#tsunae

From the metal traps sparking a deep rooted fear to an old face preventing a full investigation, Ran Yakumo was not unfamiliar to the taste of old memories. It was something her master had worked hard on to keep leashed, and something she prided herself in.

She was not just some stray fox anymore. She was the shikigami of one of the most influential yokai in Gensokyo. Even if she had her glitches, even if Yukari didn't trust her with everything, she was undoubtedly a fox that didn't need to hide her tails.

No matter what small-fry said, that fact simply displayed how above it all she was. So, pardon her pride, but Ran wasn't looking for Tsukasa when she arrived at Moriya Shrine. She had assumed the kuda-gitsune would have been run off.

She was surprised to find the her there, then, side-by-side with the shrine maiden.

Not revealing herself right away, she gathered as much information she could about the situation. And what she learned was...

Familiar.

The shrine maiden, Sanae, didn't seem too bothered by the fox's attempts to be slick and get something out of her. In fact, she almost seemed happy to let the kuda-gitsune stay.

And Tsukasa... just... kept trying. Kept pushing for attention, kept trying to get on the upper-hand when she was clearly failing.

Ran's eyes narrowed at the energetic tail behind the kuda-gitsune, noting its new shine.

Fighting off a heavy sigh, she rubbed her eyes.

A fox tamed so easily with the promise of care. How quaint.

Watching the two banter for a moment longer, she tried to process her own reaction. After all, it wasn't like her to fail completely at such a task. Hell, gathering the information necessary would be easier with Tsukasa there.

However.

Seeing her with Sanae...

... Why did the shikigami envy her?

She was stronger than Tsukasa, smarter too. She was in a better, long-standing position and wasn't treading a line of uncertainty. She was a fox that could show her tails proudly.

Yet... She felt a strange emptyness.

Ran was... nostalgic.

But for what? For the friend she fought? For the distant master? She hadn't needed attention, she didn't need attention. She was fine to be left on her own.

She was Ran Yakumo.

I did that thing, wasted a good 3ish hours writing it in one sitting (because that's how I best write)

This is my first fan fic, and I also haven't done proper character writing in a while, so yeah.

Also, it's just the start to a longer fic, so stay tuned!

(If anyone can recognize what song the title lyric is from, you get one Silly Point, which you can cash in to do nothing.)

Oh yeah, also:

There WILL be trainer cards in these post! I'm not gonna break them down, but I sure will post them!

(If only I both had trainer sprites for these two and knew how to import custom trainer sprites into Pokecharms if possible)