[ohgojima] folk stories
title folk stories
pairing nakajima yuuto x ohgo suzuka
rating pg-pg13 i dunno
notes based on a dream i had, i can’t make these things up. probably riddled with mistakes and feels rushed because i wrote this in one day, whoo!
summary yuuto tells his younger brother about the truth of the oldest legend of their village. AU
Letting out a grunt of exertion, Yuuto used his shirt to wipe the sweat off his face and leaned against the pitchfork stuck in the ground, observing the work completed around him. Despite the coolness of the October morning his body felt hot from the hard labor of shoveling and lugging hay everywhere, and he shivered as a stray gust of wind hit his clammy skin. He looked over his shoulder and scowled at his assistance. “Raiya! Get your head out of the clouds, I want to finish this up before lunch time!”
Indeed, the younger boy looked like he was up in the sky, a dazed and empty look in his eyes as he stared upward. He jumped, visibly, out of his reverie and bit his bottom lip at the scolding, fingers clutching tightly around his own pitchfork. “Niisan…”
“Don’t you ‘niisan’ me. You’re the one that wanted to help!” Walking over to where his little brother was standing, Yuuto clapped him on the shoulder a couple of times, looking concerned despite his words. “What’s wrong? Not feeling well? You can go in if you like, we’re almost done and I can finish up.”
“No, it’s not that…” Raiya looked up once more and shuddered. “It’s just, tonight…”
Yuuto cut him off with a sigh. “Raiya I told you, there’s no reason to worry about that.”
“But niisan, you know the stories!”
“I know, Raiya, but-”
“And even mom and dad are worried too!”
“Yes, but-“
“And I saw it, niisan!” Raiya looked away from the sky and to his brother, eyes wide with fear. “I saw it, last year! I know it’s real! A changeling with large black wings, swooping around in the sky, waiting to take children and eat them for dinner, getting chased by the sorceress’s puppets but attacking them and escaping them, when all she wants to do is stop her from hurting us! I saw it, niisan!”
Yuuto sighed and looked off into the sky, falling quiet. Finally he looked back down to Raiya, smiling a little sadly. “Okay, Raiya… you’re old enough, I think. I’m going to tell you the true story.”
Motioning over towards the tower of hay they had been making, the two headed over to it, all the while with Raiya pelting question after question at him. “Now now, calm down. You can’t tell anyone what I’m going to tell you, okay, or that I did tell you it… this is between you and me.” Hoisting his brother up, Yuuto climbed up onto the pile after him, making himself comfortable as he leaned back to look up at the clouds. “If anyone finds out that we know this, Raiya, there will be big trouble. So promise me you won’t tell!”
“I promise, niisan, I promise!” Raiya gave Yuuto a look of awe, amazed and intrigued at how his brother could know anything more about the story that plagued the village year after year. Like any youth he was full of curiosity, especially the kind that sought out knowledge of the most feared things in the world. “Please, tell me!”
Despite himself Yuuto laughed, reaching over to ruffle his brother’s hair playfully. “Okay, okay, calm down! We don’t want anyone to overhear us… I’ll tell you about what really happens every year on this day. Get comfortable and listen quietly, okay.”
“Once upon a time there was a powerful but cruel sorceress who lived at the top of a hill overlooking a poor, tiny little village. The sorceress told the village that she would protect them, as long as they promised not to mess with any of her magical spells, no matter how odd or evil they may seem. The villagers were wary at first, but to show her well intentions she made their crops grow twofold that year and cured the disease that was running through the children. Elated, they agreed.”
“But the sorceress had a dark secret… to power her magic, she needed a sacrifice.”
“A sacrifice?”
“Yes, a sacrifice. Every year, on the thirteenth day of the eleventh month, she would steal someone from the village. It didn’t matter who, as long as they were strong and healthy. Since it was only one person a year, the village thought nothing of it- and even if they had, they heeded the sorceress’s warning, and would never mess with any of her magics. But there was, however, one person who objected- the local hedge witch. The hedge witch could see beyond the sorceress’s lies, and wouldn’t let the sorceress take her neighbors and loved ones so easily. So she cast a spell over the village.”
“Spell?”
Yuuto nodded, sighing gravely. “Yes, a spell. The hedge witch was no match for a sorceress, but she did what she could- she gave anyone who was to become a victim of the sorceress a… boost, to help them escape.”
“So… the wings..?” Raiya’s eyes widened as he caught on, before fear started to enter them as he realized the story was going to be far crueler than he had originally thought.
“Right! You’re quick. The victim would be able to fly away, and try to escape the sorceress.”
“But… couldn’t the sorceress just pick another person instead?”
“The witch thought of that… if that happened, then everyone in the village would start sprouting wings, right? She thought of a solution, but she knew she’d have to use the last of her magic to carry it out… so she sacrificed herself, to make another spell that made it so only one person could be the target of the sorceress each year. The sorceress would be given that one day to catch that person, and if she didn’t, she would be forced to give up until the next year... the two would keep doing it until the sacrifice was finally caught, and someone else's turn would come next year. The witch’s hope was that the target would keep escaping, year after year, weakening the sorceress’s power until finally she had none at all. The witch died with that last spell… see, Raiya, this isn’t a story of a monster kidnapping children. It’s a game, a cruel game being played each year by someone very, very brave, all for the sake of our home.”
“But niisan, what about the four witch dolls, and how do you know all of this, anyway?” Raiya tugged on his brother’s shirt, hungry for more. “Niisan!”
Sitting up quickly, Yuuto brushed him off and shook his head, jumping down from their hiding spot. “No, that’s enough, Raiya, I’ve told you all I know. Remember, not a word to anyone!”
“But niisan!”
“Raiya!” Yuuto gave him a rare firm look that immediately shut him up, pulling his brother down back to ground level. “Raiya, don’t you have a chore for mama to do? The medicine for Suzuka-san is probably ready, she needs it right away and she can’t get it if you’re dillydallying here!”
“Mou, niisan…” Raiya groaned and pouted, wanting desperately for his questions to be answered. But Yuuto’s look was even more stubborn, and he was right, anyway- their mother would be highly upset if the Ohgo family didn’t get their medicine and herbs right away. “Okay…”
“Good. Tell mama I’ll be back in a few, after I finish hauling everything to the barn.”
“Un.” Raiya turned to run off, but suddenly hesitated and stopped. Looking over his shoulder, he called out hesitantly, “Niisan…”
Yuuto sighed dramatically and looked at him with playful annoyance. “What now?”
“It’s not about the story! It’s just… it’s weird, isn’t it. Last year… I remember last year, Ohgo-san was sick on Witches Day, too. And normally even when she had the spots, or that time she fell out of the loft and had bruises all over for a week, she still works… but last year, and now today, she locks herself up again…”
“You’re worrying too much, Raiya,” Yuuto said immediately. He placed his hands on Raiya’s back and pushed him off gently. “Suzuka-san will be fine, if you get that medicine to her! Now shoo!”
Yuuto sighed as he watched Raiya run off for good, running a hand through his hair. “If Raiya’s noticed, other people will start catching on soon…” he muttered as he picked up one last bale of hay and carried it towards the barn.
The two horses that the Nakajima’s owned greeted him loudly as he entered, whinnying for his attention- and for the food he had brought them. “Now now guys, you know to let me know when she comes right? And stay quiet!” he whispered as he tore apart the bale to throw towards them, taking time to give their due attention to each of them. “Good girl… such a good girl!”
Yuuto continued to groom and croon over the beasts, until five minutes later when a sudden shift in their attitudes alerted them. They made no sound, but instead shuffled in place nervously, pushing their muzzles close to him and pawing at the ground. Yuuto showed none of the anxiety they displayed- his body was tense, but his eyes were too bright and eager for it to be from nerves. “It’s okay guys, shh… it’s just her. It’s just Suzuka.”
From the barn entrance a dark figure suddenly tumbled in, sending hay flying as impossibly large, ragged looking wings flapped about haphazardly. The person-thing spun around quickly, wings knocking into the beams of the barn as it quickly slammed the door to the barnyard shut and leaned against it, pain and exhaustion evident in its body.
Yuuto was by its side within seconds, supporting it with his body as his thin arms found its way through the mass of feathers to a thin waist. “Suzuka, you’re hurt!”
Suzuka looked up at him, eyes wide from fear, hair matted and plastered to her face with sweat. She shook all over as she looked down to see what he was talking about, letting out a gigantic sigh as she leaned into him and clung on tightly. “I-it’s nothing. It’s nothing, it was a tree. Oh god, Yuuto…”
“Shh, shh, it’s okay.” Unable to carry her due to the weight the wings added on to her, Yuuto dragged her to a pile of hay as gently as he could, lying her down carefully before running off to where he had hidden part of his breakfast from that morning. Suzuka moaned gratefully when she saw it, snatching it from his hands and tearing into the food eagerly. “What happened? A tree…?”
He gave Suzuka a moment to get some of the food into her stomach, passing her the pitcher of water he had hidden as well when her hand waved out for it. “I was chasing one of the straw witches… I had it, when that fucking bitch came out of nowhere… the only place I could escape into was the trees. They weren’t so kind… but it looks worse than it is. Just a few scrapes and cuts.”
Stroking away some of the hair stuck to her face, Yuuto frowned deeply as he began to wipe away sweat with his handkerchief. “Suzuka… did you destroy the witch?”
“Uh huh… it’s only the first one, though.” Food completely gone and pitcher empty, Suzuka closed her eyes tightly and buried into him, face rubbing into his chest. “Three more to go… I thought I got use to them after last year, but they’re still so terrifying…”
“You don’t have to get them… you could just hide somewhere, far away, where they can’t find you!”
“You know I can’t… they’ll use magic to find me if they have to, burn down everything… it’s destroy them or it’ll be that much easier for her to destroy the village trying to find me.”
Running his fingers through her knotted hair, Yuuto sighed and held onto her as tightly as he could, as if by doing so he could protect her and keep her safe from the horror that waited for her outside of the barnyard. He hadn’t told Raiya about the truth of the straw witches- the enchanted little puppets the sorceress made to help her track down her prey. They had just enough magic to make them move and give them the ability to destroy any hiding place Suzuka might find. The sorceress wanted her on the move at all times, wanted to wear her down until she was dropping dead from the sky.
Using as much strength as she could muster Suzuka began to push herself away Yuuto, breathing in deeply. “I should go, if they find me-”
“No, please!” Yuuto tugged on her arm and hugged her close again, his arms almost painfully tight around her injured body. He rested his forehead against hers, and Suzuka could see the tears slowly rolling down his cheeks. “No, please, stay with me… don’t leave.”
“Yuuto…”
Yuuto placed a hand over the dainty one that cupped his cheek, holding it tightly as he brushed his lips against her cheek. “Don’t go… I can’t tell where you go when you leave, I can’t see that you’re okay and that you haven’t been hurt or caught… I don’t know if this will be the last time I see you. Please, don’t go yet, stay here with me…”
Giving a choked sob, Suzuka crushed her lips onto his and kissed him with the desperate eagerness of someone on the edge of death. The two clung to each other, leaving no space between their bodies as fear and loved poured out from both of them into one passionate, bruising kiss. Suzuka’s wings pressed close around them, curtaining them behind the ragged black feathers, blocking out reality from them. Even if it was only for now.
Only a need for air got them to separate- Suzuka rested her head against Yuuto’s holding back tears as she fought herself from kissing him again. She’d never be able to leave if she did. “I wish this was a fairy tale…” she whispered, “Where true love’s kiss would break the spell…”
“And we’d live happily ever after.” He sighed and nuzzled their noses together, resigning himself to the good bye he hated to give.
Wiping at her eyes, Suzuka kissed his forehead gently and finally tore herself free of him, groaning as she stretched out sore muscles. Yuuto watched in sadness tinged with awe as the black wings that everyone so feared shook themselves out, stray feathers scattering everywhere. Even torn up, bloodied, and looking like she had a run in with a bear, she was still the most beautiful thing ever to him. “Suzuka…”
“I’ll come after dinner, if I can… or definitely at sunset. You can count on it.” Looking over her shoulder, she managed a small but confident smile. “I’ll be okay. I’ve gotten the hang of it, after three years… I won’t let some stupid straw doll and dumb bitch get the best of me. I won’t let them keep me from you. Please, Yuuto…”
Smiling was the last thing he felt like doing, but for her he smiled anyway, thinking of a time when the sorceress would finally be dead, when they’d be together without any fear… he smiled his brightest smile for her, and she smiled back. Only his smile could keep her going through this ordeal, reminding her of what she was trying to protect. She’d play this game forever if it meant he wouldn’t have to, and if one day no one else would, either.
“I’ll be back, Yuuto. I promise.”
Throwing the barn door open, she threw him one last kiss before bursting out of it, rising into the air with astonishing speed. Yuuto ran out and watched her until she disappeared, leaning against the door as he tried to ignore the thoughts swarming his brain.
“Come back safe, Suzuka,” he murmured, counting down the minutes until the nightmare of this day would be over. “We’ll break the spell of this tale one day.”
pairing nakajima yuuto x ohgo suzuka
rating pg-pg13 i dunno
notes based on a dream i had, i can’t make these things up. probably riddled with mistakes and feels rushed because i wrote this in one day, whoo!
summary yuuto tells his younger brother about the truth of the oldest legend of their village. AU
Letting out a grunt of exertion, Yuuto used his shirt to wipe the sweat off his face and leaned against the pitchfork stuck in the ground, observing the work completed around him. Despite the coolness of the October morning his body felt hot from the hard labor of shoveling and lugging hay everywhere, and he shivered as a stray gust of wind hit his clammy skin. He looked over his shoulder and scowled at his assistance. “Raiya! Get your head out of the clouds, I want to finish this up before lunch time!”
Indeed, the younger boy looked like he was up in the sky, a dazed and empty look in his eyes as he stared upward. He jumped, visibly, out of his reverie and bit his bottom lip at the scolding, fingers clutching tightly around his own pitchfork. “Niisan…”
“Don’t you ‘niisan’ me. You’re the one that wanted to help!” Walking over to where his little brother was standing, Yuuto clapped him on the shoulder a couple of times, looking concerned despite his words. “What’s wrong? Not feeling well? You can go in if you like, we’re almost done and I can finish up.”
“No, it’s not that…” Raiya looked up once more and shuddered. “It’s just, tonight…”
Yuuto cut him off with a sigh. “Raiya I told you, there’s no reason to worry about that.”
“But niisan, you know the stories!”
“I know, Raiya, but-”
“And even mom and dad are worried too!”
“Yes, but-“
“And I saw it, niisan!” Raiya looked away from the sky and to his brother, eyes wide with fear. “I saw it, last year! I know it’s real! A changeling with large black wings, swooping around in the sky, waiting to take children and eat them for dinner, getting chased by the sorceress’s puppets but attacking them and escaping them, when all she wants to do is stop her from hurting us! I saw it, niisan!”
Yuuto sighed and looked off into the sky, falling quiet. Finally he looked back down to Raiya, smiling a little sadly. “Okay, Raiya… you’re old enough, I think. I’m going to tell you the true story.”
Motioning over towards the tower of hay they had been making, the two headed over to it, all the while with Raiya pelting question after question at him. “Now now, calm down. You can’t tell anyone what I’m going to tell you, okay, or that I did tell you it… this is between you and me.” Hoisting his brother up, Yuuto climbed up onto the pile after him, making himself comfortable as he leaned back to look up at the clouds. “If anyone finds out that we know this, Raiya, there will be big trouble. So promise me you won’t tell!”
“I promise, niisan, I promise!” Raiya gave Yuuto a look of awe, amazed and intrigued at how his brother could know anything more about the story that plagued the village year after year. Like any youth he was full of curiosity, especially the kind that sought out knowledge of the most feared things in the world. “Please, tell me!”
Despite himself Yuuto laughed, reaching over to ruffle his brother’s hair playfully. “Okay, okay, calm down! We don’t want anyone to overhear us… I’ll tell you about what really happens every year on this day. Get comfortable and listen quietly, okay.”
“Once upon a time there was a powerful but cruel sorceress who lived at the top of a hill overlooking a poor, tiny little village. The sorceress told the village that she would protect them, as long as they promised not to mess with any of her magical spells, no matter how odd or evil they may seem. The villagers were wary at first, but to show her well intentions she made their crops grow twofold that year and cured the disease that was running through the children. Elated, they agreed.”
“But the sorceress had a dark secret… to power her magic, she needed a sacrifice.”
“A sacrifice?”
“Yes, a sacrifice. Every year, on the thirteenth day of the eleventh month, she would steal someone from the village. It didn’t matter who, as long as they were strong and healthy. Since it was only one person a year, the village thought nothing of it- and even if they had, they heeded the sorceress’s warning, and would never mess with any of her magics. But there was, however, one person who objected- the local hedge witch. The hedge witch could see beyond the sorceress’s lies, and wouldn’t let the sorceress take her neighbors and loved ones so easily. So she cast a spell over the village.”
“Spell?”
Yuuto nodded, sighing gravely. “Yes, a spell. The hedge witch was no match for a sorceress, but she did what she could- she gave anyone who was to become a victim of the sorceress a… boost, to help them escape.”
“So… the wings..?” Raiya’s eyes widened as he caught on, before fear started to enter them as he realized the story was going to be far crueler than he had originally thought.
“Right! You’re quick. The victim would be able to fly away, and try to escape the sorceress.”
“But… couldn’t the sorceress just pick another person instead?”
“The witch thought of that… if that happened, then everyone in the village would start sprouting wings, right? She thought of a solution, but she knew she’d have to use the last of her magic to carry it out… so she sacrificed herself, to make another spell that made it so only one person could be the target of the sorceress each year. The sorceress would be given that one day to catch that person, and if she didn’t, she would be forced to give up until the next year... the two would keep doing it until the sacrifice was finally caught, and someone else's turn would come next year. The witch’s hope was that the target would keep escaping, year after year, weakening the sorceress’s power until finally she had none at all. The witch died with that last spell… see, Raiya, this isn’t a story of a monster kidnapping children. It’s a game, a cruel game being played each year by someone very, very brave, all for the sake of our home.”
“But niisan, what about the four witch dolls, and how do you know all of this, anyway?” Raiya tugged on his brother’s shirt, hungry for more. “Niisan!”
Sitting up quickly, Yuuto brushed him off and shook his head, jumping down from their hiding spot. “No, that’s enough, Raiya, I’ve told you all I know. Remember, not a word to anyone!”
“But niisan!”
“Raiya!” Yuuto gave him a rare firm look that immediately shut him up, pulling his brother down back to ground level. “Raiya, don’t you have a chore for mama to do? The medicine for Suzuka-san is probably ready, she needs it right away and she can’t get it if you’re dillydallying here!”
“Mou, niisan…” Raiya groaned and pouted, wanting desperately for his questions to be answered. But Yuuto’s look was even more stubborn, and he was right, anyway- their mother would be highly upset if the Ohgo family didn’t get their medicine and herbs right away. “Okay…”
“Good. Tell mama I’ll be back in a few, after I finish hauling everything to the barn.”
“Un.” Raiya turned to run off, but suddenly hesitated and stopped. Looking over his shoulder, he called out hesitantly, “Niisan…”
Yuuto sighed dramatically and looked at him with playful annoyance. “What now?”
“It’s not about the story! It’s just… it’s weird, isn’t it. Last year… I remember last year, Ohgo-san was sick on Witches Day, too. And normally even when she had the spots, or that time she fell out of the loft and had bruises all over for a week, she still works… but last year, and now today, she locks herself up again…”
“You’re worrying too much, Raiya,” Yuuto said immediately. He placed his hands on Raiya’s back and pushed him off gently. “Suzuka-san will be fine, if you get that medicine to her! Now shoo!”
Yuuto sighed as he watched Raiya run off for good, running a hand through his hair. “If Raiya’s noticed, other people will start catching on soon…” he muttered as he picked up one last bale of hay and carried it towards the barn.
The two horses that the Nakajima’s owned greeted him loudly as he entered, whinnying for his attention- and for the food he had brought them. “Now now guys, you know to let me know when she comes right? And stay quiet!” he whispered as he tore apart the bale to throw towards them, taking time to give their due attention to each of them. “Good girl… such a good girl!”
Yuuto continued to groom and croon over the beasts, until five minutes later when a sudden shift in their attitudes alerted them. They made no sound, but instead shuffled in place nervously, pushing their muzzles close to him and pawing at the ground. Yuuto showed none of the anxiety they displayed- his body was tense, but his eyes were too bright and eager for it to be from nerves. “It’s okay guys, shh… it’s just her. It’s just Suzuka.”
From the barn entrance a dark figure suddenly tumbled in, sending hay flying as impossibly large, ragged looking wings flapped about haphazardly. The person-thing spun around quickly, wings knocking into the beams of the barn as it quickly slammed the door to the barnyard shut and leaned against it, pain and exhaustion evident in its body.
Yuuto was by its side within seconds, supporting it with his body as his thin arms found its way through the mass of feathers to a thin waist. “Suzuka, you’re hurt!”
Suzuka looked up at him, eyes wide from fear, hair matted and plastered to her face with sweat. She shook all over as she looked down to see what he was talking about, letting out a gigantic sigh as she leaned into him and clung on tightly. “I-it’s nothing. It’s nothing, it was a tree. Oh god, Yuuto…”
“Shh, shh, it’s okay.” Unable to carry her due to the weight the wings added on to her, Yuuto dragged her to a pile of hay as gently as he could, lying her down carefully before running off to where he had hidden part of his breakfast from that morning. Suzuka moaned gratefully when she saw it, snatching it from his hands and tearing into the food eagerly. “What happened? A tree…?”
He gave Suzuka a moment to get some of the food into her stomach, passing her the pitcher of water he had hidden as well when her hand waved out for it. “I was chasing one of the straw witches… I had it, when that fucking bitch came out of nowhere… the only place I could escape into was the trees. They weren’t so kind… but it looks worse than it is. Just a few scrapes and cuts.”
Stroking away some of the hair stuck to her face, Yuuto frowned deeply as he began to wipe away sweat with his handkerchief. “Suzuka… did you destroy the witch?”
“Uh huh… it’s only the first one, though.” Food completely gone and pitcher empty, Suzuka closed her eyes tightly and buried into him, face rubbing into his chest. “Three more to go… I thought I got use to them after last year, but they’re still so terrifying…”
“You don’t have to get them… you could just hide somewhere, far away, where they can’t find you!”
“You know I can’t… they’ll use magic to find me if they have to, burn down everything… it’s destroy them or it’ll be that much easier for her to destroy the village trying to find me.”
Running his fingers through her knotted hair, Yuuto sighed and held onto her as tightly as he could, as if by doing so he could protect her and keep her safe from the horror that waited for her outside of the barnyard. He hadn’t told Raiya about the truth of the straw witches- the enchanted little puppets the sorceress made to help her track down her prey. They had just enough magic to make them move and give them the ability to destroy any hiding place Suzuka might find. The sorceress wanted her on the move at all times, wanted to wear her down until she was dropping dead from the sky.
Using as much strength as she could muster Suzuka began to push herself away Yuuto, breathing in deeply. “I should go, if they find me-”
“No, please!” Yuuto tugged on her arm and hugged her close again, his arms almost painfully tight around her injured body. He rested his forehead against hers, and Suzuka could see the tears slowly rolling down his cheeks. “No, please, stay with me… don’t leave.”
“Yuuto…”
Yuuto placed a hand over the dainty one that cupped his cheek, holding it tightly as he brushed his lips against her cheek. “Don’t go… I can’t tell where you go when you leave, I can’t see that you’re okay and that you haven’t been hurt or caught… I don’t know if this will be the last time I see you. Please, don’t go yet, stay here with me…”
Giving a choked sob, Suzuka crushed her lips onto his and kissed him with the desperate eagerness of someone on the edge of death. The two clung to each other, leaving no space between their bodies as fear and loved poured out from both of them into one passionate, bruising kiss. Suzuka’s wings pressed close around them, curtaining them behind the ragged black feathers, blocking out reality from them. Even if it was only for now.
Only a need for air got them to separate- Suzuka rested her head against Yuuto’s holding back tears as she fought herself from kissing him again. She’d never be able to leave if she did. “I wish this was a fairy tale…” she whispered, “Where true love’s kiss would break the spell…”
“And we’d live happily ever after.” He sighed and nuzzled their noses together, resigning himself to the good bye he hated to give.
Wiping at her eyes, Suzuka kissed his forehead gently and finally tore herself free of him, groaning as she stretched out sore muscles. Yuuto watched in sadness tinged with awe as the black wings that everyone so feared shook themselves out, stray feathers scattering everywhere. Even torn up, bloodied, and looking like she had a run in with a bear, she was still the most beautiful thing ever to him. “Suzuka…”
“I’ll come after dinner, if I can… or definitely at sunset. You can count on it.” Looking over her shoulder, she managed a small but confident smile. “I’ll be okay. I’ve gotten the hang of it, after three years… I won’t let some stupid straw doll and dumb bitch get the best of me. I won’t let them keep me from you. Please, Yuuto…”
Smiling was the last thing he felt like doing, but for her he smiled anyway, thinking of a time when the sorceress would finally be dead, when they’d be together without any fear… he smiled his brightest smile for her, and she smiled back. Only his smile could keep her going through this ordeal, reminding her of what she was trying to protect. She’d play this game forever if it meant he wouldn’t have to, and if one day no one else would, either.
“I’ll be back, Yuuto. I promise.”
Throwing the barn door open, she threw him one last kiss before bursting out of it, rising into the air with astonishing speed. Yuuto ran out and watched her until she disappeared, leaning against the door as he tried to ignore the thoughts swarming his brain.
“Come back safe, Suzuka,” he murmured, counting down the minutes until the nightmare of this day would be over. “We’ll break the spell of this tale one day.”