A Minor Wonder
May. 12th, 2020 08:00 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
nyanderenekoWord Count: 1,592
Summary: A new rumor has started circulating at Kamome Academy, one about a mysterious cat that allegedly grants people good luck. Few know of the cryptic feline’s true nature, of course; what’s the point of trying to unravel a rumor anyway?
Author’s Note: Hello to anyone reading this!! I am trying to make a tentative return from my months-long hiatus, working on some new fics that have to do with some of my new F/Os! This happens to be one of them, since I got into JSHK pretty recently (specifically for this chara that I happened to regrettably catch a glimpse of one day--the story of my life) and have naturally fallen down the rabbit hole as usual of thinking about all sorts of new ship things and wanting to write new scenarios…so hopefully I’ll have the time and energy to keep it up! I’m not sure how frequently I’ll be able to do so, but I have quite a few ideas for F/Os both old and new that I’d like to get serious about finishing, so…here’s hoping summer will be more beneficial for my productivity, lol.
Have you heard the rumor--the one about the elusive black cat that roams the library bookstacks? Its eyes are like black holes, and shooting stars streak through its fur. They say it’s like an extension of the shadows, an aimless spirit cursed to wander the stacks for all eternity. It’s not a very dangerous apparition, or even that threatening. No, I’ve heard that if you see it, even just a glimpse out of the corner of your eye, good fortune and prosperity are sure to follow! Almost like making a wish. It’s a bit of a strange story, a little out of place compared to the reputation of the other Seven Wonders. But this spirit isn’t a Wonder in and of itself, so maybe the same standards don’t apply? Only time will tell…
Summary: A new rumor has started circulating at Kamome Academy, one about a mysterious cat that allegedly grants people good luck. Few know of the cryptic feline’s true nature, of course; what’s the point of trying to unravel a rumor anyway?
Author’s Note: Hello to anyone reading this!! I am trying to make a tentative return from my months-long hiatus, working on some new fics that have to do with some of my new F/Os! This happens to be one of them, since I got into JSHK pretty recently (specifically for this chara that I happened to regrettably catch a glimpse of one day--the story of my life) and have naturally fallen down the rabbit hole as usual of thinking about all sorts of new ship things and wanting to write new scenarios…so hopefully I’ll have the time and energy to keep it up! I’m not sure how frequently I’ll be able to do so, but I have quite a few ideas for F/Os both old and new that I’d like to get serious about finishing, so…here’s hoping summer will be more beneficial for my productivity, lol.
_____
Have you heard the rumor--the one about the elusive black cat that roams the library bookstacks? Its eyes are like black holes, and shooting stars streak through its fur. They say it’s like an extension of the shadows, an aimless spirit cursed to wander the stacks for all eternity. It’s not a very dangerous apparition, or even that threatening. No, I’ve heard that if you see it, even just a glimpse out of the corner of your eye, good fortune and prosperity are sure to follow! Almost like making a wish. It’s a bit of a strange story, a little out of place compared to the reputation of the other Seven Wonders. But this spirit isn’t a Wonder in and of itself, so maybe the same standards don’t apply? Only time will tell…
_____
“They’re calling you a good luck charm,” a gruff male voice spoke into the darkness, lazily sucking on his pipe between breaths.
“I guess that means I am, then,” a playful, more feminine voice rejoined as a small figure strolled out of the shadows before him.
“Not like any good luck charm I’ve ever seen,” the man protested, eyes trained on the creature as it emerged. “If that’s true, when’s some of that luck going to rub off on me?”
“Maybe you’ve already used it all up,” the creature with the glittering coat suggested, hopping onto his desk and shaking off her damp paws before neatly tucking them under her tail.
“Or maybe you wasted it all on yourself,” the man continued, taking care not to exhale too much smoke in her direction. “Begging someone to save you, and me showing up just in time. Kind of a lousy thing to use it on, if you ask me.”
“Well, I didn’t,” the cat pointed out, her silhouette outlined by the scarce beams of light that managed to leak in through the shuttered windows. The source of such illumination in this realm between realities was, of course, unknown. “Ask you, that is. And it’s not like I would have used up my luck willingly if I could help it. And it’s not like I ever actually had any such luck in the first place--.”
The man chuckled and gave her a light pat on the head. “So argumentative, and so obstinate…are you looking for a fight?”
“I should be the one asking you that,” she huffed, turning her nose up in a dramatic sweep. “You’re the one who brought up all this luck nonsense--.”
“Because it’s kind of important,” he explained, absently scratching under her chin. The idea of snapping at his fingers with her fangs crossed her mind, but as the soft hum of her purr floated into the air, she realized she couldn’t stop even if she wanted to. “You need to be aware of things like that now. If you aren’t careful, you could turn into a horrible monster out of nowhere, and not even understand how or why you’re suddenly acting so heinously.”
Her expression fell as the cat finally faced him, eyes sheepish and a little wary. “Do you think something like that is really going to happen to me?”
“Who can say?” he mused as she rubbed her cheek against his hand. “It’s not impossible, but things have been relatively tame around here lately. I wouldn’t let your guard down, but there’s also no use in panicking, or worrying for worrying’s sake.”
“You can’t just tell me something like that and then expect me not to worry,” she protested, leaning into his tender caress. “I don’t know what I’d do if I suddenly transformed into some awful creature against my will. I don’t want to. I know none of us do, really, and we can’t help it if things get out of control…but Nanaban-sama is pretty good at keeping a handle on things, isn’t he?”
The bookkeeper sighed, although not really in response to her question. She was the one who’d stirred his thoughts, who’d got him pondering about that young boy again, the one he was irrevocably bound to for the extent of their shared ghostly existence. The honorable Number Seven, head of the Seven Wonders of Kamome Academy, who was truly nothing more than a troubled child himself. The man’s heart ached to remember it, and yet he knew that the last thing Number Seven wanted was charity or pity.
That same child was the one that had orchestrated his first encounter with this unsuspecting feline, facilitating the partnership that Tsuchigomori had forged with her. Always meddling in affairs that had nothing to do with him, tipping scales and disrupting routines. He was an unpredictable one, but reliable in his own way. Tsuchigomori knew he’d never be able to turn his back on him, regardless of whatever circumstances or struggles they happened to face. He liked to believe that a day as bleak as that would never come.
She’d been little more than a lost spirit at first, an unexpected outsider that had somehow stumbled upon these haunted halls only to end up trapped by them. Trapped in more ways than one, really, since she’d almost fallen victim to a handful of the many vindictive spirits that also happen to call this place home. But, as he’d previously recalled, a scapegoat had come through for her by means she was still no closer to understanding. For now, she was fine with that. She was happily oblivious to the greater conflicts playing out around her, obediently floating along whatever current fate happened to set her on next. She’d already managed to claim a spot as an accessory to a Wonder, and that status should have been more than enough to keep her stable and safe…for the time being.
“Just leave it all to him…” The words he uttered into the stuffy air were more for himself than for her, and she accepted as much without pushing him for an explanation.
“Maybe not everything…” She added soothingly, using his arm as a bridge to reach his shoulders as she curled up comfortably around his neck. She batted at the chain that hung from his glasses a few times, and he shot her a benevolently irritated look. Taking the hint that he probably wasn’t in the mood for too much more provocation, she nudged his cheek with her nose, twitching her whiskers as her pronounced purr vibrated against him. “I don’t want you to worry, either. Right now, things are alright. Isn’t that how it’s supposed to be? Wasting your time dwelling on thoughts and feelings that don’t matter, worrying about things that haven’t happened or lamenting things that have…at least right now, in this moment, do you think you could push all of that back for a bit?”
“Do I have a choice?” he teased, gently nuzzling the tip of her ear. “It sounds like even if I say no, you’re going to try to convince me until I forfeit.”
“I just don’t like to see you worry. You know that,” she confessed, startling as he suddenly shifted her into his lap.
“Go back to the way you’re supposed to be,” he directed, and she followed his order without objection.
In the next moment, she was enveloped in a puff of dense smoke. As it cleared, the form of a timid young woman with twinkling hair replaced the fluffy black feline with the starlit fur. He cupped her cheek and she nudged his hand in the same way she had before, gripping his unoccupied one in her own and drawing it to her lips. His first instinct was to scoff and jerk away, put off by her overly sentimental display of affection. But he stuck it out for her sake, frozen in her grasp as he cradled her in his own.
“Have you heard the rumor about the Wonder that pretends to be a monster, but deep down he’s one of the softest souls I’ve ever met?” He grew tense as the words left her lips. “You play your role well, your real role…the rest of it is just for show, but I guess that makes it equally impressive.”
“You’re just talking nonsense now,” he chided, freeing his hand to ruffle her hair. “Maybe I shouldn’t have encouraged you to turn back. You’re so much easier to deal with as a cat.”
“We both know you prefer it this way,” she teased, pushing herself up just enough for her lips to meet his cheek. “Either way, I’m not going anywhere.”
“I suppose I’ll just have to get used to this, then,” he replied as he trailed a finger down the slope of her face. “I guess it isn’t so bad.”
“It could always be worse,” she agreed, stroking his cheeks with her thumbs. “But it won’t be with me. I’ll make sure of it. And if the rumors start to change, I’ll just do what I can to get them back to normal. You won’t lose me to them, and I won’t lose you…I don’t want to go back to being lost.”
“You won’t,” he reassured as she settled against his chest. He could tell she was still a little restless, and he gently pressed his lips to her hair before he continued. “Even if we can’t rewrite the past, we can still influence the future. Or do what we can to prepare for it, at the very least. I’ll make sure you never have to experience the fear of being lost again.”
“They’re calling you a good luck charm,” a gruff male voice spoke into the darkness, lazily sucking on his pipe between breaths.
“I guess that means I am, then,” a playful, more feminine voice rejoined as a small figure strolled out of the shadows before him.
“Not like any good luck charm I’ve ever seen,” the man protested, eyes trained on the creature as it emerged. “If that’s true, when’s some of that luck going to rub off on me?”
“Maybe you’ve already used it all up,” the creature with the glittering coat suggested, hopping onto his desk and shaking off her damp paws before neatly tucking them under her tail.
“Or maybe you wasted it all on yourself,” the man continued, taking care not to exhale too much smoke in her direction. “Begging someone to save you, and me showing up just in time. Kind of a lousy thing to use it on, if you ask me.”
“Well, I didn’t,” the cat pointed out, her silhouette outlined by the scarce beams of light that managed to leak in through the shuttered windows. The source of such illumination in this realm between realities was, of course, unknown. “Ask you, that is. And it’s not like I would have used up my luck willingly if I could help it. And it’s not like I ever actually had any such luck in the first place--.”
The man chuckled and gave her a light pat on the head. “So argumentative, and so obstinate…are you looking for a fight?”
“I should be the one asking you that,” she huffed, turning her nose up in a dramatic sweep. “You’re the one who brought up all this luck nonsense--.”
“Because it’s kind of important,” he explained, absently scratching under her chin. The idea of snapping at his fingers with her fangs crossed her mind, but as the soft hum of her purr floated into the air, she realized she couldn’t stop even if she wanted to. “You need to be aware of things like that now. If you aren’t careful, you could turn into a horrible monster out of nowhere, and not even understand how or why you’re suddenly acting so heinously.”
Her expression fell as the cat finally faced him, eyes sheepish and a little wary. “Do you think something like that is really going to happen to me?”
“Who can say?” he mused as she rubbed her cheek against his hand. “It’s not impossible, but things have been relatively tame around here lately. I wouldn’t let your guard down, but there’s also no use in panicking, or worrying for worrying’s sake.”
“You can’t just tell me something like that and then expect me not to worry,” she protested, leaning into his tender caress. “I don’t know what I’d do if I suddenly transformed into some awful creature against my will. I don’t want to. I know none of us do, really, and we can’t help it if things get out of control…but Nanaban-sama is pretty good at keeping a handle on things, isn’t he?”
The bookkeeper sighed, although not really in response to her question. She was the one who’d stirred his thoughts, who’d got him pondering about that young boy again, the one he was irrevocably bound to for the extent of their shared ghostly existence. The honorable Number Seven, head of the Seven Wonders of Kamome Academy, who was truly nothing more than a troubled child himself. The man’s heart ached to remember it, and yet he knew that the last thing Number Seven wanted was charity or pity.
That same child was the one that had orchestrated his first encounter with this unsuspecting feline, facilitating the partnership that Tsuchigomori had forged with her. Always meddling in affairs that had nothing to do with him, tipping scales and disrupting routines. He was an unpredictable one, but reliable in his own way. Tsuchigomori knew he’d never be able to turn his back on him, regardless of whatever circumstances or struggles they happened to face. He liked to believe that a day as bleak as that would never come.
She’d been little more than a lost spirit at first, an unexpected outsider that had somehow stumbled upon these haunted halls only to end up trapped by them. Trapped in more ways than one, really, since she’d almost fallen victim to a handful of the many vindictive spirits that also happen to call this place home. But, as he’d previously recalled, a scapegoat had come through for her by means she was still no closer to understanding. For now, she was fine with that. She was happily oblivious to the greater conflicts playing out around her, obediently floating along whatever current fate happened to set her on next. She’d already managed to claim a spot as an accessory to a Wonder, and that status should have been more than enough to keep her stable and safe…for the time being.
“Just leave it all to him…” The words he uttered into the stuffy air were more for himself than for her, and she accepted as much without pushing him for an explanation.
“Maybe not everything…” She added soothingly, using his arm as a bridge to reach his shoulders as she curled up comfortably around his neck. She batted at the chain that hung from his glasses a few times, and he shot her a benevolently irritated look. Taking the hint that he probably wasn’t in the mood for too much more provocation, she nudged his cheek with her nose, twitching her whiskers as her pronounced purr vibrated against him. “I don’t want you to worry, either. Right now, things are alright. Isn’t that how it’s supposed to be? Wasting your time dwelling on thoughts and feelings that don’t matter, worrying about things that haven’t happened or lamenting things that have…at least right now, in this moment, do you think you could push all of that back for a bit?”
“Do I have a choice?” he teased, gently nuzzling the tip of her ear. “It sounds like even if I say no, you’re going to try to convince me until I forfeit.”
“I just don’t like to see you worry. You know that,” she confessed, startling as he suddenly shifted her into his lap.
“Go back to the way you’re supposed to be,” he directed, and she followed his order without objection.
In the next moment, she was enveloped in a puff of dense smoke. As it cleared, the form of a timid young woman with twinkling hair replaced the fluffy black feline with the starlit fur. He cupped her cheek and she nudged his hand in the same way she had before, gripping his unoccupied one in her own and drawing it to her lips. His first instinct was to scoff and jerk away, put off by her overly sentimental display of affection. But he stuck it out for her sake, frozen in her grasp as he cradled her in his own.
“Have you heard the rumor about the Wonder that pretends to be a monster, but deep down he’s one of the softest souls I’ve ever met?” He grew tense as the words left her lips. “You play your role well, your real role…the rest of it is just for show, but I guess that makes it equally impressive.”
“You’re just talking nonsense now,” he chided, freeing his hand to ruffle her hair. “Maybe I shouldn’t have encouraged you to turn back. You’re so much easier to deal with as a cat.”
“We both know you prefer it this way,” she teased, pushing herself up just enough for her lips to meet his cheek. “Either way, I’m not going anywhere.”
“I suppose I’ll just have to get used to this, then,” he replied as he trailed a finger down the slope of her face. “I guess it isn’t so bad.”
“It could always be worse,” she agreed, stroking his cheeks with her thumbs. “But it won’t be with me. I’ll make sure of it. And if the rumors start to change, I’ll just do what I can to get them back to normal. You won’t lose me to them, and I won’t lose you…I don’t want to go back to being lost.”
“You won’t,” he reassured as she settled against his chest. He could tell she was still a little restless, and he gently pressed his lips to her hair before he continued. “Even if we can’t rewrite the past, we can still influence the future. Or do what we can to prepare for it, at the very least. I’ll make sure you never have to experience the fear of being lost again.”
(no subject)
Date: 2020-05-12 05:31 pm (UTC)“So argumentative, and so obstinate…are you looking for a fight?” I'm yelling
“Have you heard the rumor about the Wonder that pretends to be a monster, but deep down he’s one of the softest souls I’ve ever met?” this is sappy as hell wtf
Dude this was so sweet, especially the very end.. such a good introduction too!