Enjoyment

As Mizuki's sharpened nails trailed over his side and Amaterasu kissed him Loki couldn't believe that just a few years ago he'd been bored. The early 1600s had truthfully been the most boring yet frustrating 20 years of his life. It'd devolved into fight this, trick that, calm Thor down this, fight Thor over trying to calm him down that, and then slam his own head into the wall in frustration everything. His big brother was an idiot. Simply by not being the early 1600s it had already improved immensely, so thank the Norns for the last 70 years.

White plaster walls glowed with lantern light and flickered with shadow while Mizuki whispered in his ear. "Come dear Loki, let us go and cause some excitement."

Persuasive as she was normally he yawned, instead laying his head on the curve of Amaterasu's neck. The sun goddess wrapped her arms about his waist, murmuring, "After we sleep, Mizuki then I should accompany you as well."

His eyelids drifted shut as the fox witch settled down beside him, her mid-back length raven hair splaying over his side to mix with Amaterasu's snowy white.

Eventually, he reawakened to see amber eyes glowing down at him as Amaterasu leaned over him. Her lips glittered with ruby paint and she wore a white and ruby silk kimono. The fiery symbol on her forehead was now clearly visible as her hair was now in two buns, held in place with black hair sticks. In contrast to their lover, Mizuki wore a jade kimono, her hair fell in loose ringlets and her lips darkened to onyx. Perhaps one might have said that since she could not change the colour of her eyes when shapeshifted it was a hindrance, but he would not be that one. To him Mizuki's eyes were captivating one sky blue and the other earthen brown, the mark of the Kitsune. How he had gotten so lucky as to come across two of the smartest, most beautiful, magically gifted women in all Yggdrasil and that they'd wanted him too he didn't know.

The tatami mats were cool under his feet as he climbed from the bed. Instead of dressing in his Asgardian clothes he dressed in the gold and emerald kimono that Amaterasu had sown for him. As he and Amaterasu could not use the Path of the Yokai to travel they shapeshifted - himself and Amaterasu into wolves and Mizuki into a fox. His was the only one with coal-black fur, the others were white as mountaintop snow. He did not think that Amaterasu's magical markings of fire and ink counted against her fur since they emphasized the primary shade so well. They raced through fields of golden, crimson, and cobalt flowers, under the bows of Sumi Nagashi and Sakura blossom trees. Finally, they splashed through the waterfall to throw themselves from the Celestial Plain, the spray sparkling around them like a thousand rainbows. He laughed as they fell through the clouds with flower petals and leaves drifting lazily after them.

A little girl clad in a Sakura blossom pink kimono walked over to pet Mizuki. Mizuki's ears flattened and he tapped her with his tail, nudging her out of the way with a yip. He knew exactly when Amaterasu drew a circle around the girl because she suddenly clapped, squealed and hugged him tightly. Mizuki laughed as he raised half-raised a paw to try to push the girl away without hurting her.

The scents of horse, oiled leather, metal rivets, and crisp silk filled his nose as a group of Samurai approached. One of them mounted on a darkly coloured horse leaned down to say, "Lady Mika that is a wolf, not a dog."

Mika responded, "I know, Kuranosuke, but look at what strange company it keeps - a wolf that looks like the Great Goddess Amaterasu and a white fox."

Someone else, a boy in a black kimono dismounted and walked to stand beside Mika. "If it is traveling with them it could be sick, Mika. You best keep away from them."

With Mika persuaded back onto her horse they moved aside for the party. An older man in the party's middle rode slowly past them, his wonder-filled eyes seeing only Amaterasu. Barely a few minutes had passed when they came upon a few boys accosting a smaller one. The biggest mortal who looked about fourteen years old sneered, "Shin's as sharp as a dull blade."

That taunt hit a particularly sour note with him. Not even his rank as Prince of Asgard had saved him from mocking for preferring magic to physical weapons, books to song, only Thor. His hackles rose, he growled lowly, ready to leap when pottery smashed. Amaterasu's Waterspout made the broken pot's contents flow to douse the bigger boys. Utterly sopping they spun around gasping in confusion.

Mizuki stood innocently beside the shattered pot and yipped, her plumy tail waving gently. Suddenly, he thought that he caught on to her jest. Oh yes, he could definitely help with that. Just like Thor the boys let their anger overwhelm them, so it was even easier to insert the illusion of multiple white foxes into their minds than normal. While the bigger boys tripped over themselves Amaterasu trotted up to Shin, put her paws on his shoulders and licked his face.

He and Mizuki led the boys away from Shin and Amaterasu down a secluded side street. Illusions were rather helpful in setting up ambushes, which was exactly what they did now. A moment of waiting passed until the boys had run in before they banished their magics, shifting back to their regular forms. Slowly, he put a hand on the biggest one's shoulder, "Heed my advice, little one, and leave him be or else you will have displeased us greatly."

The witch drew one of her onyx-painted nails across a different boy's throat. "Should any of you recommence your body will become a chasm, never to know a full stomach again for ever it will empty itself and every weapon will break at your touch. Displease us and your family will curse your name for generations to come."

"W-we'll leave him alone, w-we swear that we will !"

Both of them released their captive. Identical smirks crossed their lips as the boys fled without looking back.

What seemed Shin's voice from behind them. "I am honoured that the Gods would show me such favour, I shall go to the temple right away. Thank you, my lord, my lady. Praise be to you, Mother Amaterasu."

Ah, it was fun pretending at Godhood, especially since the Midgardians were so gullible. Show a Midgardian an illusion, a fistful of emerald fire or movement faster than a mortal could accomplish and they declared you a God right there-and-then. Amaterasu, the Brush Gods, Mizuki, and their parent species the Celestials had reason for claiming Godhood besides mere amusement, they derived strength from the praise they received.


1701, January

Kai raised an eyebrow as Oishi walked back into his hut, "What is it, Oishi ?"

Oishi's tone was both disgusted and impressed, "A wolf and a fox are having sex almost outside your door. If that is not enough there is another wolf watching them." while he firmly closed the door.

He knew they were probably trickster spirits, but it was still an odd thing to think up, much less to do. Then again that was exactly the sort of spirit that Ako seemed to attract the most. "Should I show you some of my herbs and explain what they do until the animals leave ?"

"You may. Ugh, horses I can stand as they are necessary to my work, foxes and wolves are not."

"Yet they are necessary to my work as a tracker for Lord Asano. Without them or the stags yourself and Lord Asano would have nothing to hunt."

As he left her Loki sniffed Mizuki's ruff, she smelled like crisp mountain air and fresh-cut ginger. Amaterasu padded through the gently falling snow to nuzzle Mizuki. They left the tracker's hut behind them for the forest and Amaterasu's disk-shaped spaceship with which they returned to the Celestial Plain. More often he had stayed here than in Asgard as here they appreciated him. Though he and Gekigami did not get along so well because the Brush God of Thunderstorm was just as hot-headed and brash as Thor.

Late November

Loki crouched beside the place where only Mizuki's faded scent remained. Where her body had dissolved into golden light and she had joined Yggdrasil. He had long since sheathed Mizuki's katana at his side. Pain and anger swept through him and he shifted into wolf form to follow the swiftly staling scent of her murderer through the fortress. Pieces of blasted apart rock scattered under his paws as he jumped off a set of stairs to land in a courtyard, charged across it and through the gates, across the ice and snow-covered, rail-less bridge. There, a line of mortals picking their way across the steep path cut out of the mountain's side. Impulsively, he willed himself before the murderer and threw himself on the bearded mortal.

He snarled, jerking his head aside to free his muzzle from the weak grip. Just as he was about to sink his teeth into the mortal's throat Amaterasu shouted, "Loki, no !"

Not understanding why she would deny him this, he growled back, "He killed Mizuki, Amaterasu. This Hel-damned mortal bastard murdered Mizuki ! He doesn't deserve to live." When he looked up she stood above him on a ledge the moonlight setting her fur aglow.

"She tried to kill him first. Leave him be, he has already dishonoured himself. I swear to you, Loki, that he will die when he returns to Ako."

Reluctantly, he backed off then climbed the cliff to stand beside Amaterasu. How ? How could one puny mortal have killed Mizuki ? It didn't make sense and he hated it, he loathed it more than anything else. Yes, he was going to make sure that the mortal died. Nothing else would satisfy the hot emotions that made his blood feel like it were burning.

Once again, he and Amaterasu returned to the Celestial Plain, to Amaterasu's palace. Now he could put the drawing skills that Mother had taught him to use. After he put parchment to desk it took him many hours to sketch a detailed background alongside those of Mizuki's head, shoulders and neck. When he'd finished Amaterasu took it and secluded herself until she had painted it. She returned to show it to him and the background had transformed to a moonlit Suminagashi. Bright crimson leaves contrasted with Mizuki's black kimono and braided hair, pale skin and those blue and brown eyes as she stood before the tree.

14th of December

Loki had knocked out one of the Shogun's guards and taken his place. Mizuki's katana practically hummed in his grip as he stood behind her murderer, pretended at being the mortal's second. He was going to take so much enjoyment from this decapitation...for Mizuki.