s hardly the worst of his concerns, now. Even in the sparse light here, certain details were far too obvious for his liking: dark splatters soaking large portions of his jacket, the metallic glint of the revolver in his left hand, the eerie, still warm forms crumpled just outside of the moonlight’s reach. A breeze tousles his hair, bringing with it the sound of steps behind him.

He turns -- the cobblestones beneath his feet are quite slick, despite the recent dry spell -- and eyes the newcomer, expression rather calm for the circumstances. He’s certain he’s never seen this man before, so it’s strange that he’d meet him here and now, of all places. Ah, so it goes.  Whatever had possessed the stranger to enter the alleyway wasn’t any of his business, really.

Send me a 👎 and I'll tell you a weakness/flaw my muse has.

He has a weakness for beautiful men can be easily swayed by anything that catches his interest, which is a blessing and a curse in his eyes but when he’s supposed to be completing a specific objective and finds himself wandering after something shiny or falling in love with the enemy’s songs... it’s kind of a problem. He likes to listen and learn for himself more than he likes to do what he’s told. (However, if this is mistaken for a weakness of resolve or willingness to break promises, anyone trying to take advantage of it has something else coming.)

He’d call it a strength, but it’s definitely a flaw of character: he’s remorseless. Though not entirely without standards or emotions, he makes it a principle not to regret anything he’s done. Just keep pressing onward, as the present is all that matters. This makes him... callous, if not outright monstrous, to some people, and he doesn’t do anything to try to set negative interactions or perceptions of him right.

“Then it should be okay to take a look at it!” Sayo whines, hands tugging at his brother’s sleeve. The attempt to reassure him only makes him worry more-- he can see Souza isn’t about to die from a wound like this, it seems to have stopped bleeding already, but the real concern is...

“Who did this to you, Niisama? Sit down, don’t go-- you can tell me... you can tell me anything.”

▊狐 “Another tsukumogami, hm? Well, I see why a Japanese spirit would be attracted to an event such as this.” Sake in one of her hands, the fox laid on her side upon a blanket beneath a cherry blossom tree.

“Actually, I’m quite sure I’m doing everything in life wrong.”

Pouts.