Izayuki Hyoujin ♦ Black Rose ♦ S Rank
It was a happy moment like no other. Little had even been formed yet, but that did not stop the warm rush of emotions for the divine being. There she was, draped in a beautiful garment that was colored in a rush of flowers, as if an everlasting garden had decorated the kimono itself. It seemed to have been weaved from the finest strands of silk, and the obi belt and neatly tied ribbon to match complimented her lovely style of dress. It was not something she had picked, her clothing, but somehow it had come into being along with her own essence. Her gown, a pinkish rosy purple in color, which represented some kind of keen and rare royalty, could only reflect her newly created soul, which was only as old as her first heartbeats to pass, and seemed to be as fragile as the morning dew. Her skin was pure white, like delicate porcelain china, and soft and unblemished and unmarked. Her hair was black like shiny obsidian, volcanic glass that had yet to exist; yet somehow, she could just feel it and quietly mouth the words as if one day, such a thing would come into existence. The frame of her body appeared delicate and dainty, all while carrying an odd youthful strength underneath her snow-white skin. The features of her face were perfect in proportion to one another, as she had rosy lips, a sturdy chin, dark and thin eyebrows, and long, black eyelashes right above her deep-hued eyes. Her eyes were a light shaded and bright color of pink, and while she could not see them for herself, lacking any sort of mirror to view her reflection, something about them heralded that she would be the only one to ever possess such a unique color of orbs. Nothing in the future would ever come into being by means of natural ways with such a color in their eyes. Instead, natural colors would echo that of which had to come next into existence, in regards to appearance: the leaves of trees and the blades of grass, the bark of great trunks and the rich soils and sands of the earth, and the brilliance of the skies and the winds. But never would the color of eyes match the tint of Izanami’s own eyes.
Izanami. That was the name she had been given, as she just heard it resound in her head before it continued to echo throughout her existence and reality, the past few seconds, the present in which she breathed, and the future that had yet to come. 伊弉冉尊, they called her, again and again. Izanaminomikoto, or to pace the meaning in her head, Izanami no Mikoto. The meaning she could give the strange words seemed pleasant, and filled her with further happiness. “She Who Invites”. Did she invite? The woman certainly hoped that she could, hearing the words that were her name reverberate to her even from the future. She would invite, but while she understood the significance and value to the words, what did it truly mean when one broke it all down further? She had yet to discover so much, but it was already quite overwhelming for the young divine being. She could only look to the ones who had created her existence there in the first place. The first gods, Kunitokotachi and Amenominakanushi, who had been the ones to summon them into being. Them?
Pink eyes trailed up from her colorful kimono to peer at the figure standing next to her. He was beautiful, with long hair that was shaded in onyx-hued ivory black, while he had slightly off-white skin, more akin to olive than to her own fair snowy white. He was well toned with muscles that seemed to gentle ripple as they flowed with his strong movements. He was much taller than her, and wore a haori over his garment woven with the purest of pearl and opal pigmented silk, along with streams of deep red and shaded crimson to outline his obi. His name was given to him just as hers had been given and received by her. As he mouthed it in silence, Izanami somehow noticed it and breathed out the actual words first. Izanagi. He who invites.
Together, they were would receive their first charge from the two gods who brought them into existence. And only together, would Izanagi and Izanami create the first lands.
~~~
It was the average beautiful day, with bright blue skies, warm rays of sun, and a slight breeze carrying the sweet aromas of nature on the wind. The forest next to the meadow was a lovely one to behold. The treetops whispered to each other as their leaves brushed the wind, stuck in the idle gossip of the woods. The grass below was long, but not overgrown, as the animals that called this place their home had trodden down webs of paths and trails all throughout the forest.
The reason that Izayuki was here was to get away from the loud and busy city life of Rose Garden. While the town was peaceful for the most part, the eastern raccoon dog was naturally attracted to her preferred environment in the peaceful forests. Silent for the most part, except for a small, low rumble of happiness rising from the back of her throat, the fluffy creature padded through the colorful meadow. Reaching the base of a tree at the edge of the meadow, and the entrance to the forest, the tiny tanuki gazed up at the lowest branches.
Summoning some strength in her short legs, the tanuki jumped, and attempted to hook onto the trunk of the tree with her claws. Secured tightly to the bark, she began to climb her way up to the branch which she had locked her pink eyes on. Pink eyes. She had possessed them ever since she was small; as long as she could remember. They were unnatural, though upon viewing her reflection as a tiny cub, always present, and natural to her. It was not until she learned in future years that it was not every day that one discovered someone with pink eyes. Why was that? She noted it, yet never bothered to try to figure out the reason behind it. Honestly, she could have cared less.
Perched comfortably on the thick branch, Izayuki gazed out at the relaxing meadow, grinning and flicking the tip of her fluffy tail in a relaxed manner. For once, she could sit back in peace, and not worry about a jump scare wake-up by one of her guildmates. In her time of relaxation, however, the Bakedanuki finally put down her guard. And that would be her undoing.
How could one ever suspect that their very soul was anything but their own? After all, they had come to know it all their life, should they have the ability to sense it. The idea that she was straying so close to death and the underworld itself was nonexistent. She knew not of the circumstances, but did not notice the opening so close by.
After all, no matter where one stood in the world, they would die, and before too much time passed, someone else would be born to take their place. It was only the natural cycle of the world; one that never seemed to cease, or grant anyone a break. Life and death was all around, and lingered close. The hungry fangs and stinging claws of death would press against one’s skin as its foul breath could be felt against the back of the neck, hot, smelly, and menacing. Every day was spent like this, and no person or living being questioned it, or realized how close it truly was. That is, until the claws completely would pierce the skin of their time, and the jaws would close in all around them. From there, true darkness would be discovered. Nobody could deny that there was a strange peace and beauty to it all-- a sickly grace and an elegant movement towards perfect order and of course, rest. In a way, was death not a step away from chaos, even if it did not seem as though the concept was quite so pure? At the same time, it could cause so much grief, longing, and desperation the very heartbeat that death took something out of the world.
Nostalgia rang in her mind as she began to contemplate the subject. After all, when one was left to their own silence and thoughts, many things came about from it. Depressing topics was one of them, but for Izayuki, there was a reason why her mind was heading in this direction. It was because of her soul. It was throwing a veil over her eyes, and forcing her mind to begin seeing the once optimistic and relaxing scene as something else.
In the peaceful meadow where the god slayer lounged, she could focus on a reptile successfully capturing a moth, and eagerly consuming it within a matter of seconds. Never could she look at the scene as so common and miniscule the same way again. In the end, death took every single thing in its path, and struck the land with tragedy. Yet… where there was death, was life not also present? Above her head in the same tree where she perched, the twittering of birds had begun to ring out, and she could pick out the higher pitched and rather childish chirps of the hatchlings in their nests as they called out to their parents with hungry beaks. Before too long, the parents would eventually return, and the babies fed and nourished, and soon content, at least for the present moments. Once they grew up, they would move on, far from the nest, and keep on producing life, and thus be countering death. While these thoughts seemed to sit on the lighter side of things, but the darker knowledge still remained that one day, death would hunt the life-creating pair down too, and soon find just the right moment to close down its jaws, insert its fangs and claws into the fragility of time, and deliver that terrible sting once again.
Comparing death to a beast was simple enough, seeing as the goddess of death herself had plugged her soul into a simple beast before passing on. The legends held true, but the young guild master was not keen on the details of the myth, nor was she even thinking about it.
The underworld loomed close by, ready to force the tanuki to fall into its darkest depths. She, too, would die.
Location;; A Meadow Outside Rose Garden.
Muse;; 5/10
Word Count;; 1,770
OOC;;
TL;DR -- Okay, so Izayuki is in tanuki form sitting on a branch in a tree contemplating death. 'Cause why not?
The 'Underworld' itself is looming nearby, sent by Izanami, and by my next turn I'll throw Izayuki into it. You all can do what you like; enter the Underworld now, do your own plot stuff, find Izayuki or each other, etc. Have fun~!