/jp/ - Otaku Culture

>>46896954
—
I stare at the skies—rocky stalactites that litter the Underground's roof—with hands restlessly resting on my belly and eyes wide open, focused on nothing. The red eye on my chest reflected the exhaustion in the faces around me… Minus Suika’s, who looked rather amused as she drank copious amounts of sake, though I vaguely remember eyes of sorrow when we arrived from Eientei—maybe whatever she talked with that creep Okina and Satori-sama made her feel bad…?—; Yuugi’s shows kind concern and a bit of sympathy while Orin slept together with Kokoro. Here, on top of a soundly sleeping Koutei, I breathed in… Then uttered, after hours of thinking: “If I catch a big group of storks…” Yuugi sighs and slaps her face, making my heart race with righteous fervor. “No, no—listen to me: I can mutate their brains after exposing them to various types of radiation poisoning, making them smart enough to begin mass-producing babies! That could work, right…?”

“That's a good plan~” Suika offers, these hopeful eyes of mine turning to her while Yuugi shakes her head in disbelief. Why's she— “If ya desire to cause some mayhem by poking holes into ecosystems, that's it—heh, you need to accept it, Utsuho-chan~” the oni guzzles from her gourd with joy. “Either you do the deed and let a man poke YOUR ecosystem, or you let Eirin-chin poke you with some chemical syringes. No baby comes to Earth any other way—that guy Jesus? He's all special, so he doesn't count.” I grumble, then pout, and let my wings cover my body.

That doesn't make any sense!

Everything I knew—the respect I withheld for my white brothers and sisters who honorably delivered babies—gone! And to replace that magical idealization…? S-Some confusing act of putting together no-no spots!

Maybe the world needs some nuking and bionuclear mutation to fix itself; the actual way of making babies is just too silly! “Why does that affect you so much, Utsuho?” Yuugi asks, shifting closer and giving me this expectant gaze, my pout hardening and feathers ruffling…

… Well, that's all I have because putting it in words is just so, ugh…

From the frying pan to the thermonuclear bonfire.

“Look, I understand being upset about getting to know, well…” The dragon's breathing beneath me—so soothing~—is what prevents me from storming out as her cheeks redden and her massive hand inches closer to me. “… H-how baby making is done. Let me tell you: the first time I got… taught about it, I didn't, er, react very well too; it sucked, it really did!” Suika laughs out loud and Yuugi groans, a brief peek towards the petite oni revealing a gaze brimming with nostalgia. “But it's no big deal. It's just how the world works… The more you learn about it, the more confusion and, well, a bunch of other emotions you feel. Sadness, anger—curiosity even, heh.” Her hand finally reaches my head, patting there…

Ah, feels nice~

“Just know it’s all okay, Utsuho!”

… Ugh, I think I was being unreasonable again.

Satori-sama talks to me often about such behavior and how childish it is… Satori-sama was always so quick to scold; to stop but never, ever did she think about explaining things to me? What's not telling me about the origin of b-babies protecting me from?! Memories of these specific moments I never took seriously return to me, and a dense layer of bitterness spreads inside, hands on the dragon's iridescent scales firming with anxiety that resonates like the pounding of thunderstorms.

Like drip-feeding a bucket, away from tipping over by mere surface tension—

A loud huff from below shakes the Underground like an earthquake, waking Orin up instantly; the hell-cat, wide-eyed, jumped on all fours and hissed, every hair on her body erected. Kokoro blinks, looks around and pulls the scared cat down, mumbling Koishi's name before resuming sleep. Orin followed suit, too tired to care for Armageddon. I was too busy staring at the dragon's claw that, much to Yuugi's shock and subsequent smirk, also gently patted my head to care about the duo or Suika's laughter, arms wrapped around her stomach, face all red.

Don't think I can ever tire of this~

… My pouting continues even as the massive claw retracts, my brows narrow, and my wings gradually drop and brush on the veridian scales. A brief silence followed as Yuugi's laughter died down to a kind smile. Fine, ugh… “S-Sorry for all this! Utsuho feels like she's becoming a waste of time; she doesn't like to be a b-burden when she's sulk—”

“Nope; no excuses~! It's all okay, Utsuho.” The big oni says it clearly and with no hesitation, a light in her eyes bearing strong pride. I smile fondly. It looks like Satori-sama's~

“Heh~” Suika giggles. “So it's all well—”

“—NO! Nothing is well because of impassive cretins like you!” The abrupt but familiar voice erodes Suika's smile, all eyes moving to the floating wound in the form of a door, Satori-sama entering it with a fire in her eyes.

Beyond the door, for a split second, I see—amidst others—Reimu Hakurei.

You forgot to hug Okuu today, now she very sade...