Kitsunebi [Private | Kumiko]

Shit… Vandrad’s training was fiercer and less forgiving than he prepared for. Mura’s arms shook, shivered even, in desperation for rest. This was good, however; he just had to get used to it… urrrrrrgh, this was going to be difficult. While he was happy to have returned to the work of refining his body, it just took all of his energy away and reduced him to exhaustion incarnate when he returned to the office again.

That was why he took a nap afterwards. Right on the couch, he threw his tired corpse and surrendered to the embrace of the couch’s pillows and entered a deep, peaceful slumber. After a long day of hard work, it was blissful and just ohhhh so what he needed right now. He could definitely sleep through the entire afternoon today.

This rendered the rest of today for Kyuken and Zirconis kind of dull. “Aww, what now? We can’t sleep…”

“… Rock-paper-“

“No, that’s getting old now. Let’s go downstairs and meet someone else.”

“B-But aren’t everyone out all across Fiore right now? After what happened back then, turning things back to normal will cost a lot of jewels… who would we find to spend today with?”

“… Maybe there’s a guest we can- oh, wait, they can’t see us.”

“We can prank them! I’ve worked on this little technique of mine-“

“No.”

“aaaaaaaaaAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRGHHHH, you’re so boring! I could cut you in two if I could just- damn it!”

Out of impulse, Kyuken managed to grab Mura’s katana, Harusame, without the shaman’s involvement. He pulled the katana and scabbard with him out of the office with a grunt, wanting to blow off some steam like some living dude. However, the further away he went from Mura, the less his power over the scabbard he had, and the katana simply trickled down the stairs to the guild hall.

“Oh, for the love of- I can’t even wield Harusame a few meters away from him… *sniff*” Kyuken moaned with a shed of tear on his left eye, “I miss being alive…”

WC: 343

…!

It appeared that Kumi-chan was sleeping down at the guild hall all along, probably exhausted after a long day. When her attention travelled towards the sword, however, Kyuken first wanted to stop her; she could get herself cut on the blade if she didn’t handle it well, and she wasn’t a swordswoman! Kyuken got really protective of his ancient weapon of choice, now that Mura wasn’t in possession of it. M-Maybe he should try and convince her to go back to sleep, y’know, sing her a Midian lullaby-

Oh, well, she was holding it already. Kyuken got new feelings now - yeah, Kumi-chan was a ‘-chan’ and all, but he shouldn’t just belittle her expertise in anything. Besides… ohhhhhhhh, this could actually turn out to be some fresh form of entertainment. Now that Kumi-chan was holding Harusame, how about Kyuken went and hung out with her for now? Mura would likely only wake up in a few hours, anyway.

But, uh… she was holding it awkwardly. Not steadily like a swordsman. Oh well, it was definitely her first time holding such a revered weapon - a ninjaken once katana, the national weapon for Midian warriors. Lots of history was in that blade, way longer than the lifespans of Mura and even Kumi-chan.

After she asked for the Guildmaster to no avail, Kyuken snuck over to her and Harusame while Zirconis held quite the suspicion towards the blue ghost. “… Just what are you trying to do, now?” the dragon asked Kyuken, a scaly eyebrow raised in curiosity.

“Shhhh, just watch… look, she’s going back to bed~”

Kyuken hovered towards Kumi-chan, hiding behind furniture and lamps to avoid her sharp foxen gazes, while she had her back to the blade. In one, swift go, he launched himself directly into Harusame from under the couch where she rested, then coughed a little to clear his voice before going:

“OOOOOOooooooOOOOOOooooooOOOOOO, wHo dArEs tO rOb mE fRoM mY rIgHtFuL oWnEr?”

His voice was echoey and had a cliché ghost tune to it, obviously in an attempt to terrify poor Kumi-chan. However, before Kyuken could continue, Zirconis came in clutch right in front of the kitsune’s small face, hovering as a green orb with a face like always before shouting at Kyuken: “Get out of the sword, you idiot- n-no, not you, Kumiko, but the hopeless man-child behind you.”

“ZIRCONIS?! WHAT?! I JUST BEGUN, YOU DIDN’T EVEN LET ME FINISH MY PRANK!”

“Don’t you start giving this girl nightmares, you freak!!!”

“Oh, yes, about her - hello there, Kumi-chan!” Kyuken suddenly changed his tone and greeted her all friendly, “Do my ghost eyes deceive me, hmm~? Or are you perhaps an aspiring swordswoman? I saw you get pulled over to Harusame like a moth to a flame~. I reacted the same way on the first day when Harusame was brought to me so many years ago…”

WC: 482
TWC: 825

The ordeal must’ve spooked her. Thankfully, Kumi-chan recognized the two spirits and calmed down just as quickly, still clinging onto Harusame with all her might. Poor girl… but what was she doing with Harusame? Was she really going to try and use it as a weapon? It usually took a few lessons to be able to swing a ninjaken like that - it wasn’t something that one could just learn in an instant unless if supernatural forces played a role…

Which, here in Fairy Tail, they always did.

Kumi-chan expressed her desire to wield a sword like this one, and she informed them that her older sister was skilled with the blade herself. Kyuken’s eyes lit up in the air, merely imagining how Kumi-chan’s older sister looked like - if she was a skilled kunoichi or swordswoman, then it was no doubt that her deadly skill was equaled only by her beauty, and such was the case for many swordswomen in Kyuken’s previous life. “Ooohh, I bet your older sister is amazing!” Kyuken expressed his interest to her, “You should introduce us to her someday… mhmmm-“

“Geeh, you’re talking as if you have a chance with her. I don’t think it’ll work, my little friend - just a hunch.”

“Oh, you never believe in anything I do!”

Kyuken scoffed and watched Kumi-chan swing the sheath of the blade around with… a lack of fluidness, that was. She was definitely an amateur in swordsmanship, but that was to be expected, for it was her first time… likely. She hadn’t gotten any lessons from her sister, had she? Kyuken would roll in his grave if that was the case…

He then heard Kumi-chan’s question aimed at him and his role as a swordsman, something that laid ground for a lot of possibilities. “Yes, I was! And I still am, even though I’m dead! Haha!” he responded extravagantly, noticing that he didn’t have to tell the entire truth of his past as a samurai to Kumi-chan, since she showed not to know much about Harusame or the wielder’s true name back then, “600 years ago, I walked the earth with Harusame strapped onto my hip at all times… b-but, wait, no, I wasn’t that powerful- I wasn’t using magic and all, I was a pure samurai!” He quickly corrected her on her excessive guesses about his feats, for the most he did was beating multiple opponents at once with, yes, inhuman techniques but far from earth-shattering slashes.

“O-Okay, listen for a second… imagine enemies everywhere,” he asked her, spreading his hands out to express the area around them where enemies could rush towards them in his head, “You’re surrounded by bloodthirsty foes, but not a single one of them can reach you! Not a single one! That was the kind of samurai that I was!” He refrained from calling himself a ronin, which was the true term that he lived under - Kyuken’s story of legend started after a rather tragic event that he wouldn’t want to remember or remind himself of. He still tried to play proud of his old life, however. “My skill was so renowned in the land of Midi that mages, Demon Hunter clans, Hidden Villages and even the Emperor sought out my aids! Now that I think back to it, boy, was I amazing!” His feats were nonetheless legendary, but back to the focus of today; cute, little Kumi-chan.

“So I take it that you wanna learn how to wield a blade, hmh? SAY NO MORE, KUMI-CHAN!” Kyuken shouted out with a fist pumped up in the air, “We’ll make a fine swordswoman out of you, no doubt! I bet kitsunes learn faster, anyway!” At this point, they had totally forgotten about Mura who was still sleeping in the Guildmaster’s office.

“But first, you’ll have to unsheathe Harusame. Do it with respect; the blade is sharp and refined… actually, hold on-“ Kyuken warned her before entering Harusame again, “I’ll make sure to lead the blade on for you. That way, you can learn how to swing it easier! Genius idea, isn’t it?”

“Y-You’re having way too much fun with this, Kyuken, and it’s worrying even me…”

“N-No, you see, this is perfect! Just imagine the look on Mura’s face when he sees Kumi-chan’s new talents! He’ll be in awe, I tell you!” Kyuken explained, “Just show us a few more of your swings, Kumi-chan! I’ll make sure to correct any beginner mistakes you make, until it’s imprinted into your skull - this is serious training, y’know, and not just us fooling around with Harusame! It requires focus, commitment, and willpower! Show me your willpower, Kumi-chan! Don’t be afraid!”

A group of random children interrupted Kyuken’s to-be training montage with Kumi-chan. There were five of them; one dressed as a werewolf, another dressed as a witch, the third one dressed as a vampire with long and predator-like teeth, the fourth one dressed as a mummy, and the fifth dressed as some kind of wendigo-looking woodland beast. They scurried over to Kumi-chan, ignoring the two ghosts as they couldn’t see them, then asked: “Trick or treeeeeaaaaaaaaat~! We’re here for candy! Pretty pleeeease, we took very long to make these outfits!” “Yeah, I used all day yesterday to find enough toilet paper for this! Oh, oh, do you have Mars bars? Bounty? Or maybe red cables! Any candy is good candy!”

Adam, the bartender at the guild, eyed them and mumbled: “Is it Halloween, already?” before whistling to the group of kids, “Hello, you kids! Over here, I got candy-“

The group immediately forgot about Kumi-chan and ran to the bartender, gladly accepting their rewards in form of toffee cubes and candy cones before asking where the Guildmaster was. They knew about the Wizard Saint who led this guild, in which Adam asked them to go upstairs before warning Mura through a micro-Lacrima.

And so, for a brief moment, the Guildmaster was forced to wake up from his nap and answer the group o kids who had walked all the way up the stairs for candy. Adam must’ve been generous to them given the holiday, so while they repeated the same question ‘Trick or treeaaat! Wizard Saint, can we have candy, please! Also, oh my god, it’s a Wizard Saint! Do you like our outfits? We spent all day yesterday-‘ over and over again before Mura offered them ringo ame - apple candy, or apples dipped in caramel and melted sugar.

That oughta satisfy them as he went back to his couch and snoozed off without a care in the world.

WC: 1100
TWC: 1925