A SEED TO GROW

Hello dear readers,

This is the first chapter of a fanfiction staring the characters fromKamisama Hajimemashita!as well as my OC. You will meet again with Tomoe, of course, as well as Kotetsu and Onikiri the Will-o-whisps, Mizuki the snake familiar, Mikage the earth god, Otohiko the wind deity, as well as a couple other characters you met while watching the anime or reading the manga.

The story will be short: 7 chapters of 1500 to 2000 words. It's intended so I will finish it decently without making you wait for a long period of time. I will publish at least once per month.

Thank you for reading and enjoy your reunion with your favorite characters!

" Tomoe-samaaaaaaaa~!"

The will-o-wisp started pulling the blankets away from the unanimated body of its superior as he tried once again to wake him up from his deep, fake slumber. When he felt a slight resistance to his effort, he turned back to lift his face toward his master and repeated in his high pitched voice:

"Tomoe-sama, a guest has arrived. Would you please come out and great him?"

As he stared back in his master's eyes, he suddenly felt a cold shiver escalating his spine as he crossed the fox's wrathful looks.

"Koooo-tet-suuuuuuu..."

The small spirit swiftly backed off in terror as the master was pointing his sharp nails at him. He flew to the window and hastily slided them open to let the sunlight in. The fox covered his head with the blankets with a dreadful sigh.

"Please get ready as fast as you can, master. Otohiko-sama has been waiting for you in the garden. Onikiri is trying her best to keep him from coming and wake you himself, as he had many ideas to get you out of bed on this fine morning…"

"OKAY! I get it!".

The blankets all flew over in a pile and Tomoe finally got on his feet. He angrily walked to the door, forcefully opened it and reached the inner temple. His foot stumped heavily the wooden floor, the sound resonating around in the empty rooms, vacant since the departure of the earth deity that used to live with them.

Nanami.

Tomoe stopped for a splint second just before getting out in the garden. He turned back, crossed the great space to the east hedge, and caressed the small shrine on the wall with his eyes before kneeling down. He then took a deep breath, clapped his hands twice, bowed his head down and prayed. In the wooden sacred cabinet, the picture of his former lover glanced at him with warmth as he stood back, finally composed and serene. When he crossed the door and got outside, the familiar was "calm". He found Otohiko-sama, the wind god, under the plum tree next to the storage room. The weird looking character noticed him as he was approaching.

"Oh! Tomoe-kuuun! I've been waiting for you for so loooong!"

"What do you want, okama-sama?"

"Hare, you look pretty irritated today my darling! I'm here on business for Mikage-san. Wanna hear me out?"

The fox softened at the mention of his first master. Mikage, the predecessor of Nanami, was out on a journey around the shrines and temples of the world to get an important information, leaving the shrine to the good care of Tomoe and the will-o-wisps (and Mizuki, but he didn't count).

He glared at otohiko for a few seconds. They become long awkward seconds in a short amount of time. The demon-fox's ears started twitching after a while, showing impatience very clearly as the wind deity was just standing there smiling behind his Japanese fancy fan. Tomoe grinded his teeth with frustration until he burst in anger:

"Okama- samaaaa… Are you testing my patience?" (#¬.¬)

"Ohohohoooooooh~! Of course not neko-chan!"

The lady-like god continued to smile behind his fan.

The demon-fox continued staring with anger.

It took another while, but the giggles coming from behind the fan quickly became absolutely intolerable to the familiar.

"DAMN IT YOU HENTAI! WILL YOU TELL ME WHAT YOU'VE COME TO SAY!?" (╯°□°)╯︵ ┻━┻

Tomoe was just about to turn his back to Otohiko when he heard his guest state this:

"He found a seed. Mikage. It should be on its way now with him."

The familiar stopped breathing for a few instants. A new seed meant there would be a new earth deity in the shrine. A new one, after Nanami's departure two years ago. The fox slapped his ears against the top of his head in disapproval and resumed his march to get back in the temple and attend to the chores he had neglected by oversleeping again that morning.

"You have gained bad habits in the last two years, Tomoe. You should get cleared of them before the new deity gets here." Stated Otohiko with a grin behind his fan as he was slowly drifting away. But Tomoe didn't have to be told he had fallen back on his good behavior during these last years. He knew full well that his manners had gone sour, and if it looked like he enjoyed himself, it was because it was very much like the good old times when he was a lenient fox enjoying his time in the red district. Still, he couldn't completely let go of the shrine and still cared everyday for it, cleaning the wishing well, removing the weeds from the grass, sweeping the pathway… Each day had its share of work.

But that day, as Tomoe was making his way to the front gate in order to clean the stairs, he recognized the back of the head that was popping from a lower step. This pale hair, that delicate kimono… he stopped at a short distance and stared at Mikage, unaware of his familiars' presence since he faced down the long set of steps. He seemed to be talking to someone, but the fox couldn't see, so, tiptoeing towards the gate, he decided to appear straight in front of Mikage, his arms crossed, and his usual frowned expression welcoming his absentminded master home.

"You have been gone several months once again. It's becoming a nasty habit."

"Ah! Tomoe. Exactly the fox of the situation. Would you mind giving a hand?" his sandal was ripped open from the toe to the middle of the sole, as he was proudly showing with his candid smile.

Of course he minded. "Where is it" he asked without acknowledging his master's request, although he was quite curious, and impressed by the damages. "Otohiko said you found it".

And by "it", he meant the seed: the spark of divine found in only a few individuals. That necessary element was a condition requested by some deities after Nanami was made an earth god without any knowledge of the spirit world. The condition made it harsher to find anyone suited for the role, as he or she had to have been touched by the correct element and there weren't many earth deities as of late. In the meantime, Mikage, one of these rare specimens, was still showing up his sandal to his familiar, his usual empty headed expression stuck to his face. Tomoe only noticed the third person when he heard the sound of footsteps closing-in in the stairs.

There was a girl, as he could see when he turned around. She seemed to be around eighteen, but she could have been three of a hundred and it wouldn't make any difference to the demon-fox. She was watching her steps, so he couldn't see her eyes or her complexion for now. But the girl had really long, rich, extremely pale hair: the exact same color than Mikage's. Tomoe turned immediately to his master to screech at him:

"YOU were the one that touched her as a child!?"

"Her mother came by the temple and wished for a healthy baby!" defended the deity with a fake apologizing face. "And seriously, these years were crazy, and it was the great depression all over Japan, so I might have realized some wishes that were a bit unconventional without noticing…"

"The woman wasn't even pregnant?!" he exclaimed with surprise and, mostly, exasperation. "And it took you TWO YEARS to find her!?" hissed the fox again with rage bursting through his words, his claws showing clearly.

"Shush now! She's there."

The girl had caught up and was standing a few steps away from Tomoe, who turned around and showed her his best poker face. She was average, although her hair was easily noticed. Her eyes were of a light brown, accentuating her resemblance with Mikage. For the rest, he couldn't judge her height since they were standing in the stairs, and anyway he didn't care much. She smiled at him and extended an arm, going straight to the introductions in informal Japanese:

"I'm Kobayashi Anna. I'm glad to meet you, Demon-fox Tomoe-san. I've already heard a lot about you on the way here. I mean, Mikage-sama literally didn't stop talking about you since we departed."

The handshake was firmly denied, Tomoe's ear twitching uncontrollably while he stood between his former master and his little human copy. He looked kind of disgusted and interested at the same time, which confused the young woman, and the suddenly visible Mikage's-face-of-good-for-nothing-empty-headed-goofy-looking-face she made just cracked the familiar's seriousness, so he walked away hastily to control his sudden hilarity, leaving Mikage and his protégée behind the gate.

"Did I break him?" questioned Anna with humor.

"That would be exactly the contrary, in fact." smiled Mikage softly. "Let's meet up with the Will-o-whisps and Mizuki, they're waiting to see you." he added while rising from the stairs and taking her hand gently in his.

So that's it for the first chapter! I hope you loved it. Thank you so much for reviewing and leaving comments, even small. I leave the same on one of your stories if you do, so please write your thoughts and I will share mine.

Stay tuned for the next chapter!