Summary: Once upon a time, an angel and a devil pressed their hands to their hearts and started the apocalypse.
[ a string of drabbles & one-shots about the eternal romance & harrowing curse that lasted three generations within the nura bloodline ]
~0o0o0~
There was once a song that was sung, that which told others of a heroic deed done by the most unusual band of people – these people, they say, were led by a man unperturbed by conventions. A man who simply comes and goes as quickly as the wind in the midst of a summer's night – he was fearless, with a spirit that craved for freedom and an ire for being chained to the ground. He was strong, not the strongest perhaps, but he was respected and followed by a various array of powerful beings.
This man, was called Nurarihyon, an ayakashi who prospers in the shroud of darkness and ruled over his Night Parade of a Hundred Demons with pride and the unmistakable air of power. He, a supposed creature of the night who succumbed nor submitted to anyone's desire, who was revered by ayakashi lower than he – fell in love. With a young girl, barely of age, with a beauty unparalleled by any demoness or living human he's ever seen before.
Whereas it took him a hundred years to create a Night Parade of his own, it only took her a span of three tangible minutes to entice and enthrall him with her beauty and gift of healing. Ironic really, what curiosity could do to a man so powerful – how a young girl had wrapped him, Nurarihyon, around her little pinky and cost him his heart.
Those who do not follow him would think of him to be mad, yet those who do; would simply accept – after all, it was his unreadable nature which attracted them to their Lord. To the man who was now hailed as the Lord of Pandemonium; for when the battle ended as Hagoromo Gitsune fell, he obtained two things.
First was the title of Lord of Pandemonium, and with an unwavering certainty as the heavens fell upon the aftermath of the battle – a promise that spoke of greatness and the possibility of humans and ayakashi living in harmony. The Second, of course, was Youhime – the princess blessed with the gift of healing and the woman he loved and would love for years and even centuries beyond her death.
~0o0o0~
Looking back at it now, two months after their marriage, it seemed like a lifetime had passed since he first saw her. A look of forlorn strewn across her beautiful countenance that he wished not to see anymore – an emotion he promised would never grace her features again. Yet during the span of these past months, he only fell deeper for the young princess – his princess.
Amber depths diverted its attention to the mop of hair tucked beneath his chin, the subtle curling of pale tiers making its way onto his features as the other's calm breathing lulled him to a state of eternal peace. She was beautiful like this, with the filtered light of the moon across her features – the epitome of serenity as she laid there in his arms, and at that moment he knew he was damned to utter hell. Wrapped around her finger, despite the facades he may maintain in front of his people, and for a fraction of a second he thought of devouring her…to consume her completely as she did him, maybe then, the lifespan taken away from him would return – but she was his as he was hers and he would be mad to think of letting her go now, when they were both visibly in love with one another.
Unable to hold himself back, a hand reached out to caress the flushed expanse of her cheek, chuckling as her brows furrowed in response and a mumble that sounded vaguely like his name slipped from her lips. Curling a strand of hair betwixt his fingers, he used the tip to feather across her face – a smirk unfurling across his visage as a small voice called out his name in irritation.
"Ayakashi-sama…stop it," came her expected response as a dainty hand tried pushing him away. Lids finally fluttering open as chestnut hues met his own pools of amber – and all at once, it took his breath away that it almost seemed normal. Noting the tinge of irritation dancing within its depths, he laughed; arms encircling her waist before he hoisted her above him, amusement 'pon his visage as the flush he adored streaked her cheeks.
"I didn't do anything, it was the wind."
"You always say that."
"Do I? I don't recall ever saying such a thing before."
A laugh slipped from her lips, and the image of her above him with such mirth across her features as a smile curled 'pon her features meant only to further entice him. That he almost missed the cheeky remark that followed after his statement. "What did you say?" he asked, a brow arching at his wife.
"I said," she paused, and his eyes momentarily darted to her lips. "…maybe its because Ayakashi-sama is old – that's why he's starting to forget some things."
"Oh, Am I?" He started, mocking hurt at her statement as his face fell. "So I see, my wife sees me as an old man. How should I react to such a thing? What with my bride only seeing me as another person to heal?" He paused, watching her laugh at his display of in his opinion, was perfect acting, "You're a demon, Youhime-sama. I married a tiny volcano of a demon."
The woman simply laughed at her husband's antics, hand covering his mouth to stop him from talking as she caught her breath. It seemed ridiculous to her, how at first, she was frightened of this man that now held the entirety of her heart in the palm of his hand. "Ayakashi-sama, I meant nothing of it."
Lifting her hand away from his lips, he shot her a look of amusement as he placed a kiss on her pulse 'pon her wrist. Arm securely around her waist as he sat up, bringing her along with him as he chuckled at the scarlet hue which colored her cheeks alight, "Of course you didn't. But you see, I'm a sensitive person. I need to be handled with care…don't look at me like that, it's true. I'm deeply hurt, what will you do?"
Two months of marriage and a few weeks of knowing him was enough to let the princess know about the different quirks that her husband had. One of which, was unfortunately his love for teasing her at the most inopportune times – whether t'was in the eyes of the yokai within the mainhouse or not, he always found a way to provoke a reaction from her that was akin to that of a blushing maid; and quite frankly, it drove her mad.
"You're teasing me, Ayakashi-sama."
"Mhm. Perhaps," a hand then rested on her cheek not long after, molten hues of aureate staring deeply into her own depths of auburn as he tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. All at once, her breath hitched against her throat – eyes wanting to divert its attention away from the mirage of emotions that swirled within those amber depths she loved so much. Those eyes which held an innumerable amount of promises and love for her, that she couldn't help but tremble under its gaze.
So he looked, watched her every reaction and etched it at the back of his lids as she saw her eyes flutter shut. Fully accepting him, that it warmed him to the core that the place where his heart should lie seemed to have returned in that very moment – in that very moment where their lips met and she responded to the kiss with such tenderness that he was almost afraid that he would scare her away with the bubbling storm that brewed inside him.
&& when they parted, her eyes seemingly dazed and a finger tracing the outline of his lips as she smiled. He knew that he was damned to a lifetime full of bliss & the inevitability of the pain - which will follow right after she has passed - as he willingly gave himself to her. For Hagoromo-Gitsune may have devoured his heart, but it was not lost – no, it was right here, in his arms – where it rightfully belonged.
Author's Note:
Hello! Oh god, I'm so sorry that was longer than I had originally intended. But I'm glad to be writing again for this fandom, I once wrote stories here as PerpetualFlames/FlamesofDeath017 but my desire to finish my past stories died out due to school. Also, my writing sucked as hell, lord save me.
But I've been reading the light novels of Nurarihyon No Mago and reread the manga, and I absolutely fell in love with it all over again. That I had inspiration to just start writing again, I honestly don't know if the fandom is still alive but I hope that it is! This is most definitely such an underrated manga and anime, that I'm still sad that it ended so quickly.
Anyway, for this story, it will be a collection of one-shots that are all connected with one another. It will focus on the three generations – So at first, there will be oneshots of Nurarihyon & Youhime, followed by Rihan, Yamabuki, and Wakana, then of course for Rikuo too! I'm honestly excited to play with several prompts in this fic, most especially within the context of Rihan, Yamabuki, and Wakana – I think there's a misconception that Rihan never loved Wakana in this fandom (I've seen some comments & posts on several platforms!) but people fail to realize that he loved them both equally and I'm just? A bit excited idk.
Feel free to send in your reviews or future prompts that you would like to play out in this fic! & I'll do my best to try and incorporate them in the following chapters. Or if you have any pairings that you want to see here as a special chapter or whatnot, just leave it in the review!
Also if you want the copy of the light novels, if you haven't read them yet, feel free to PM me. Youhime is honestly such an endearing woman I just fell in love with her and Nurarihyon more in some of the light novels where they were together tbh. 😊
Thanks for reading! Much love!