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Yae Miko has been in love with Raiden Makoto for centuries.
It's not something that really needs to be spoken— it's a quiet, obvious affair, despite how Makoto somehow remains oblivious. It's not subtle, not really, how Miko is quick to jump to Makoto's defense and curry her favor, or how she hesitates to stray from her Archon's side, or how she seeks Makoto's touch as flowers seek the sun.
Other times, she stares intensely across the Grand Narukami Shrine to where Makoto converses with her Master Saiguu, and that's more than enough for a teasing smile to grow across a certain kagemusha's face.
"Sometimes you look at my sister with such reverence that I wonder if you realize you could reach out and just touch her," Ei remarks in amusement, lounging on the steps of the Eternal Sakura Tree as Miko sweeps up sakura petals with a broom. The kagemusha casually observes her nails while allowing just the slightest quirk of her lips. "You know, instead of pining like a lost pup looking for a purpose."
"I don't know what you're talking about," Miko retorts immediately, although a good-humored twitch of a pink-furred ear betrays her apparent annoyance.
She says this as though Ei hasn't been poking fun at her for the past several hundred years, when it had been made ostensibly obvious that maybe plain devotion didn't cut whatever feelings she'd been harboring for the Archon. Ei had caught her staring as though she'd seen Celestia itself, and the teasing had continued from there.
"Maybe I'm just bothered by the sakura blossoms that get stuck in her braid," the kitsune continues with a huff, suddenly putting more vigor into her sweeping of the shrine grounds. "Maybe I want to brush the petals out. Is that really so wrong?"
"Not wrong," Ei concedes, but a wicked smile crosses her lips. "Not wrong, but a bit redundant, don't you think? I bet Makoto would say that you don't need excuses if you wish to touch her hair. She'd probably let you braid it every day, if you asked."
Miko rolls her eyes, chuckling. "How impractical. She already has perfectly good servants who would do a better job anyway."
Ei raises an eyebrow. "Are you not also a servant of the Electro Archon?"
"Not the same kind." Unfortunately.
"But you're lovesick."
"I fail to see your point."
"You've been lovesick for centuries," Ei states.
Miko winces. Ouch.
"And you're also Makoto's favorite," Ei continues, pointedly ignoring the way her friend's face contorts in skepticism. "She would do anything for you."
"She would not."
"She would."
"I'm your familiar, Ei. And Saiguu is Lady Makoto's."
Ei raises an eyebrow. "You can't tell me you actually think that matters. We both know that you're allowed to form relationships beyond our bond."
Fighting back the urge to sputter profusely, Miko's ears flatten. "And so? What of it?"
"You're Makoto's favorite," Ei repeats. "Call her name."
Miko stiffens. "No."
"Call her name," Ei says again, crossing her arms. "Just speak it normally. Don't even shout."
"Why would I disturb her?" Miko protests, an ear twitching indignantly. She doesn't like this reversal of a dynamic— she should be the one teasing Ei. "She's discussing important matters with Lady Saiguu."
"Ah yes, the very important matter of what dish she'll be bringing to the picnic tomorrow." Ei laughs as Miko puffs out a cheek, huffing. "Admit it. You won't comply because last time you called for her jokingly, she stopped an entire Tri-Commission gathering in order to go meet you."
"You can't say these things as if you didn't cut a week-long training camp in half because that tengu girl you're so fond of accidentally sprained her ankle," comes Miko's immediate retort, but much to her dismay, her attempt at a jab backfires as the smile that threatens to overtake Ei's face nearly blinds her.
"It was worth it," Ei asserts, and Miko groans but the sound is playful— it's the happiest she's ever seen Ei, and what kind of friend would she be to truly get in the way of that?
"Yes, yes, so long as your Sara was happy about it. You're planning on talking to Lady Makoto about her soon, aren't you?"
"I'm planning on breaking the news tonight, actually."
And there's a soft look in Ei's eyes— the very same look that Yae's probably been directing towards the other Raiden sister for as long as she can remember. Except this time, it fills in the spaces once occupied by loneliness on Ei's face, once left for the desire of a deeper companionship.
"It's good that you're not hesitating for too long," Miko murmurs, her own gut twisting as her mind drifts to Makoto and certain what-could-have-beens as her grip tightens on the broom in her grasp. She's lucky Saiguu had taught her how to conceal her tails early on, lest Ei would easily be able to discern her restlessness from their movement. "I know you favor the longevity of an unchanging eternity, but time continues to move forward regardless."
"I know," Ei replies with a long sigh. Smoothening a hand over her darker garbs, flicking off a few stray sakura blossoms, the kagemusha tentatively smiles. "Although you should take your own advice, Yae."
"What for?" Miko asks innocently, resuming her sweeping. "I am but a mere humble servant in awe of her gentle god."
"Is that what you are?" A new, dreamy voice interjects, and Miko nearly drops her broom to bury her face in her hands.
--
Raiden Makoto looks at Yae Miko and wonders what it would be like to hold her hand.
She doesn't know when the feeling first started, or when it had become so intense, but she knows that it had struck her all at once on a late afternoon, when Miko had been accompanying her on her rounds around Inazuma City. The urge to hook their pinkies together had been so great that Miko had actually stopped in her tracks, her pink hair a splash against Inazuma's normal populace, and asked Makoto if she was coming down with a fever.
(That hadn't been the case, but Makoto could've sworn her face had felt like she'd strayed too close to some of Saiguu's foxfire.)
The broom that falls from Miko’s grasp is only saved by the timely intervention of Ei, who chuckles as she catches it before it can hit the ground.
“Did my sister’s sudden appearance truly spook you so much?” The kagemusha asks dryly. She hands the broom back. “Or was it your loyalty coming into question that did it?”
“I—” Miko, at a loss for words, merely throws a glare at Ei as Makoto clicks her tongue disapprovingly, lightly twirling the umbrella in her grasp.
“Ei,” she scolds, although the older twin cannot hide all of her amusement as a humored smile peeks through her attempt at disappointment. “Don’t tease Miko.”
“But she can tease me?” Ei frowns.
“You’re a god, dear sister.” Makoto winks, mirth mixing with that strange pang of something that she's been feeling more often than usual, these days. “I think you can handle a little teasing.”
There's movement from the corner of her eye, and Makoto turns just in time to see Miko's five pink tails flash into being. One particular tail lurches outwards to swat at Ei's braid, and Ei makes a noise of indignation.
"What a harsh god you are!" Miko coos in that special, teasing tone solely reserved for Ei, all past fluster dissipating into the sun. Makoto bites back a comment, sucks in her breath at the familiar cadence, how she's never heard it directed at her. "What kind of god takes advantage of their own familiar?"
Her nose wrinkling, Ei sticks her tongue out petulantly and Miko bursts into a chime of laughter that has Makoto breaking out of her momentary stupor.
Together, Miko and Ei still sit on the steps of the Sacred Sakura tree, cherry blossoms billowing about them from the tree's great branches. Makoto stands at the bottom of the steps, and not for the first time, it feels as though she is looking through a veil— in the hundreds of years since Miko's introduction to the Grand Narukami Shrine, Makoto still wonders what it would've been like if Miko had become her familiar.
Almost immediately, a wave of guilt rushes through her. Silently, Makoto sends an apology to Saiguu— she loved her friend dearly and would never replace her, but sometimes she cannot help but look at Miko and wonder.
"Lady Makoto?"
Startling, Makoto inhales sharply as a gentle hand rests on her arm.
"Miko," she breathes. Unable to prevent herself, Makoto extends an arm invitingly, humming in approval as Miko perks up, moving in close to eagerly sink into Makoto's embrace.
Over Miko's shoulder, she meets Ei's gaze, watches her sister's unreadable expression transform into a mysterious smile.
Hiding her confusion as she buries her face against Miko's soft, velvety hair, Makoto decides to think nothing of it. Her sister, after all, has always been more the type to tell Makoto her thoughts only if they were truly necessary.
"Miko? Was there something you needed?"
"Ah, yes. It's a very nice day out today. Would you like to join me for a walk, Lady Makoto?"
"Oh." Makoto halts in place, frowning. Indeed, Miko is right— the weather is impeccable today, and the idea of strolling around Inazuma City with Miko's arm laced with her own would usually be far too enticing an offer to turn down, but— "I'm sorry, I'm afraid I already have a meeting this afternoon, Miko."
It's not an excuse, far from it. If anything, it's official Tri Commission and diplomatic business— not too long ago, Makoto had extended her hand out to mentor Kamisato Ayaka of the Yashiro Commission and Sangonomiya Kokomi of Watatsumi Island on her own volition. Naturally, the Kamisato clan had jumped at the offer, and the serpent god, Orobashi himself, had approved of Kokomi living on Narukami Island for training at Tenshukaku.
Tonight would be Makoto's second meeting with the girls— just an easygoing chat over tea, hopefully. Their first discussion had been pleasantly delightful, Ayaka and Kokomi bearing many similarities to Makoto, and the Archon had found herself looking forward to their next gathering.
Nevertheless, that doesn't make the slight drooping of Miko's ears at her refusal any easier.
"Ah, I see." Miko nods, her smile fading a tad. It's a hardly noticeable difference, but after years of wanting, Makoto can tell with crystal clear clarity. "That's alright, Your Excellency."
She gently moves to untangle herself from Makoto's embrace, making an effort to bow low, respectful, as Makoto resists the urge to pull Miko back into her arms.
"Miko—"
"It's okay, Your Excellency," Miko says again, her voice still lilting and bright despite how her ears downturn just a bit more. "This gives me more time to attend to the Ley Lines. I'm sure as you know, they've been acting up as of recently."
Makoto frowns. "Saiguu said you were going to begin the purification process tomorrow."
"Nothing like being ahead of your work!"
And with that, Miko hastily scampers off in the direction Makoto had spoken to Saiguu in earlier, and Makoto cannot quell the feeling that she'd just made a mistake.
"I feel as though you said the wrong thing, sister," Ei voices, amused as she rises from the red steps of the Sakura tree. "But then again, I suppose it wouldn't do to back out of Tri-Commission business at the last minute."
Finally alone with her twin, Makoto hangs her head and sighs.
"No, it's alright. I think so too."
--
There's a flash of white from the side of her vision as Miko begins her descent from Mount Yougou.
"If I didn't know better, I'd think you were sad because you have no excuses to shirk your duties," Saiguu jokes as she falls into step with her disciple, a flurry of white tails trailing behind her. "It's truly a shame that Makoto rejected your invitation— she could use a bit more relaxation in her schedule these days."
"I'm sure Lady Makoto's time with her new protegeés will be relaxing enough," Miko replies evenly, keeping her gaze trained on the stone path beneath her feet. "At least in relation to the rest of her busy schedule, that is. It's good that she's still busy— it means I can keep myself busy."
"You're supposed to start the purification tomorrow," Saiguu reminds her, surprisingly serious. "You were the one who insisted on that, correct? If you leave now, you might return very late. How about you review the new drafts your writers have sent you instead?"
Just the mere thought of having to read light novels after what had just transpired has Miko grimacing.
"I'm not quite in the mood to touch the terrible attempts at romantic storytelling that I know are waiting for me in that pile," she simply says, sighing.
Pausing for a moment to gaze out over Inazuma's expanse, Miko's eye catches on Tenshukaku in the distance as she weighs her options.
She sighs again.
"I put off the purification until tomorrow because I wanted to see Lady Makoto today," Miko finally admits, and Saiguu doesn't even bat an eye— not that Miko had expected her to. She's never been discreet about her favor for their Archon. "I waited until her visit to the shrine because I wished to walk with her for a time, but unfortunately, she's busy today. And this means that my schedule is suddenly incredibly free, so I will be on my way now to purify the Ley Lines, if you would permit me, Master."
"Miko," Saiguu says warningly. "Why does it feel like you're running?"
"I'm not," Miko replies defensively, and the tails she'd unknowingly materialized curl in indignation. Then she scoffs, caving to her usual dry tone. "Am I wrong for giving myself space? Surely no one else needs to be in the splash zone of my childish mood swings."
"Hey."
With a deep frown, Saiguu steps closer, worry in her eyes. Miko loves her master dearly, but oh, how she loathes that pitying expression— just another reminder of the gap between herself and the rest of them.
"Miko, I trust you just as much as I trust Chiyo or Sasayuri," Saiguu says softly, and a hand smoothens the fabric at Miko's shoulder. "You're the most gifted kitsune in all of Inazuma. You were even blessed with an Electro Vision." The older kitsune's eyes glitter, a grin slowly spreading. "You're Makoto's favorite."
"People should stop saying that!" Miko groans. Then, carelessly, she flicks at the purple glass ball embedded into her earring. "And you and I both know that my Electro was not granted to me by a Vision."
"Then isn't it more like destiny?" Batting her eyelashes obnoxiously, Saiguu laughs as her closest student dramatically heaves a sigh, sending a withering glare at the head shrine maiden.
"I'm leaving!"
"Take care!" Saiguu waves her off with a smile, most likely having realized that Miko's mind has been set. "Stay safe!"
"That goes without question," Miko replies smoothly, smirking.
And with that, she heads off, her treasured gohei materializing in hand.
--
When Ei pulls on her sleeve after dinner that night, a nervous look swimming in violet eyes, Makoto doesn't know what to expect.
It's certainly not this:
"I have someone I love, sister."
Ei's words are soft, shy, and the blush that dusts her cheeks is lovely and gentle – so wonderfully different from the kagemusha's typical stonier exterior – and yet somehow, these five innocent words reverberate through Makoto's chest like a stone rattling against a steel bell, and the elder twin is frozen.
Makoto is not ignorant— the concept of laying in bed with another is not a foreign one to either of them, especially after thousands of years of hard work making Inazuma prosperous. She herself has indulged the occasional potential suitor, and her sister has admitted to occasionally taking the company of the rare soldier who caught her eye. Neither of them are new to intimacy, and yet—
Ei has never approached her about a potential lover before.
Makoto prays that the heartbeat of time she takes to realign herself reveals nothing about her inner turmoil.
"Is that so?" She says instead, and Ei's deepening blush has guilty unease churning through Makoto's stomach.
Traitorously, her mind's eye shows her pink fur; a shrine maiden's hakama; a joyous laugh. She remembers last week, Ei and Miko beneath the sakura tree, laughing to themselves as the falling petals seemed to form a curtain between them and the rest of the world, Makoto included.
"Yes," Ei murmurs, fiddling with her fingers. "Apologies, Makoto, I don't know why I'm like this when we're always open to each other."
"You can tell me anything," Makoto tells her instantly, earnestly, because it's true— any personal grievances aside, despite any personal regrets, her sister's happiness is her first priority. No matter how hard to hear, Makoto will always put her sister first. "Do they treat you well?"
“Of course,” Ei says instantly, as if she cannot even imagine a world where that wasn’t true. A smile crosses her lips, reverent and longing. Briefly, Makoto wonders if she has ever captured a smile so tender and thoughtful on her own face. “She has never strayed from my side.” She pauses, then— “And I wish to continue to walk beside hers.”
"I'm glad you've found someone to have such wonderful thoughts about," Makoto utters quietly, but her mind is elsewhere. The Sakura tree, Miko, walks beneath the Sacred Sakura, fox fur and five tails and sizzling electricity; Yae Miko—
"I wish to introduce you to her soon, sister."
"Yes, I would love to—" Makoto halts. Wait. Her throat is tight, but she somehow manages. "Is your lover not someone I already know?"
The seconds it takes for her sister to respond feel like an eternity in itself.
"I mean," Ei flushes, self-consciously tucking a strand of hair behind an ear, "not in any personal capacity? Unless you've also somehow been having lunches with Sara, but she told me that she never thought she'd have the opportunity to—"
"Sara?" Makoto interrupts.
Her mind running on overdrive, the Archon desperately scrapes through the many, many names of her subjects she's cataloged over the years. Only one stands out.
"Kujou Sara?"
And Makoto watches in amazement as her sister's already flustered, red face turns several shades darker at the mere mention of the decorated general's full name.
Meanwhile, Makoto feels the weight on her chest lessen. She breathes more easily.
Not Miko… Somehow, not Miko.
"You don't have to say her name so loud," Ei squeaks, ducking her head, and Makoto can't help it— she coos at her twin sister, reaching forward to pinch her sister's cheek.
Sara… Kujou Sara… Makoto knows of the girl— it's hard not to. When she had received word of the Kujou Clan wishing to adopt the tengu child they had rescued from the side of the road, Makoto had given her blessing. She had known first-hand of a tengu's prowess due to her friendship with Sasayuri, so she had told the Kujou Clan to nurture the child. That had been all quite a few years ago, and Makoto had allowed her thoughts on the matter to simmer until the girl – now a young woman – had resurfaced as a general in Ei's personal division herself.
Had that been when she'd caught Ei's attention?
Shaking her head, Makoto smiles.
"You look completely smitten, sister," she says fondly.
"That's exactly what Miko said." Ei rolls her eyes. "You've been spending too much time with her."
Quite the opposite, Makoto thinks, but opts not to say that.
"Will you tell her about us?" She asks instead, because Ei gets that look in her eye just then— that nervous look that Ei rarely gets whenever she wants something but doesn't know how to ask, doesn't want to ask or be selfish. But her sister deserves to be selfish, and even more than that, Ei deserves happiness. "About how we're twins?"
If this is something Makoto can grant to her, then—
"Because you should," she adds, because sometimes, Ei shouldn't need to ask. Sometimes, Makoto just wants to make her sister happy.
And the resulting smile on Ei's face speaks entire novels.
--
The Sacred Sakura tree sprawls all over the land, and the task of cleansing every single one of them is a tall one. In previous years, Saiguu had been the one to make the continuous journeys, but after a time, the task had been passed on to Miko so that her master could remain at the shrine and tend to Makoto's needs with greater ease.
As such, a few days later, when the sun peeks from beyond the ocean in the morning, Miko finds herself setting out from atop Mount Yougou yet again, aiming for the Ley Line roots after a noticeable lack of sleep from the night before. Still, it's not so bad, not when the streets of Inazuma City are quiet at this hour, and Miko has enough time to grab some provisions from the early vendors before truly making her way back to where she'd left off the day prior.
Soon enough, as Miko moves from one exposed root to another, she finds herself with an unexpected companion.
"Lady Yae, this is pretty boring."
"Oh, really, little one?" Miko huffs out a laugh, twirling her gohei with practiced ease. "I hadn't noticed."
From where she sits atop a fallen log, Sayu absentmindedly kicks her feet to-and-fro, her tiny brow furrowing as she watches Miko step into yet another dance.
"Do you do this for every single root?"
"That's the idea." Amused, Miko brandishes her gohei with a flair, its ribbons waltzing in the air around her. "The Sacred Sakura puts in much work for Inazuma and cannot remain unsullied forever. As a shrine maiden, my duty is to tend to our Archon's gift."
No matter how mind-numbing it may get.
"Duty," Sayu mumbles, seeming to subconsciously sway from side to side with Miko's ritual. "So it's super important…"
"That, it is." Sneaking a peek over her shoulder, Miko glances at the mujina ninja. "And speaking of duty, why perchance are you with me right now, little one? Surely the Shuumatsuban needs one of its most talented ninja."
Although her words are delivered teasingly, her words are far from a lie. Despite Sayu's sleepy demeanor, the young ninja has proven herself to be the most reliable of them all.
"There's a Tri-Commission meeting at noon."
"Oh?" Miko cocks her head. "I wasn't aware of this."
"Lord Kamisato tells me it was a last minute schedule." Sayu shrugs, clearly just relaying what she'd been instructed to convey. "Something about issues regarding trade with Mondstadt, as well as merchants getting attacked by rift hounds. Lady Guuji wishes for your presence, so I was sent to find you."
Rift hounds. Miko sighs. Without a doubt, the pests had been called to Narukami Island because of the Ley Line impurities.
"They want me to attend this meeting when I could be using that time to purify more roots instead?" The shrine maiden cannot help but raise an incredulous eyebrow at that. "Wouldn't it make more sense for me to continue my duties?"
Almost sheepishly, Sayu ducks her head. "I know you just mentioned how important these rituals are, but Her Excellency herself expressed a desire for you to be present."
Well. A little voice in her head chides. Isn't that unfortunate, how Makoto's always been your weakness.
With another deep, deep sigh, Miko closes the ritual with one final twirl of her gohei, releasing the impure memories of anger to the skies. Sayu's gaze follows her own, the small ninja holding her breath as they watch the blue lights flicker up, up, up, until they fade away.
"What was that?" Sayu whispers.
"Memories of those who have come to pass," Miko replies, softer. "Those who have lingering regret; memories of times of frustration and anger. Such negative emotions are purified from the Ley Lines by the Sacred Sakura, but they get trapped in its roots. This is why it is important for us to tend to the tree and live our lives to the fullest."
"Do you ever see the memories?"
"Sometimes," Miko replies. "Sometimes the memories are so strong that they manifest right in front of me. Then, it is my job to put their spirits at ease."
She cracks a small smile. "It would be embarrassing, wouldn't it? If I happened to die in a moment of frustration, nothing remaining but my terrible memories in the very roots I was supposed to purify?"
Sayu shudders. "That's pretty morbid, Lady Yae."
Miko throws her head back and laughs; the sound of suzu bells.
"Enough of this for now! Lead the way to Tenshukaku, little one."
--
The first time Makoto had met Yae Miko, the kitsune, it had been a visit to the Grand Narukami Shrine on a cold winter's day, so long ago that the Sacred Sakura tree had not even taken root atop Mount Yougou.
Ei had been by her side, ever faithful as always, and Makoto still remembers the worried looks her sister had chanced her way every time she'd taken a moment to breathe warm life onto her freezing fingers.
"All this time," Ei had teased as they'd stepped through the rows of torii . If the cold had bothered her, she hadn't made any indication of it. "Centuries and you're still not accustomed to winter weather."
But when Makoto had opened her mouth to respond, that's when it happened—
A pink flash of fur had darted out from beneath an outcrop of the shrine, and before Makoto knew what was happening, a small pink fox was curling around her leg, pressing the length of its body to her exposed skin— sharing its warmth.
Stunned, Makoto had hardly even registered Saiguu's appearance, nor her white-haired familiar's amused introduction: "This is our newest shrine maiden in-training, Yae Miko. I've decided to take her under my wing!"
Makoto had hardly heard her over the sound of the pink fox purring, catlike, when Makoto had stooped down to cradle the small, warm bundle of a creature in her arms.
Her hands had been warmed.
And the years had passed. Inazuma's daily life had kept Makoto busy, and her trips to the mountaintop shrine were not nearly as frequent as Ei's. When she did visit, the most she'd witness were small glimpses of pink fur— nothing more and nothing less.
"Do you remember the pink fox who warmed your hands before?" Ei had voiced one day, as they'd strode up Mount Yougou on a spring morning. It has been a few months since Makoto had last made the journey – Saiguu going to Tenshukaku more than the other way around.
"Oh!" There had been a flash of recognition, and Makoto had smiled at the memory. "Yes, of course I do."
"I've managed to befriend her." Ei chuckled, crossing her arms. "Hopefully Miko won't be hiding from you this time around. She's really grown up."
And Makoto had hummed in acknowledgement but thought nothing more of it—
Not until they'd reached the top of the mountain, and instead of Saiguu waiting for their arrival, there had been a different woman instead, tossing feed at the crows beneath the rows of torii — a woman with bright purple eyes, a pair of down-turned fox ears, and hair the color of the eternal cherry blossoms swaying with a gentle wind.
That had been the first time Yae Miko had stolen her breath.
It had been far from the last.
--
Even during these important meetings, Makoto finds herself distracted for all the wrong reasons.
My sister has a lover. Makoto shakes her head, desperate to rid herself of the distracting thought. She is in a highly important meeting about the economic state of Inazuma, for Celestia’s sake! And yet, her mind persists, churning like a waterwheel beside a mill. My sister has a lover, and she is not Yae Miko.
No, instead, Ei’s lover is the very woman seated silently next to Kujou Takayuki of the Tenryou Commission at the other end of the room— Kujou Sara.
She does not know General Kujou very well, but she has always been polite and devout during their brief exchanges of pleasantries. Makoto wonders, then, if Sara had known of her and her sister’s independent identities even before Ei had let the general in on their secret. Surely, it must have been quite a confusing experience to have the same individual treat you differently in the same vicinity.
Had Sara felt hurt when Makoto hadn’t viewed her with the same favor that Ei did? Had Sara ever considered the idea that the woman she’d grown close to wasn’t the same woman who led Inazuma’s politics?
Surely she had, right? After all, Ei had let it slip that it was her who had given Sara her beloved tengu mask during her adolescence.
Sighing, Makoto brings a hand to massage at her temples. It's been a long day, and she's clearly not in the right state of mind to discuss state affairs.
"Your Excellency?" A soft voice says from Makoto's right, and immediately Makoto straightens back up, meeting the eyes of a concerned Miko. "Are you alright?"
"Yes," Makoto breathes, but it feels like the air is getting sucked from her lungs as Miko touches her hand. "Nothing I cannot handle."
"Is it a headache?" Softly, gently, Miko's fingertips brush against her forehead. The shrine maiden frowns, and Makoto longs for nothing but to lean into her touch; electricity crackling. "Is there anything I can do?"
Despite the low throb in her head, Makoto feels affection swell in her chest. Miko remains untouched in attentiveness; she is perfect and Makoto wishes she could tell her so.
"I will be fine," she insists, and Miko opens her mouth to protest the notion when she gets interrupted.
"Is the Shogun alright?" Someone asks from across the room— Kamisato Ayato of the Yashiro Commission, concern laced in his words.
"Yes," Miko relays immediately, her tone the signature soothingly pleasant, silky smooth, and Makoto selfishly holds onto it like a lifeline. "However, I do think it would be for the best if we adjourn our discussion for today. This meeting has gone on for longer than usual, and while it is clear the discussion must continue, I believe we can all obtain new perspectives from a bit of rest."
The pink fox pauses, then speaks again, resolute.
"As for the issue of the Ley Lines acting up, please continue to leave that to me. As Guuji Saiguu's disciple, I can easily take care of them myself."
Not for the first time, Makoto feels genuine gratitude to Saiguu for convincing Miko to come to these meetings. The pink-haired woman is a natural people pleaser who seems to know just how to wriggle her way around the Tri-Commission's leaders even on their most uncompromising of days.
Makoto doesn't know what she'd do without her.
My sister has a lover, and she is not Yae Miko. The thought just won't leave her head. Ei is not in love with Yae Miko, so… why do you find yourself so scared, Raiden Makoto?
"I agree," Saiguu concurs, speaking up from the left of Makoto. The white-haired kitsune flashes her a brief smile before nodding. "If you will, Your Excellency?"
"Right." Makoto nods, stifling yet another sigh. The motion does not go unnoticed by Miko, however, and the kitsune woman answers her unspoken dissatisfaction with a squeeze of her hand. "Let us continue in a few days' time. You are all dismissed."
--
"Was Her Excellency alright?" Kujou Sara asks later, when the afternoon wanes, night about to fall, and she ascends the steps to the Grand Narukami Shrine. Miko stands at the top, waiting for her. "She looked rather uncomfortable during the council."
Merely nodding, Miko beckons to the young woman over her shoulder, leading them further into the shrine. The kitsune had foreseen this outcome, having noticed the concern etched on Sara's expression during the meeting. Truth be told, it had been almost touching, how worry had furrowed at Sara's brow despite the knowledge that the Archon in front of her was not the Raiden Sara has grown to particularly cherish.
"She was feeling tired," Miko explains, recalling how she'd helped Makoto to the back garden, rubbing circles into her Archon's back before Ayaka and Kokomi had appeared with cool beverages and snacks.
Makoto had flashed them a grateful smile, beckoning for the pair to join her in amongst the garden flowers, and Miko had taken that time to slink away, back to the shrine.
“So what brings you here, little tengu?”
“I saw you walking away,” the general states plainly, but there is no judgment to be found. Although she refuses to admit it, Miko appreciates how she and Sara have always been alike in this aspect— neither of them have ever been one to mince their words. “I was going to follow you immediately, but I figured you wanted some space first so I waited.”
“Aw, you were worried about me?” Miko teases, because it is easy to slip into her usual dynamic with Sara. "That's awfully sweet of you. Is your new lover making you soft?"
Sara arches a single unimpressed eyebrow.
"Are your unspoken feelings making you weak?"
Miko laughs. "Touché. Was I that obvious?"
Contemplative, Sara cocks her head.
"You look at Lady Makoto the same way I look at Ei." She pauses, chuckling to herself. "At least, that's how I always imagined I appeared."
"Ei," Miko repeats, almost marveling at how smoothly the informal syllable rolls off Sara's tongue. "So much has changed in such a short period of time. Just last week, you were referring to her as 'Her Excellency' and 'Lady Shogun' with every breath."
And with cheeks turning the same color as her signature tengu mask, Sara hides her embarrassment with a cough into a fist.
"I'm trying to practice," she admits. "It's still a bit overwhelming, knowing that I'm allowed to address her as such, but she— Ei loves it when I say her name."
The image brings a smile to Miko's face.
"Does she?"
Sara hums, a sound she must have picked up from her time with Ei.
"She does. So I'm practicing and trying my best."
"You've learned something sacred," Miko warns, a fox ear flicking. "There's only a handful of people who know that name."
"And I'm honored to be among them," Sara replies, and for once, Miko sees her smile. It's here and now, under this light, in this place, that she realized how Sara has softened, how she is happier. It hadn't been just Ei who had changed at all.
"Sara, did you know? Ei wants you to be hers, and hers alone," Miko comments casually, only to laugh as her friend trips over her own feet. Grinning, she crosses her arms, observing the way cherry blossom petals remain stuck on Sara's mask, the way Sara does not remove them.
"Did she really say that?" Sara stammers, uncharacteristic, but her voice is full of wonder.
Pleasantly humored by the reaction, Miko simply hums and appeases the woman, keeping her tone lighthearted but speaking the truth nevertheless.
"She did," Miko affirms, an ear twitching in glee at how Sara blushes. Still, she feigns annoyance, flicking a lock of pink hair over her shoulder. "That information was given to me in confidence, though, so don't go telling on me now. You don't want to know what I'm like when I'm angry."
"I won't," Sara promises with a chuckle, her cheeks still dusted pink. "But I really must thank you for letting me know. That means a lot to me, that she would want such a thing. And it means a lot that you take any time at all to humor me."
Embarrassed, Sara ducks her head. "You must think me a pest, since I bother you about Ei so much. I apologize for that— sometimes I forget to rein in my curiosities."
Miko waves her off. Although she's often played the role of being bothered whenever a younger, more insistent Sara would visit the shrine in the past, Miko still thinks favorably of her regardless.
"Think nothing of it. The both of us want the best for Ei, and that makes us friends, no? You can ask me whatever." Miko grins, a glimmer of mischief dancing in her eye. "Whether you can take my responses at face value, however, is up to your own discretion."
"Is that so?" Sara furrows her brow. "Then, may I inquire about something else?"
"Naturally."
"Earlier, you mentioned that most people do not know the existence of Ei." Her brow creased in thought, Sara frowns thoughtfully. "Then the general public does not know 'Makoto' either, correct? So, if that is the case, does Lady Makoto have someone to call her name, too?"
Well. This is unexpected.
"You've grown softer than anticipated, General," Miko murmurs, feeling her practiced smile begin to fade. "Of course she does. Lady Makoto has many friends."
"No." Sara shakes her head. "I mean in the same way that I say Ei's name."
Without pretense, without expectation, without the need to be given anything in return. With love in your eyes and tenderness on your lips.
"There is someone," Miko confesses, hushed, and just this once, she lets her tails materialize behind her, all five swishing ardently. "There is someone, but perhaps she hasn’t been saying it loud enough."
And when Sara nods, sympathy gleaming in yellow eyes, Miko simply laughs and beckons for the tengu to follow her down the mountain.
--
"Is it wrong to want something of my own?" Ei had wondered a few nights ago, as she'd laid on her back in the grass of Byakko Plains. In a spur-of-the-moment decision, she'd appeared at Miko's window late at night, dodging the pillow aimed at her head and demanded that they go stargazing.
And although she'd grumbled the entire journey down Mount Yougou, as she'd stared up at the ocean of stars above, always so wondrous no matter how many times she'd seen it, Miko hadn't found an ounce of regret in her body.
"Don't you mean someone?" The fox woman had replied, only half-teasing. "I know if you could, you'd whisk Sara away to the Plane of Euthymia and keep her to yourself for the rest of eternity."
Cheeks burning, a far cry from the highly intimidating Shogun that Ei likes to portray in battle, the kagemusha flushes and suddenly becomes fascinated by the surrounding tall grass.
"I know," she murmured, "it's selfish, but—"
"But I don't think that's wrong," Miko had interjected, lifting one shoulder in thought as she regarded her best friend with a subtle head tilt. "You've given up so much for Inazuma. Don't you think you deserve it? And Sara wouldn't mind at all."
"Sara likes belonging to the Shogun," Ei conceded. Then she'd sat up, pulled her knees to her chest. "But would she like belonging to me?"
Miko had scoffed. "If anything, I think it would be an even bigger honor to belong to Raiden Ei. And you know how that girl is about honor."
"But have you ever thought that way?" Ei asked, curiosity dying her tone a light yellow of wonder, a small firefly in the night. "Have you ever wanted someone completely for yourself?"
The kitsune hummed, considering.
"I think I'm more like Sara on this one," Miko had admitted. "I like belonging. Despite how I act, I like being useful. But the one person I want to truly belong to— no offense—"
"None taken." Ei chuckled.
"The one person I want to truly belong to already has all of Inazuma in the palm of her hand." Miko had laughed shortly, a coarse, dry sound, and hated how she'd sounded so pitiful. "So in the end, how special am I, anyway?"
Unable to answer for her sister, Ei had remained silent. She'd reached out, rubbed Miko's shoulder.
They'd spent the rest of the night in an amicable quiet.
--
When the sun retires for the night, the sky filled with thousands of stars, Makoto finds herself restless.
Her headache from earlier has vanished, fleeing at the company of Ayaka and Kokomi earlier. Seeing how Miko had vanished among the commotion, the two young women had opted to keep Makoto company as the afternoon went on.
It had been an uplifting conversation— Kokomi bringing the good news that Watatsumi Island has begun flourishing under irrigation methods, and Ayaka speaking of her planning for the upcoming spring festival. Pleased, Makoto had rewarded each protegeé with a pat on the head.
And yet, through it all, she couldn't help the shaking feeling that there was something awry.
And so now, under the cover of nightfall, Makoto steals away across Narukami Island, making her way to Mount Yougou. She's only just reached the ethereal glow of Chinju Forest when she hears it:
The telltale noise of lightning singing through open air.
Dashing through the trees, Makoto swiftly follows the sound. Listening more carefully, she hears two distinct noises, one of which is effortlessly familiar—
When she reaches the clearing next to the abandoned shrine, the last sight she is expecting to see is that of Yae Miko and Kujou Sara, fighting off what appear to be the final foes in a wave of rift hounds.
Sucking in a breath, Makoto immediately retreats back into the trees. She still remembers her swordplay as clearly as the day she'd learned, but Musou Isshin remains unsharpened. And, as she observes the ongoing fight from a safe distance, Makoto gets the sickening feeling that she would only get in the way here.
Kujou Sara is as brilliant with a bow as Ei had gloated about and thensome. Her shoulder blades taut with focus, each of Sara's shots hit home with sniper-like precision. She lives up to her title as General— that, Makoto can safely distinguish.
But perhaps even more brilliant than Sara – and perhaps coming from the tiny, biased part of Makoto's brain – is Yae Miko. With her gohei in hand, it's as though the kitsune woman is dancing across the clearing, her uniquely pink lightning strike homing in on each rift hound from above.
Together, they fight in tandem, Miko seamlessly moving around Sara as if they'd done this before.
A partner dance.
Makoto's breath hitches. Never could she fight alongside Miko like that.
"You're not too bad," Sara tells Miko as her Electro-infused arrow finds home in the chest of the final rift hound. She's impressed, and Makoto cannot blame her. "Is combat practice a typical area of shrine maiden training, or…?"
Miko laughs in response to the teasing.
"I'm Ei's familiar, of course I know my way around a scuffle," she replies, smirking, and it's a harsh reminder. "It's just a bit difficult to finish your rituals when you're simultaneously getting mauled by lesser canines."
And then Miko pauses.
"You fight like Ei," she says to Sara, finally. "You've definitely picked up some of her style from your sparring. I have a notion that the similarities would be more uncanny if you were using your sword." Miko pauses again. "It was easy to fall into step with you because it felt so familiar."
Not wanting to hear any more, Makoto turns and leaves.
--
It's just past midnight, and the moment she hears the telltale sound of the shoji door sliding open, Ei is across the room in a heartbeat, eagerly throwing her arms around a laughing Kujou Sara's shoulders.
"Sara!"
"Ei," Sara replies fondly. She reaches up, brushes a strand of the other woman's hair back, tucks it gently behind an ear. "You waited up for me?"
With her cheeks dusted with the most precious hint of pink, Sara looks adorable under the warm yellow glow of Tenshukaku's lamps. Here, winding her arms around Ei's waist, Sara looks less like the hardened, stony soldier so many perceive her as and ever much more like the gentle lover Ei has learned her to be.
"Of course I did," Ei breathes, nuzzling closer. She sinks further into the embrace, never failing to appreciate Sara's taller frame and how easily she can lean on the tengu woman. "I'll always wait up for you."
"You know you don't have to," Sara says shyly, so unused to receiving, and the mere knowledge of her upbringing only spurs Ei further on.
The kagemusha shakes her head fervently.
"I'm a god and a soldier," she says haughtily, inwardly preening at how Sara laughs again. "I believe I can handle a few late nights."
"Just don't overexert yourself," Sara relinquishes softly, knocking their foreheads together in a way that makes Ei's very not-human heart do very human things— like tremble, or jump, or yearn.
Electricity sizzles where their bodies touch, and Ei sighs in contentment before lightly tugging Sara further into her quarters.
"So, why were you out so late?" Ei asks curiously. She'd been aware that Sara wasn't on military duty for the day, but, "I didn't know you had any plans after the Tri-Commission meeting."
"Ah, I didn't originally." Sara smiles sheepishly. Her hand comes up to tug at her tengu mask, a habit Ei had noticed would surface only during their private conversations— never in front of others.
And it is with great amusement that Sara tells Ei about her trip to the Grand Narukami Shrine, asking of Makoto's well-being, and ultimately being roped into helping with Miko's duties. All the while, the pair get ready for bed, changing into night clothes before clamoring onto Ei's mattress. It's a new setup for them, Sara having started occupying Ei's personal spaces only a few days ago, but Ei had quickly found that she'd never been so comfortable— contrary to popular belief, Sara is gentle.
"Before I knew it, I was at the base of Mount Yougou, fending off rift hounds as Lady Yae performed a cleansing ritual. We fought together once she was finished. She said my style reminded her of yours."
Chuckling quietly, Sara leans back against the headboard, letting Ei fall back into the embrace, right where they'd left off. Long fingers tangle into violet hair, gently pulling it out of its braid, and Ei sighs happily, more than content to keep listening to Sara's soothing voice.
"It certainly wasn't how I was expecting to spend my night," Sara continues, mouth quirking into a smirk, "but I was glad to be of help to Lady Yae anyway."
"The two of you are friends, are you not?" Ei comments, tracing featherlight circles against Sara's abdomen, beneath the other woman's nightshirt. "You can just call her Yae, or even Miko. And if she's bothering you, you can refuse her too. This is your archon with a… casual reminder that you don't have to do everything Miko says."
The way Ei innocently flutters her eyes has the both of them laughing, and Sara leans down to swiftly steal a cheeky kiss from Ei's lips.
"I could never refuse an old friend of yours," Sara replies when they break for air, gentle and affectionate, soft in ways that Ei had never thought lightning could ever be. "Not when Miko has always been far too patient with me and my incessant questions about you."
Ei could not be more in love with this woman, and Sara, despite her weariness from her long day, smiles brightly as she finally lays on her pillow and tugs Ei down to join her.
In this universe and in the next, Ei prays and prays that Sara keeps her genuine smile.
"Yae seems like she had a lot on her mind, though," her general admits, almost as an afterthought but more prevalent. Sara's lips upturn in a frown. "She seemed sullen today. Lady Makoto, too. Both of them have felt… off."
"I think that recent events have called some feelings into question," Ei responds softly. A hand strokes through Sara's dark indigo hair almost absently.
"Us?" Sara asks.
Ei nods, laughing with the weight of stardust. "She's my sister— we both think with complications. But I have faith in both of my friends. I know they can work this out."
--
Morning arrives at its typical unholy hours and Miko rises even before the sun. There is much work to be done— the roots by the waterfall along Chinju Forest being the most densely clouded with miasma. Over the past week, she had been working diligently, counterclockwise around Mount Yougou’s base in order to purify that peculiar forest last.
After all, Chinju Forest is where only the most elusive of yokai had roamed all those centuries ago, before the cataclysm had purged the land and only a handful were mercifully spared.
This is the part that Miko hates the most. Even after half a millennia, there is no shortage of vengeful, hateful spirits who have not quite passed.
The memory who stands in front of her, materialized into a transient form, is no exception.
She is beautiful— painfully so. In this memory, her red and black kimono is still as pristine as the day before she must have died. In her hands is a biwa, its smooth wood polished, its strings worn from use, and Miko’s head tilts to the side as she watches this ghost sing as though no time has passed.
“My, were you waiting for me?” The kitsune asks teasingly, although her lip curls back into a silent snarl. “If I didn’t know better, I would think you were prepared for this, given how you wear my Archon’s face. Though, I’m afraid you got the kimono color wrong.”
“Oh, do you like it that much?” The ghost giggles, plucks at her biwa and it sends shivers down Miko’s back. “It was always easy to lure humans to this waterfall. Your Shogun looks so carefree, so unassuming.”
But it isn’t the Shogun’s face that this creature wears, but Makoto’s. It’s the eyes— the eyes look different. Makoto’s genuine kindness, soothing edges, completely lost in the cold facade from this yokai’s malicious past deeds.
“It’s truly a shame about the spider legs,” Miko simply replies, summoning her gohei to hand. “It’s a shame you had to die in that form.”
“Die? I shouldn’t think so!” The jorogumo laughs, shifting on her eight, spindly limbs. With her uncannily human arms, she strums at her biwa once more, a wicked glint in her eye as white webs materialize from the stone walls of the waterfall’s valley.
A trap.
Miko’s grip on her gohei tightens.
“Aren’t you aware, little fox?” The spider woman crows, lurching forward. “Bodily possession is rather in these days!”
--
It was supposed to be a simple early patrol of Narukami Island.
It had been Ayaka that first heard the striking sound of the biwa.
It had been Makoto who had latched onto the recognizable chime of suzu bells.
And with Ayaka and Kokomi flanking her sides, Makoto had dashed through the forest, and as the three of them currently approach the familiar gorge, her heart had sunk to her stomach.
She remembers what demon used to lurk in this place.
Without a second thought, she summons Musou Isshin to hand, coating it in Electro energy— its blade might have dulled from non-use, but at the very least, her lightning can cut through these webs.
“Miko!” Makoto cries, her sword forming a crescent moon of crackling, electric pulses, and she grabs a surprised Miko’s arm and pulls her backwards as remnants of white spider webs flurry around them like snow.
“Your Excellency,” Miko stammers, her gohei disappearing in a shimmer of light. “Why—”
“I heard you,” Makoto says, and her hold on the Musou Isshin tightens. “Your lightning.”
“Are you alright?” Kokomi asks worriedly.
“Fine,” Miko breathes.
“How touching.” The jorogumo grins. “The Shogun herself makes an appearance. It’s been a while. How long now? I’m afraid the passage of time is irrelevant when you’re dead.”
Makoto stares at her sternly. “I’ll save you the pain of knowing.”
A shrug from their adversary. “Suit yourself. You’ll be a lovely host for my spirit, anyway.”
“I can cut off her legs,” Ayaka murmurs, her own fingers twitching for the katana at her side. “Just say the word, Your Excellency.”
Hearing this, the yokai grins maniacally.
“Hiding behind yet another servant, Almighty Shogun?” She sneers, sharp nails digging into the wood of her biwa. “You’ve always been a coward. Hiding behind an army, hiding in that big palace of yours, hiding behind politics because what you lack in strength, you make up for with manipulation.”
Makoto takes a step back, shocked.
“In the end,” the demon continues, “what’s really the difference between you and I?”
"How dare you," Miko interrupts, her voice a pitch higher yet backed by a distinctly carnal growl that sends a shiver down Makoto's spine. The fox woman had fallen so quiet before, Makoto had almost forgotten she was present. Purple eyes blown wide, there is hysteria there— were Miko in her fox form, her hackles would most certainly be raised. "How dare you say such things about the Raiden Shogun."
The ghost laughs haughtily, clearly finding this whole thing hilarious.
“What? Does your disillusionment really run that deep? Let’s talk about it more, little fox.”
In a crooning motion, the demon woman crooks her finger, beckoning to Miko. Webs twist around her wrist, glinting in the early morning light, and Makoto is not fooled— if any of those threads managed to touch them, they would slice through skin like the sharpest of steel.
And if Miko were to be cut, Makoto, with her unsharpened blade, would be helpless. That demon woman hadn’t been wrong— what good is she to Miko, to the young Ayaka and Kokomi, to anyone, if she cannot even offer protection?
Miko takes one threatening step forward. “You don’t know the first thing about—”
"Yae Miko, I command you to stop," Makoto says sharply, desperate for anything to work in order to get her treasured fox out of any more immediate danger. A knot has twisted into her stomach, cruel and anxious, worried for the safety of the woman she's grown so attached to. "Do not speak of things you know nothing of."
But nothing prepares her for the way Miko flinches.
Miko recoils as though she's been slapped, her eyes wide as her ears flatten atop her head, and immediately, Makoto is overcome with a different kind of guilt. Miko's eyes are wide, her shoulders instinctively hunching, hands starting to tremble as she ducks her head and pointedly avoids Makoto's own worried gaze.
"Miko—" Makoto starts, stepping forward.
"No!" Interrupting her god, Miko dips her head, her outburst quickly dying down to a low murmur. As if her rage had been in a trance, as if she’d just remembered where she was. “I apologize, Lady Makoto. I was out of line.”
“Trouble in paradise?” The spider woman drawls, and Miko whips her head around to glare fiercely at her.
“I’ve had enough of you,” the kitsune growls, her gohei returning to hand and Kagura’s Verity materializing at her side. “I don’t know what trick you pulled back there, but I’m through with playing around.”
And it is with the chime of suzu bells that a surge of lightning strikes from the sky. Shaped like a fox but with the ferocity of all the kitsune that have come before her melded into one singular being known as Yae Miko, Makoto’s vision is blinded by sheer, pink light.
--
(When the lightning has receded and the light has died down, Miko is nowhere to be seen. Makoto’s two protegeés look worried, so Makoto sends them to find her.
And for a while, Makoto simply stands there, watching the remnants of a broken biwa trickle up to the brightening sky above.)
--
By the time Miko reaches Inazuma City, she is tired. It is not even midday, but she wishes it were much, much later so she could simply retire for the night— or maybe forever. Forever works too.
Nearing Uyuu Restaurant for a much needed recharge, she’s stopped by a gentle hand on the sleeve of her shrine maiden garb.
"Lady Yae—" It's the Kamisato girl, Ayaka. How had she gotten here so fast? Her compassionate blue eyes are hard to look at, so similar to Miko's own Archon. Genuine concern taints the girl's soft tone, and Miko cannot find herself to conjure the jealousy that had been present directly at her. "Your arm—"
"It's bleeding," Sangonomiya Kokomi finishes, her voice soft yet intelligent. Absently, she begins steering Miko over to a more secluded area, encourages the kitsune to sit herself on a bench. “You must have accidentally gotten cut on a thread.”
Kokomi intrigues Miko, and if she’s being honest, Ayaka does too. She’s held onto her jealousy like a crutch throughout all this time but the kitsune is tired of being angry, so she sighs, holds her arm out, and lets the healer tactician do her work.
--
"Where is Miko?" Makoto demands, striding into Ei's quarters. It has been hours since the encounter with the demon this morning. Her palms are clammy, she's nervous, and judging by the way Ei slowly puts her book down, looks wholly unsurprised by any of this, Makoto knows she's right to be. "She's— She's not at the shrine. She's not anywhere on Mount Yougou."
"Why do you need to know?" Ei asks carefully.
"Please, sister," Makoto begs, reaching out to take Ei's hands within her own. "She's your familiar, I know you can tell where she is.
Then, realizing she hadn't answered her twin's question, Makoto swallows.
"I messed up," she whispers. "I need to apologize. I need—"
"What will you do when you locate her?" Ei questions, violet eyes evermore perceptive when it comes to her sister. "What are you looking for, Makoto?"
"I—" The words die on Makoto's tongue. To say she just wants to apologize would be wrong; it would be disrespectful to Miko.
And so, heaving a deep breath, Makoto considers the question. It's a terrifying thing to wonder— she's always wanted to hold Miko's hand, always wanted to be by Miko's side. How is it that they'd been so close just last week? How is it that Makoto had so easily swept Miko into warm embraces not that long ago? What had changed?
"Once you figure it out," Ei says gently, so gently, and Makoto finds herself in awe. Her sister, who has always claimed to not understand the heart, gazes at her with all the kindness in the world. "I think you'll find that Miko is closer than you'd expect."
Oh.
Oh.
And with a nod of understanding, Makoto thanks her sister, ducks out of the room, and hurries down the hall.
Closer, closer.
She halts in front of her own bedroom door for a moment. Then, she hesitantly slides it open.
There is a small, pink fox curled up on her pillow.
--
Miko hadn’t meant to fall asleep.
That hadn’t been a part of the plan— not that there was much of a plan to begin with. Why she had snuck into Makoto’s own private quarters is beyond her; she’s had enough of thinking. Sometimes she just needs to go where her own feet lead her.
This time, she had been led to Makoto’s pillow, and the scent of sakuras and morning glories had been so overwhelming that she couldn’t help but curl up.
But falling asleep had never been in the plan.
And when Miko wakes up to a soft hand stroking her fur, the most she can offer is a squeak of shock as she scrambles away from Makoto and jumps off the bed, making a mad dash for the nearest window.
“Wait!” Makoto calls after her, an underlying note of desperation in the single syllable, and Miko freezes in her tracks.
This woman has always been her weakness.
“Please come back! Let’s talk, Miko,” Makoto begs, and Miko hastily clambers into her human form the moment she sees Makoto’s knees hit the ground because no, no, her Archon should not be kneeling for her.
But even as she stands on two feet, Miko finds herself unable to look away. Makoto has always been good at that— at silently commanding all attention in the room to her. She has always done the unorthodox, she has never been afraid to lower herself. And so, that is why—
“Please stand, Lady Makoto,” Miko says quietly.
Makoto shakes her head. “Not until you tell me what is wrong.”
Miko falls silent.
Then, she heaves in a breath and opts to join Makoto, kneeling on the ground.
“I do not want to bother you, Lady Makoto.”
“You are always a priority, Miko.”
“But—”
The fox woman looks away. That almost makes things harder.
"I am your humble servant," Miko whispers, her arms defensively hugging her midriff as she shivers under the gaze of her gentle god. "I have always been here. There is nowhere I would rather be than by your side, but I—" Miko's voice softens, lowering to almost a whisper. "Am I not enough?"
Makoto's resulting expression is stunned.
"Miko," she murmurs. "What do you…?"
Immediately, Miko shakes her head. This was foolish.
"Do not worry about it, Lady Makoto. Please don't let my small trifles get in the way of your—"
"No, no," Makoto quickly interjects, brow furrowing. She dips her head, worrying at her bottom lip. "I want to know. I always want to know what troubles you, Miko."
Sucking in a breath, Miko forces herself to look away. It is unfair how pretty Makoto appears even now, even under such distress— gloss lips glinting tantalizingly in the dying sunlight, dainty and smooth hands fiddling with themselves as Makoto actually looks nervous.
"I just—" The words get caught in Miko's throat, and she clenches her eyes shut in some attempt to search for what has been lost. "Lately you have always been seeking. The Kamisato girl, and the Sangonomiya girl— you have brought them into your inner circle. You have had tea with them and taught them your wisdom and laughed with them. All the while, you spend less and less time with me by the day!"
Halting in place, Miko swallows. "I know I have been busy, but I would have made time, I—"
Makoto's eyes widen.
"Miko," Makoto whispers, pain painted across her face as she shakes her head. "Oh, Miko! I could never grow tired of you, never. I'm sorry that I ever made you think otherwise— I'm sorry for not taking the time to make up for all the hours we missed together."
Miko's bottom lip trembles, her fox ears pressing down. "There's no need to force yourself."
"You say that, but in actuality, being with you has never felt more effortless."
Makoto reaches out, her fingertips brushing against Miko's cheek tenderly, and oh, how Miko longs to feel that warm palm against her skin again, just as she had all those centuries ago as a kit.
But then Makoto is pulling away, something unreadable in her eyes as she inhales sharply, and maybe she sees the deep frown on Miko's lips because then Makoto is blowing out a breath, that same uncharacteristic neutrality exuding from her that Miko has never bore witness to before.
It's as if Makoto is holding herself back.
"Why do you draw away?" The words leave Miko's lips before she can fathom them. "Why do you keep drawing away from me as of late, even though I want nothing more than for you to be closer?"
A sharp inhale.
"Miko," Makoto says warningly, strained. "You don't know what you're asking."
"On the contrary," Miko breathes, her chest tightening into a painful coil, "I've never been so sure of myself until now."
Makoto says nothing.
Miko holds her words through the silence.
Then—
"I don't think you're aware of how painfully beautiful you are, Miko."
Makoto's admission comes out as a whisper, and the moment feels fragile, as though we're she to speak louder, this pocket of time would evaporate into thin air— transient, fleeting.
"You are beautiful, and brilliant, and when I get close, I cannot get enough," Makoto continues, swallowing. "And I am afraid. So very, very afraid, because you deserve better than to be tied down to the weaker of two gods and a world of troubles."
"Lady Makoto…" Miko reaches out tentatively.
"And it has been hard." Looking away and clenching her eyes shut, Makoto's hands come to ball into the hem of her robes, frustration rolling off of the goddess in waves. "Ei's newfound happiness that used to bring me joy now brings me jealousy, and it makes me feel terrible, knowing that I feel such bitter feelings towards my sister's relationship, when she and Sara deserve all the happiness in the world."
"Makoto," Miko says again, gentler now. Deliberately dropping the honorific, just this once. "Lady Makoto, you deserve happiness as well, just as Ei does."
"It was easier to handle," Makoto whispers, "when I thought Ei favored you."
What?
Miko stares at her in quiet shock.
"Why?" She asks softly.
"Because then you would be out of reach." The laugh that leaves Makoto's lips has no humor. "If you belonged to Ei, then I could spend as much time with you as I desired without fear of holding you down. Because if you belonged to Ei, there was someone who could protect you and keep you safe— who could succeed where I fall short."
Miko shakes her head.
"You fall short of no one."
--
Makoto offers no resistance when Miko moves in close; couldn’t even if she wanted to. No, Makoto has always wanted this, always wanted Miko. It’s just that she’s never deserved it, never even began entertaining the mere thought.
"Lady Makoto," Miko whispers, the span of her breath warm against the Archon's lips, and maybe Makoto wants to cry because Miko, her Miko is so close, so within tantalizing reach that it's almost as though Makoto can see the electricity sparking in between them.
"Miko," Makoto whispers in return, nearing desperation.
"Lady Makoto," Miko murmurs again, and then their foreheads are pressed together and Makoto can't breathe. "Lady Makoto, do you trust me?"
"Always," Makoto says without hesitation. She loves Miko, she loves her so deeply. "Always, always for you."
"Then trust me to protect myself," Miko says, closing her eyes as a small, affectionate smile graces her lips. "I know I haven't experienced as much as you have—"
"That was never a problem," Makoto interjects, saddened by the thought that Miko believes herself to be behind in any way. "I have never thought of you any less just because you have not roamed this earth for as long, Miko."
The days of thinking Miko a youth were long gone, lost to centuries past as time had begun to blend together; as Miko had blossomed into a breathtaking woman under Saiguu's care and suddenly she was the air in Makoto's lungs by merely walking into the room.
"Do you truly mean that?" Miko asks, something akin to hope shining in her eyes, smile growing at Makoto's hasty nod. "Then, can I say something as well?"
"Of course." Makoto wets her lips, reminding herself to inhale. "Anything."
"If my lack of experience has never been a problem for you," Miko says, steady and warm, a hand now cupping Makoto's cheek, "then your aversion to fighting, your wish for peace— that has never been an issue for me, Lady Makoto."
Stunned, Makoto's mouth opens and closes wordlessly.
"You have always stood for peace," Miko continues gently. "I am honored that you fear for my safety, that you wish you could fight for me, but please do not compromise your beliefs on my part, my Archon. There is a reason why Musou Isshin remains unsharpened. I believe in your dream, and you are a symbol of peace— a symbol of peace that I wish to protect myself. When I stand up for you, I am aware of what I am getting into, and I am honored to do so."
And then Miko is breaking into laughter, the freeing sound bubbling from her throat in pure, unadulterated glee as a thumb grazes Makoto's parted lips with a tenderness that speaks beyond time.
"I love you, Lady Makoto," Miko confesses breathlessly, ardently. "I love you very, very much. And if the kitsune in front of you was brought into this world for anything, it was to spend my days in tangent with you, to whatever extent you will have me."
All her life, Makoto has never thought she'd see anything as bright as the lightning that strikes from the heavens, that sparks at the tips of her own fingers, taunting her with its tangible power that Makoto refuses to wield unless absolutely necessary. For so long, she'd been satisfied just having this lightning at her disposal— nothing has ever felt out of reach, not with the lightning in her soul and her sister by her side.
But then Yae Miko had stepped into her life, a brilliant flash against a dark night sky; the endless cherry blossoms among their ever-changing world.
She had been so brilliant back then, so brilliant even now— not afraid to bite, not afraid to be gentle, fearless in a way that Makoto has never seen before. And Miko burns in front of her, smiles at Makoto knowing she could get scarred and yet doesn't waver.
She is everything. Miko is everything.
"Miko!" Makoto gasps, the fickle distance closing with each beat of her racing heart. "Miko, you are everything! I love you, Miko!"
And then her arms are looping around Miko's neck, and she's tugging Miko closer, and a hand finds itself tangling in the pink of Miko's hair, and—
--
Makoto kisses like the lightning she embodies— fierce, desperate, a searing blaze onto Miko's lips as though were she to stop, Miko would cease to exist. She nips at Miko's bottom lip and tangles her fingers in pink hair, blunt nails scratching at the kitsune's scalp, before the violet-haired woman breaks away and Miko is given a brief chance to breathe as Makoto burns a fiery path up the column of her throat with an eager mouth.
"Who knew our gentle Archon could be such an aggressive lover?" Miko teases before breaking into a gasp, further sinking into the bed as Makoto hovers over her. A broken cry of Makoto's name escapes her lips, earning a giggle from the aforementioned god.
"You don't seem to be protesting, my heart," Makoto murmurs, mischief written in her smile but fondness glowing from everywhere else.
Ah, Miko thinks as she reaches up to sweep a strand of hair from Makoto's eyes, I'm going crazy.
"It's rare to see you lacking words," the god further comments before cementing their lips together once more, this time into something gentler. Her lips are softer than Miko ever could've dreamed, and the kitsune woman sighs into the kiss, embracing the electricity, feeling it hum its way down both her body and Makoto's.
When they finally pull apart, Makoto is smiling and Miko's chest heaves as she finally takes a moment to gather her thoughts.
"You steal the words right from my lungs," Miko breathes, and she licks her lips, delighted as Makoto's deceptively sharp eyes follow the motion. Still, she fixes herself a pout, tossing her arms around Makoto's shoulders. "Not that I've ever had much success in teasing you."
Makoto pauses.
"You tease Ei quite frequently." There is a tinge of hesitation. "I always wondered… if you wished for me to act differently."
A warm wave of affection careens its way through Miko's chest, and she shakes her head, smiling softly.
Even Archons have their insecurities.
"I told you, didn't I? The Makoto in front of me is all I could ever want. You never have to pretend for me." Tracing Makoto's lips, Miko stares in wonder. "There is nothing for you to prove to a servant like me, my Archon."
"You have never been just a servant in my eyes," Makoto corrects sternly, and then her lips are covering Miko's again, and Miko is mewling into her mouth, and Makoto whispers her love during their small breaks for air, and—
"We have both been foolish, haven't we?" Makoto whispers, sheepish.
"The biggest fools in Inazuma," Miko agrees, giggling.
Makoto tugs her up to the pillows, pulling incessantly at her lover's clothes, mouthing at Miko's neck. Meanwhile, a kitsune sinks into the arms of her god and falls in love all over again.
It is impeccable— maybe even more than that.
--
Beneath the early light, Miko is perfect.
Last night, Miko was perfect too— Miko is always perfect. But there is something different about this: Yae Miko in nothing but one of Makoto’s silk robes, a size too big for her, slipping off her shoulder as she warms under the rays of the rising sun, sinking into Makoto’s side as she gazes off their balcony across the nation they both treasure so dearly.
There is something different about this, like a moment in time that Makoto never wants to end. She has always believed in finding the depths of what is fleeting, and yet as she squeezes Miko close, inhales the scent of sakura petals, she closes her eyes and wishes she could pocket this frame, live in it forever— with Miko forever.
(Briefly, she wonders if this is what Ei feels when she is with Sara.)
And so, the thought comes along, unhurried:
You belong here, with me.
It's not a startling revelation. It does not creep, undetected, or present itself with any sort of fanfare; does not even demand Makoto's attention as it slips in through the front door.
In fact, as Makoto watches Miko laugh with the singing finches that line her balcony railing, it comes to her attention that this knowledge isn't much of a revelation at all, but more of a confirmation; an acknowledgement of something that Makoto had always felt to be true.
"You belong here, with me."
This time, Makoto speaks aloud, falling as easily from her lips as a flower opening its blossoms under the sun.
She doesn't even realize the words had slipped out until Miko is suddenly staring at her, jaw slightly ajar, lovely features painted in shock.
The finches take off, flying away into a blue, blue sky.
Oh.
"What—" Miko stops mid-sentence, swallowing. Once again, she has been rendered speechless. Her ears press against her head, and she dips her head almost bashfully as she looks at Makoto through long lashes. For all her cunning, Miko is a shy flower, and Makoto wishes she could wipe all of her insecurities away.
Then, Miko tries again. "What did you say, Lady Makoto?"
It is decidedly a moment that requires no hesitation. Their hands intertwine.
"Stay with me," Makoto tells her softly, and an expanse of fresh air fills her lungs. She has never breathed easier than this— never acknowledged the beat of her unchanging heart so clearly. Her lightning dances across their skin, uninhibited and free, painless and wonderful, and it mingles with the pink of Miko's electricity like cherry blossoms. "I woke up this morning with you in my arms, and I realized that there's nothing else I would ever want to keep witnessing more. Stay with me, Miko."
Somewhere in the distance, probably from up at the Grand Narukami Shrine, there is the clear chime of suzu bells.
And Miko laughs loudly with them, the sound singing in harmony, leaving Makoto just as entranced as she’d been the first time. Without thinking, Miko runs her thumb over the back of Makoto's hands, and Makoto is warm, warm, warm.
So this is what it feels like.
“Always, Lady Makoto. Always.”
--
"What do you have to do today?" Miko asks, tucking herself under Makoto's chin. "Anything in particular?"
Makoto shakes her head, kisses Miko's cheek. "I would've had a lunch meeting with Ayaka and Kokomi, but I plan on rescheduling. Today, I wish for nothing but to spend every hour with you."
At the sound of her protegeé's names, Miko buries her face into the crook of Makoto's neck out of embarrassment.
"You don't have to do such things," the shrine maiden murmurs, one ear twitching out of guilt. Now she knows that Makoto had never intentionally sought differing company, and it would be remiss to forget how both Ayaka and Kokomi had shown genuine concern for her injuries the prior day. “I know you enjoy your time with them.”
“You’re not wrong.” Makoto smiles. “But I mean it, Miko. I fully intend on spending the entire day with you.”
“All for me?” Miko squeaks, and the noise is so uncharacteristic of her that even Miko finds herself groaning, hiding her face out of embarrassment as Makoto presses her giggles into pink hair.
“All for you,” the Archon reassures. Then she pauses, reconsidering. “Although, perhaps we should have lunch with Ei and Sara. They’ll probably want to know what happened.”
Miko groans again, fisting her hands into the silk of Makoto’s robes. “Ei will never let me live this down!”
“All the more reason to get the conversation over with quickly, yes?” Makoto says cheerfully, and Miko smothers her content smile into Makoto’s collarbone. “Oh, speaking of Ei, I noticed that you always refer to her informally, Miko.”
“Ah, yes, I do.”
“And you don’t do the same for me.”
Miko doesn’t even need to look up to know that her new lover is pouting. Her smile widens, lips against Makoto’s skin.
“Sara’s been calling Ei informally too,” the fox woman considers, pretending to be thinking it all through. “Although, it did take her a bit to get used to it. I suppose it’s been easier for me to just call you Lady Makoto out of habit.”
“But will you try?” Makoto presses, a key signature of hope dancing atop the simple proposal.
And Miko laughs. “Of course I will, Makoto! We have forever to get it right.”
Yae Miko has been in love with Raiden Makoto for centuries. Now, she’s more than happy for things to stay this way.
End.