teahoused | general texting meme

[ The corners of her mouth tug upward into an honest smile despite her best efforts when he rubs the stubble of his beard against her cheek. It's always been a curious sensation, strangely pleasant in its own way regardless of the stage of growth if somewhat ticklish at times. Those words, however, see her reaching to loop her arms around his neck as she moves to vacate his position and scoot more or less back onto her side of the bed so as to tug him properly into it only to turn around and scoot a little closer to him. If he expects her to let go just like that, though, he'll be sorely disappointed. ]

You wouldn't.

[ And she is very confident in calling him on that bluff for a single, simple truth she divulges in leaning her forehead close to his. ]

Your place is here with me.

Awfully confident.

[Still, Kouta made no protest or move to fight against her pull, far stronger than anything he'd ever experienced in his life or death. He'd already kept away from her for a year, and even longer since before then. He couldn't deny her or himself any longer, and he shifted only slightly to get comfortable in her embrace, pulling the covers up around the both of them.]

What's on the agenda for today?

[Because Setsura's schedule was his, and he wanted to know if it was going to be a lazy day or if he should set an alarm to make sure they got up on time.]

[ Setsura hums pleasantly with that first statement of his and relaxes when he pulls the covers around them, careful as ever in checking her grip. She's not much of one for distance, though, and she's quick to draw herself to him and innocently for easier cuddling. ]

It's... mm, Sunday? I'm on call today.

[ It sounds odd, hearing herself say it, almost like some phrase in a foreign language, but there it is. She's arranged the schedule in such a way that the tea house should run well and efficiently with Sukuna flanked by certain approved persons capable of defending him until she arrives should there be a need. There shouldn't be a need provided he remains within protected territory and he had promised, tears streaming down his face as he hiccuped dramatically. She almost opens her eyes to banish the image, almost.

But what she means, simply, is that they have an off day provided today isn't the day something or someone foolish decides to try and eat her ward. A whole day to themselves, really. ]

Really?

[If Kouta sounded far, far too surprised, he was mostly teasing her. But before his... death, Setsura had been hard pressed to leave the tea house. He couldn't blame her because her duty had been to her beloved ex-god, but she had been more open to the possibility of leaving since Kouta had come back. Which he was infinitely grateful for, because even if they had all the time in the world now, he was impatient and greedy to soak up as much of Setsura's time as possible. Within reason.]

Don't suppose we can play hooky on Monday then?

[ Had Kouta asked her that question decades ago, Setsura might have scolded him. In fact, she did, and on multiple occasions. Akemi, too, because there was work to be done. They had things to accomplish and when she went in, she went in hard in pursuit of her goals, which she took seriously. That's no less true now, but things are a little different. The board has changed, for one, expanded. Kouta is retired. Akemi is in Heaven and while some part of her still fiends after the kingship of Tamamura -- it's the principle of the matter, really, she's mindful of the empire she's built since her arrival in Tokyo between her various contacts and connections as she's observed the city's growth. Tokyo is her city and every Hand this side of the Pacific knows it or learns quickly.

Still, like attracts like and while she's tended to act to temper present company first and foremost, but especially in their younger years when Kouta himself was more impetuous, there's no denying the way her heart swelled when he asks that sort of thing, no the fact that she had caved every now and again between him and Akemi pressing. If anything, it's got worse when she settled and even worse still since his return. She cracks her eyes open now and turns a fond smile on him, wondering that he doesn't feel it through her chest. ]

Why? Did you have something in mind?

Spending all day in bed isn't enough for ya?

[Kouta grinned at her rougeishly, before sobering slightly. While he had always been quick to cut class, he had been serious about missions, family, and friends. Even if he was dead tired, he could always summon up enough strength to make sure his loved ones were well cared for. And while soon, Kouta would like to visit his family's shrine and make sure his kids and grandkids were doing as well as could be expected, that loss was still fresh. He could have Setsura now, and he was happy for that, but it didn't mean he didn't mourn the loss of his family any less.

Which brought him to the one place he could go, the one place they both should go if they were going to pursue this seriously.]

I wanna visit Akemi's grave. It feels a bit strange, to be together but not have her here.

[Because they had always been a trio, and even when Akemi had passed, she had been so vibrant she had left her mark behind.]

[ She had. Setsura sobers with Kouta's words and the suddenness of the pang about her heart. Even now, Setsura feels Akemi's loss with a degree of intensity that might have surprised most mortals, but then, Akemi had been intensely part of her life for so long that losing her was like losing a limb or organ or a whole piece of her heart. She had had Kouta, then. Sukuna, too, to fall back on and into, but that doesn't mean she stopped searching, that she's stopped looking up and expecting her to hobble through the door or a window or barrel with reckless abandon through any crowd with volume that shouldn't be possible for a little old woman like her.

It doesn't mean she's stopped loving her, that she ever will. She understands that sentiment of Kouta's better than anyone. Three is their number of completion. Three is their whole and they are but two at the moment, two who fit perfectly together, but remain wanting for that missing piece. It's hard to live with only bits and pieces of your heart and she's wondered if Kouta doesn't feel the same. Not just about Akemi, but those other pieces that make up his heart. To her knowledge, he hasn't visited them since he's returned and they're here. Some people might think that strange, but Setsura, she knows better, she thinks. She thinks.]

Even numbers are odd. I stand by that.

[ Where it concerns the three of them, she means, and after all these years. She reaches for his hand, to give it a squeeze. Run her thumb over his knuckles. ]

It's a good idea. I'd like to put together a good offering, too. Something she'd approve of.

[If anyone else had said it, Kouta wouldn't have agreed with them, but for most of his life, his heart, his feelings, and his aspirations had been split in three ways. As much as Setsura was part of his life, it was near impossible to separate her from Akemi. It felt wrong to be this happy with Setsura and not have someone else jabbering in his ear, to insist on feeding them, to drag them both into trouble. Honestly, without a little chaos, Kouta had always felt uneasy, and while he wouldn't dare ask or hope for more, he couldn't help but look for Setsura in a room first and then Akemi. Habits that were lifelong were hard to shake, even after death it seemed.

He squeezed her hand back, nodding, words failing him, but with Setsura he didn't have to explain. She felt it and understood it too.]

Ya have fireworks or a hotpot handy?

[He was joking, mostly, but there was a reason Akemi's element had been fire.]

You'd be surprised.

[ She wonders what they might find in the supply closet's inventory. Fireworks doesn't sound unlikely and hotpot, well, that's not unusual given it happens to be one of her favorites thanks to certain someones. It's not the same, having it at the tea house, but it inspires those memories she holds near and dear. Lets her get away to another time and place when two is three and the world is theirs for the taking after a good meal and, perhaps, a little sleep depending on the mission ahead of them.

Setsura gives his hand another squeeze as she looks into her eyes now, searching in this moment for something very particular. Doesn't miss a beat when she licks her lips and puts the words forward: ]

Y'know, we could always break into Heaven.

[It shouldn't warm him to know that even after all this time, that Setsura had kept them close to her in the form of fireworks and hotpots, and he was tempted to ask what kind of offerings she would have had for him. In their line of work, there was always the morbid knowledge that any day could be their last and that death wasn't as painless or final as most Dormants believed. He had always wondered who would turn out for his funeral and what would be said for him, and he had gotten a taste of that at Akemi's.

Despite the brutal and violent lives they had lived, they had also managed to create families to leave behind, people who would carry on their memories. It had been a comforting thought to him then, but in the face of Setsura's grief, he wondered how long she would have carried both of their deaths miserably and heavily. He had always wanted her to be happy, some way or somehow.

The look in her eyes wasn't what he wanted to see right now, and he had to laugh at her suggestion, putting their foreheads together.]

As fun as that would be and no matter how much I want to, Akemi's taken care of. And there's no guarantee she hasn't reincarnated. She had a head start.

[ She knows he's right. Some part of her had known before she'd put the words forward, but what she wouldn't do to see Akemi again, to have her there with them where she should be, where she belongs. If Kouta had agreed, she would've been prepared to leave right then and there, to chase the answers they needed to find their Akemi and cut a path to her if that's what was required. Her heart aches with the thought that she is so far from them now, that she may very well have moved onto her next life having fallen short of enlightenment or taken up residence in some higher realm or whatever it is that happens to human souls after they depart from their physical shell. There's a lot of conflicting information about that. Some of it she knows from experience with various spirits and ghosts that linger in this world, but getting a straight answer regarding the nature of "the after life" from those who might have it has tended to be more of a challenge than not in her experience.

Whatever the case, it's a little late to snatch Akemi up now, of that much she's mostly certain, and she wishes she had. She tends to wish she had done a lot of things when it comes to Kouta and Akemi. More than she likes because she loves them so much and she hates how bitter the taste of regret, how long it clings to the tongue, the lips, the heart.

Closing her eyes, Setsura leans her forehead against Kouta's and gives his hand a tighter squeeze as though to reassure him, her that he's here, that she's here, that she's never, ever going to let go of that hand again. They're all they have now between them, them and three hearts worth of memories. ]

Can't blame me for asking.

[ She murmurs the words softly, the casualness of her speech an honest, heartfelt yield. ]

You wouldn't be you if ya didn't try.

[Kouta agreed easily, because Setsura had always been the compassionate one, the one who looked after all of them and the others. He couldn't be sure he would have thought to adopt or look after the other orphans if Setsura hadn't thought of it first, and his goals had always been selfish. Perhaps it was just a facet of being mortal, knowing he only had so much time to dedicate to others while Setsura had far more, so her goals could be loftier.

Or perhaps it was just how she was, and Kouta loved her for it.

He squeezed her hands to reassure her, pressing a small kiss to her temple before nudging her.]

C'mon, ya slept long enough. Akemi's not gonna forgive us if we don't get proper offerings for her.

[ That nudge earns something of a stretch, after which Setsura makes the executive decision to cast the covers off herself so that she sits upright and properly against the rush of cool air assailing her bare skin. She's already reaching to rub at her eyes, wishing for the dark of night over that bright sunshine for how oppressive it feels so early in her day. ]

Mmmmmmn.

[ Peeling out of the nest is a process for the comfort of it, of course. Always has been, but it's that much harder between their shared warmth and for the simple fact that she's missed sharing a bed with Kouta. Akemi, too. The three of them used to sleep together all the time when it was just them. That had been one of those things that had changed after Kouta had gotten married, one of those things she hadn't understood very well at the time. There'd been a lot of things like that. Things taken, walls erected, and some of them she still doesn't understand wholly. This is one she's been glad to demolish even if mornings are a little harder because of it, though. ]

I'm up. [ Maybe ten seconds from her feet hitting the ground now. ] What kinda fireworks're you thinking, Kou-kun?

Up, up, lazy bones.

[Kouta hadn't been a morning person by nature, but raising kids hadn't given him the luxury of staying in bed most days. While some men would have been content to let their wives take care of all the child rearing, Kouta had always wanted to be a prominent figure in his children's lives. Otherwise what was the point?

He pushed those thoughts aside for now, the puzzle of his family and what he would do about them still mostly a jumbled mess, but he would tackle one thing at a time.

He got out of the bed easily enough, tossing the blanket over Setsura's head to help irritate her enough to move, going to the window to open it and let fresh air and sunlight stream in.]

The bigger the better of course. Lots of red.

Wh -- Kou-kun!

[ The blanket tossed over Setsura's head is quickly snatched off and with something like a snort in turn. Tossing it back onto the bed proper, her feet hit the ground unceremoniously and she's moving with purpose and force for her usual quietly harnessed energy. ]

With some blues and greens?

[ She's opening her closet already, peering over her shoulder in glancing at the window to get an idea of the weather. Hmm. ]

[Her outrage was enough to make him laugh, and now that it seemed like she was out of bed, he started to make it in earnest, giving her time to get ready.]

'Course. Wouldn't be right otherwise.

[He paused, thoughtful.]

If we head out soon enough, we can still make it to the fish market and get some quality seafood to put into the hotpot too.

[It felt weird, a strange echo of countless conversations he'd had with Setsura, Akemi, and Yui, all rolled into something new. He had always enjoyed being domestic despite his more active past. He had always enjoyed having someone special to share things with, to build quiet moments and homes with.]

Ito-san usually has the best catch. If we paid him a visit, I'm sure he'd take proper care of us.

[ Tugging her midriff over her head, she takes a moment to adjust it, then reaches into the closet to pluck a particular pair of shorts out to take with her to the small dresser she keeps. Dressing should only take her a moment, really, and she's eager to get moving now that she's out of bed. ]

Maren-chan dropped some salmon rice balls off for us, too. We could take them to go and be at the market in a half hour. What d'ya think?

[ She wonders about that. This, all of this, feels natural between them to her; and yet, it's different from the old days in so many ways. New, even, and the thought sees her heart skip a beat for her increasing anticipation. What sort of adventure will they live today? She's ready to experience it at his side and it's to his side she'll be stepping with her socks in one hand whilst she reaches with the other to loop her fingers around a couple of his with a little tug. Maybe lean down so she doesn't have to jump to give him a kiss? That's the fond suggestion. ]

[Smoothing out the blanket and fluffing out the pillows, Kouta made a few noises so that she knew he was listening, but had nothing to add to the conversation. Ito-san had always been generous to them, to the point that Kouta had to wonder what they had done for the man in a former life, so going to him was fine.]

I think Maren-chan is going to spoil the lot of us if she keeps this up.

[He paused when he felt Setsura tug on his hand, and amused, he leaned down to comply with her unspoken request, kissing her softly and soundly. He withdrew slightly, just enough to press their foreheads together.]

Or maybe you're the one spoiling me so much. Gonna keep a closer eye on you.

Only one? I'd think you'd need both if that's what you're intending.

[ Setsura presses a kiss to his lips with that, soft and brimming with the very same warm affection pouring from her chest and spreading through her. She withdraws jut slightly, eyes shut for a moment of perfect bliss. ]

I'm not so sure it isn't the other way around, though. 'S probably some of the best sleep I've gotten in years.

[ And considering who all she's had to sleep with regularly, that's a sizable statement, a compliment of the highest order, really. ]

I’m only half complaining about the spoiling, s’why.

[As if to prove his point, he leaned in even closer to accept her kisses, smiling slightly against her lips.

Their sleeping arrangements weren’t new, exactly, but it was a return to something he hadn’t had in such a long time. In some ways it felt like returning home but in others it still felt strange and alien. The last woman he had shared a bed with had been his wife, and before that, it had been both Setsura and Akemi. Sometimes it felt like both of their ghosts were reaching for him, but in the face of Setsura’s happiness, it seemed inconsequential at the moment.]

I’ll have to start charging you then.

[He started to straighten, pressing a kiss into the tangle of her hair and feathers, before turning to head out the door.]

C’mon, those fireworks aren’t going to buy themselves.

[ She snorts softly in response to the charging comment and barely manages to restrain a laugh into something closer to a chuckle. Her socks are pulled on in few hops she'd dare anyone to call cute should they glimpse it and she's moving to match him, boots scooped up from their place by the door along with the rest of the tea house's residents' footwear. Half complaining, charging her -- ]

What're you gonna charge me, anyway?

[ Call her curious as they start on their trek to the fish market, her language dropping a level in casualness. She walks close, not that she doesn't tend to when and where she's allowed with those she's lose to, but there's something like an added dimension should one be perceptive about it. The occasional brush of the hands that quickly devolves into her reaching outright to claim his hand might be a little telling. ]

[While one of Kouta's hobbies would definitely be teasing Setsura, there were some things he let be for now. If he pointed out that the little hops it took Setsura to get her socks on were endearing, she might go to lengths not to do it in front of him or it might make her self-conscious. Sometimes enjoyment was enough for him.

He pretended to look thoughtful as they headed out the door.]

Kisses may be the most obvious choice, but I'm already getting those free of charge.

[He grinned down at her, lacing their fingers together after a moment's consideration. He knew better than almost anyone how hard it was for Setsura to lose people, how much she needed physical connection, and how even though he had come back, it sometimes felt tenuous at best.]

What else ya got?

[ She might have grinned if she hadn't thought better of it. Instead, she turns her head up, eyes closed as though in casual consideration of his question. ]

You could always try massages. It'd take a bit longer, but you should feel it throughout the day if ya've got the patience for that sort of thing.

[ She squeezes his hand with that, opening a single eye to look at him, his expression with some subtlety. There's a grin set beneath the calm she holds at the corners of her mouth, but she's not going to let it tug through just yet. ]

Unless you're after something you can pick up on the go and put in your pocket so to speak. Kisses really are best for that kind of thing.

Ya passing off those beatings of yours as massages now?

[He nudged their shoulders together teasingly, before heading towards the market, pretending to consider this information.]

Dunno, I'll have to think about it. Maybe I should ask for a raise, considering all I have ta put up.

[Which honestly wasn't anything he hadn't signed up for or enjoyed, but it may be part of his mercenary upbringing, to always try to weasel a bit more for his skills. Or at least mercilessly tease Setsura about doing so.]

[ She offers his arm her elbow for that question of his even as that grin splits her lips. The question of a raise, though, she takes smoothly in stride, cooling that grin of hers and tossing her head up. Brace yourself, Kouta. She's prepared. ]

Well, as long as Muchi isn't paying you in kisses, I don't mind. I'd hate to have to upset Eri-chan when we're having such great weather, you know?

general texting meme

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