- Disclaimer: Matantei Loki Ragnarok belongs to Kinoshita Sakura.
Ah, My Loki-sama!
written by Kurosu
- Chapter Eleven.
"Ma. Yu. Ra. Repeat after me!"'
The girl was kneeling in the common room, speaking to a very attentive Fenrir, who was staring up at her. For the past fifteen minutes, she had been trying to teach him how to say her name, instead of continuously calling her, 'But pretty, mysterious, witch girl sounds so much better.'
She pouted, "Hrm, but it's so long to say! MA. YU. RA! And I'm not a witch. C'mon, Fenrir! If you say my name, I'll give you a treat!"
Loki, in his full form had been sitting on the couch, reading the newspaper, snorted in amusement at her bribery, which earned him a glare from the girl. He was lucky Daidouji had taken Narugami for the afternoon to make a few deliveries for some clients, leaving a rather peaceful day for the rest of the family, at least until Mayura had returned from school.
She pointed to him, frowning, very adamant on teaching Fenrir to properly say her name, "Mou, Loki-sama! If you won't help me, then stay quiet please."
He folded the papers and set it in his lap, looking at her, "Isn't it time for a certain school girl to do her homework?"
She puffed her cheeks in annoyance at being reminded of school work, trying to procrastinate it as much as possible because she hated her math class so much. "But that's so booooring~!" she whined and then crawled over to Loki, plopped next to his legs. She rested her chin on his knee and peered up to him, "Loki-sama! Let's do something exciting!"
Well that certainly grabbed more of his attention, wondering what she had in mind, but he was already thinking of a few exciting things that a man and a woman could do. From the angle was looking down at her, almost like a master to his very obedient and cute servant, he smiled to himself at the different scenarios he came up within his head. Oh how he loved her round, crimson eyes gazing at him with pure innocence, trusting him with her whole body.
Fenrir's eyes widened at the recognition of his father's lecherous expression, 'Daddy! I know that face!'
"Hush, Fenrir," he ordered the puppy, giving a warning look to him. He turned back to the girl and licked his lips, feigning ignorance, "And what did you have in mind, Mayura?"
She reached deep in to her skirt pocket, digging for something which seemed to take a few seconds, her pink tongue poking out between her lips as she concentrated, looking so adorable he could eat her up. Loki grinned when her face brightened as she had found what she sought.
A pair of what appeared to be tickets waved in his face.
That evening, the house seemed completely quiet except for Yamino, in the kitchen, making dinner for everyone who appeared to be absent from the place. He went down his mental list of residents and accounted their current whereabouts, according to what they had told him before they departed.
He heard the front door open and close, and the voice of Daidouji rang through the empty house - at least he and Narugami were home, so he had some company, but he would have preferred everyone to be home for dinner. As strange and humorous as it was, to have a bunch of gods gathered in a single place on Midgard, it felt comfortably satisfying that they had become such a quirky family in a short amount of time.
"Something smells good!" came Narugami's voice, and Yamino could practially see the drool danging from the young man's mouth. The brunette appeared in the kitchen, asking, "Where's Loki and Daidouji?"
"They went out for a bit," he answered.
"Oh good, more food for me!" he rubbed his hands with great anticipation, only for his joy to be cut by Daidouji's knuckles bopping his head, "Sensei."
"When will they be home?" the man inquired.
"An hour or so, Daidouji-san."
All was silent again, and no one bothered to acknowledge that Kazumi had also been missing all day, but normally by night time, he would return, heading to his room, or sometimes joined the family for dinner, despite being a complete, moody loner. He gave off that certain vibe, in addition to the murderous intent aimed at Loki, and Daidouji always wondered what kind of hostile relationship the cousins had, but neither seemed to want to discuss it.
Not only did they rarely spoke, they practically avoided each other complete. While Loki was around the house a lot, especially around Mayura, Kazumi was absent most of the time. These kids really had issues: Loki, always around adults, acted way too mature for his age, and Kazumi, the lone wolf, who appeared to despise all forms of interaction, whether one was an adult or child.
But it seemed that Mayura was able to poke through that shell of his, having several times dragged the boy to dinner or talk to him, which only upset Loki even further. And soon, it began a battle of getting the girl's attention, and just thinking about it gave Daidouji a headache, so maybe it was good that it was just the three of them tonight.
"Hmmm..."
Mayura, with Fenrir in her arms, and Loki stood in front of the recently opened aquarium that she had tickets to, but the place was empty. They looked from one side to the other, and it was just the three of them there, quite strange indeed. Loki rubbed his chin in thought, "Are you sure this is the one?"
The girl checked the name on the ticket again, "Yes, this is Koutaro's place. He said it opened last weekend and many people came, but the ticket sale hasn't been great since yesterday - no one came! So he gave these to me."
Mysterious Water World was an investment venture of the Kakinouchi family, having created a one of its kind type of adventure exploration of the underwater world in the district, hoping to attract a variety of people to the area. Different tours were available, including games and learning activities for the younger crowd, and there were also nice, secluded spots for couples to enjoy on their dates. But strangely, since the day before, it had done the opposite.
"Oh? I'm surprised he didn't offer to take you," he eyed her slyly.
"He was being nice," she crinkled her nose at him, "He told me to take my little brother..." then gave him a flat expression, "and why did you come with me like this anyway?"
"Does it bother you?" he grinned, leaning down to her, nose almost brushing against hers.
She blushed, "O-Of course not!" She hastily turned away walked over to the ticket booth, where an old man stood. She gave her tickets to him just as Loki joined her, and she asked the man, "Why isn't there anyone here? This place looks fun."
"We're not that sure, Miss," he shook his head, "You are the only customers today."
"What a mystery!" she exclaimed.
'Something smells funny,' Fenrir sniffed the air.
"Please enjoy yourselves," the man bowed and watched them enter the property, adding quickly, "Have a good date!"
Mayura wanted to correct him, but Loki's arm pulled her close to him to silence her. She glared at him, but his profile was all serious business, and she found it odd. Even the puppy in her arms was restless, and he jumped to the ground, growling at the aquatic arena. Loki held her wrist, making sure she was still at his side, because he couldn't afford to lose her in this confusing mess.
"Loki-sama?" she called.
"I don't know why I didn't feel it before," he murmured to himself, trying to find the source of the negative energy that had encompass the place.
'Daddy, there might be a barrier that stopped it from going outside.'
"Ah! Is this place cursed?!" Mayura asked excitedly.
"You could say that," he looked at her, slightly amused at her reaction, "Aren't you afraid?"
"No way! This is the most action I've gotten all week!"
She smiled and began to stalk off, with Loki in tow since he still had a hand on her wrist. He wasn't too happy about her decision to pursue this mysterious curse, and Fenrir trotted along side them, remaining alert and vigilant, though he was occasionally distracted by the colorful fish swimming back and forth. The aquatic creatures seemed undisturbed by the odd feeling.
They walked around for a few minutes, eventually Fenrir leading them with his nose, trying to find the source of the negative energy, with plans to rid it from the place so everything could return to normal on Midgard. Loki suddenly stopped, pulling the girl protectively closer to him, and the dog began to growl at the sound of footsteps heading in their direction. The dim lighting of the so called underwater tunnel didn't help the ominous mood, as the steps sounded clearer, echoing within the narrow space, suitable for lovers embracing each other.
It only took Loki a few seconds to figure out that the footsteps just belonged to a regular mortal, he grinned and noted the girl's focused and intense expression staring in to the darkness. He shifted his hand from Mayura's lower back to even further down her body, giving her bottom a sudden smack. She cried out suddenly in fear and surprise, jumping high in to the air, and when she landed, she glared at Loki who was chuckling at her response.
She rubbed her bottom, "You're terrible!"
He reached an arm out to her, wrapping it around her waist again, as he continued to tease, "Let me make you feel all better then." Her face turned completely red at how close he was to her, but she pressed her hands against his chest, turning her head away from him.
"Fenrir!" she called, "Do you something about your dad! He's bullying me!"
The puppy just sat there, watching them with a happy tail wagging side to side, 'I've never seen daddy in action before! I have to take notes.'
Mayura pouted and pushed Loki's face away, "You're being a bad example for your son."
The blonde god stared down at Fenrir, not all happy about the girl's rejection nor his son's attention, "You're a few centuries too young." He returned to Mayura, grabbing her cheeks and pulling them, "And you, you'll never get a boyfriend like this."
"Why would I want a boyfriend?" she huffed in annoyance and grabbed his hands, trying to pry them from her face, "I already have a god."
Loki blinked, for once befuddled by this mortal girl's words, but before he could even respond to it, another voice took over, "Ah, I thought I heard people down here."
All three pairs of eyes turned to the speaker, who was just Koutaro, slightly blushing at what he had just seen for a couple of seconds. He stared at the couple before him as Mayura pulled away from Loki, "Koutaro-kun, thank you for inviting us here."
"Ah, it was my pleasure," he started, eyeing the man near his classmate, "I was happy to have you, Mayura-san, and... erm, where is your brother? And who... is this?"
"AH... umm."
The girl was at a lost at what to say or how to explain Loki's true appearance, not expecting to have a run in with Koutaro that warranted an explanation, but the god, already knew what to say, let the girl stewed a bit longer in thinking of a solution in retribution for turning down his advances. He didn't like the way Koutaro was staring at the stuttering girl, with such adoration that he had to wipe off his face immediately before he started gagging.
Loki stepped behind Mayura, wrapping his arms around her shoulders, and placed his chin on top of her head. He smirked triumphantly at the shock and horror on the young man's face, practially crestfallen in to despair.
"Loki-sama!" the girl cried, indignant at being caught off guard.
"Loki?" Koutaro repeated, confused, "Isn't that your brother's name?"
"Loki isn't my brother!" she blurted out, fuming, and still wrapped up in the god's embrace, and she knew better than to struggle further at this point. When Loki was enjoying himself while others suffered, he wasn't going to end it so soon, and the amusement in his voice did not bring her any comfort.
"That's right, Loki isn't her brother," the god smiled, giving her a squeeze. "Little Loki is her soon-to-be stepson."
"WHAT?" came out of Koutaro's and Mayura's voices.
"Don't be so shy, Mayu-chan," he told her, dropping his head down to her shoulder, where his breath brushed against her ear. He placed a gentle kiss against her temple as the color of her face nearly matched her hair, "Won't you introduce us?"
The girl, still horrified at what he had just announced, remained speechless and frozen in his arms, and her classmate, very unsure and suspicious, wanted to pry the man's hands from her, but he couldn't make a scene at his family's empty business place. He returned to his more professional demeanor and bowed, almost robot-like but his gentle tone was another matter when he spoke of the girl, "Kakinouchi Koutaro, Mayura's classmate and friend."
Loki kept his pleasant mask, trying not to twitch at the familiar usage of the girl's name, and gave her ear a nibble before speaking, "Jashin Loki."
Mayura cupped her bit ear, face completely red by now, staring over to a smiling Loki, having no idea what kind of game he was playing, but if it continued any further, she would snap, not able to take any more of his teasing.
"Koutaro-kun!" she shouted, interrupting the stare down between both men, "We know why you don't have any customers!"
"You do?"
"We do?"
"It's been cursed with bad energy!"
Koutaro looked at her doubtfully, but Loki confirmed her words with a sigh, "It's true. Have you done anything different? Any rearrangements? Additions?"
"Well," he started to think, "We did receive a Ebisu statue as a gift, yesterday morning."
"Where is it now?"
"It's in the main exhibition room."
He made a gesture for them to follow him, taking them through the tunnels that eventually opened up near one of the smaller rooms of the main exhibit. They walked through that room and appeared in the large one, and in the middle sat a large bronze statue of one of the Seven Lucky Gods, Ebisu - the god of fisherman, luck, and the common working man, something Narugami could probably relate to.
Fenrir started to growl at the stature, and in seconds, the air became thick and heavy, swirls of the negativity converging at the point of the statue, the cause of all the aquatic center's trouble. And how much of that was a problem? All the thick glass of the tanks slowly cracked and then shattered in to thousands of pieces, water flooding the floor, and all the poor fish and aquatic creatures flopped on the ground.