cursebound. (Earinor & Akira)

Genji looked at the plate in front of him, the one he hadn't touched yet, while the priest had cleaned his own plate. "I will. Later.", he told him. He didn't know what it was, but he didn't want to eat in front of him. Maybe because the constant pushing back he had to do lowered his appetite. Maybe he simply didn't want to concentrate on more than one thing at once. "I'm fine really. I wouldn't be alive if not for the fact that I can provide for myself..." That didn't mean it was a good life, but he was alive. He ate, drank and slept and he kept himself from giving in as best as he could. He failed so many times he couldn't count it anymore, neither was he able to count the years he lived, nor did he remember much at any given time, as if his brain couldn't keep up with a long life like his. Humans weren't made for this and before the curse he was just a normal person, albeit a murderous one.

"In contrary... corruption doesn't harm or befall my body. I've not used much magic in my life, but given that I already live for a long time... there is no visible effect.", he told the priest and sighed a little bit. "I don't suppose you could tell me how old I am, with the information I gave you?" Did it matter? Not really, he shook his head to signal the priest that he didn't need to know. He was once more too late to notice the priest come closer. He wasn't used to people not running away from him. He had the urge to puch him away while also the urge to kill this man, but he did neither. He didn't want to hurt the priest. The eyepatch was off fast and Genji stared into an eye that looked like it didn't belong in that face. It somehow looked familiar though. Genji grunted when Mikuni-no-Homare took his hand as well, he almost started shaking. "M-my hair...?", he asked. Was it longer at some point? Maybe it had been, Genji couldn't remember. His hand was forced forward, was forced on the young mans cheek and he stared at him almost in disbelieve. Once he heard that voice in his mind, his head started to hurt immediately. He thought he knew that voice, but something pushed against that memory. The twitching and turning grew stronger, as if the thing inside him rebelled against all of this. Was it scared? Unhappy at least as it started to rampage. Genji pulled his hand away quickly and he stumbled to his feet to back away two steps. A grunt left his throat and his right hand cramped up.

Then, the truth lay bare and they all were ready to witness it. Mikuni-no-Homare was the one that couldn't help but give Genji another glance, through his human eye, through that which was his, and not the parasite he harbored. It was a fine gift, his father always claimed, but in reality, maybe it wasn't, and never would be - maybe it was merely a distraction from the bigger picture, something that he truly needed for someone like himself if he wanted to survive beyond the walls of the monastery that he lived on. "Your age? I'm sure we can ... pinpoint that somehow." But could they, truly? Not that it mattered, not that anyone cared - in fact, it was merely a farce that he kept on his face for way too long; Genji had to come clean eventually, and Mikuni would help him discover who he truly ought to be, if it was of any help for him. Maybe he needed it, but what did he know? This man was one full of mysteries, one that he couldn't quite understand - but even then, he wanted to, he wanted him to be someone that, at worst, could at least understand himself, and not be reliant on others. A smile settled on his face, a big one at that. If he could help, that was great and even if he couldn't, he was at the very least trying.

"And yet, your body has already been corrupted by a curse.", Mikuni chastised him. That it did, but what was worse, he didn't know where those thoughts came from - he'd blurted it out, just like that, and now he was making others suffer for it. Was it important, though? Someone like Genji would understand him regardless, he was sure, even if it meant that he only got hurt in the process. Still, they made no progress like this - not when Genji pushed him away as soon as he'd received the criptic message and the foreign touch. Mikuni looked at him in disbelief, while the voice in his head laughed. "Yes, your hair. That's what she said. Don't you remember?" The Revelation wasn't helping Genji, however, but Mikuni wasn't able to just cover her all-seeing eye up now, not when it had found its prey - the curse, that was, not the bearer of it. Why was she so interested in it, though? Had she found something within it that she was able to get rid of? "Does it hurt? Are you alright?", he asked, this time out of his own accord. It probably did, why was he questioning it in the first place? Whatever the case, he rejoiced. She yawned instead and beckoned Mikuni to get closer again, now that she had found a lead. "Do you truly not remember her? She feels saddened."

Genjis skin crawled. More than that, it felt like the thing inside him wanted to break out of his body, through flesh and skin. He didn't know it it aimed to kill the man before him, or if it wanted to flee. It's feelings were convoluted and all Genji could feel was the struggle for control over his body. He felt it stretching out, more than it should be able to. His left hand pressed down on his right arm, as if he had to keep the curse inside of him. "I used to wear it longer when...", he started, but there was the headache again when he tried to access that memory. He knew he did. When did he cut it? He didn't know, but he believed it was because they simply were in the way. who was this goddess? He didn't remember knowing one, or anyone really. He'd always been alone, because he didn't want to hurt anyone and in the rare cases he actually met someone that wanted to stick around, he fled from them as soon as he could.

When Mikuni asked Genji about what was going on, he simply shook his head. "Something feels wrong.", he told him through gritted teeth, but the only thing hurting was his head. The feeling in his arm was different and spread to his lower arm and his neck, further up to his jawbone. Normally the curse wasn't this demanding or forceful, even with potential pray around him. When he was asked if he truly didn't remember her, he shook his head. He neither knew her name, nor her face and even though this eye looked familiar, he couldn't figure out why. The priest came closer again and Genji already had the wall in his back, sliding down on it now. "I'm sorry. I think you should leave. Both of you...", he uttered toneless. Something didn't feel right and he felt like if this continued, something terrible would happen. He needed to focus, he needed to fight this thing back down to the ground, before it claimed another life.

When? When was when and what did when mean? Mikuni was curious, all the while his goddess was the one that was laughing at him - at Genji - for no discernible reason. She sounded like a hungry hyena, an amused fox, or truly, anything there was that one could summarize to be an amused predator, ready to strike. All in all, she couldn’t change the fact that Genjis memories were straight up missing from his mind, but Mikuni wanted to help, not scar him for life - and right now, he wouldn’t consider his actions to be help in the slightest. Was he being an asshole on purpose? “When? Go on. At least try.”, he almost begged the blonde. When was all of that even happening? When had that been? There were enough questions that he wasn’t equipped to answer, and there was enough time to question whether or not he was doing the right thing - and yet, his eyes darted to both of Genjis hands, preoccupied with their beautiful digits; they’d claw their way into his skin and rob him of his labored breath, of the air in his lungs and before long, he’d fade away and leave behind an empty shell that would get back up eventually. Mikuni thought about it - he was the perfect punching bag for this curse, it seemed.

“Wrong? Because of me? Her? You? It?” His questions were vaguely understandable like that, but Genjis labored breath was, what made him catch a whiff of reality. Was it hard to figure out? No. Something was off, he knew as much, and some guessing wouldn’t provide him with the much needed information. In fact, Mikuni thought of it as futile, even though she was the one that kept prodding him to get closer yet again and force Genji to take up the mantle he’d discarded years ago; to touch his destiny, or whatever she wanted to call it. Her words were confusing to say the least - to Mikuni, an outsider, that was; Genji probably knew more than that. He had to. His eyes darted downward, not in tandem - the golden one followed the blue one rather slowly, as if someone else was making amends to keep it locked in a position, or was trying to force it to go somewhere it shouldn’t be. Whatever the case, Mikuni crouched in front of Genji and, once more, without much of a warning, grabbed his hand - the one ravaged by the curse. This time, he just held it for a bit, trying to get Genji to stop touching it on his own accord. “It’s alright. We’re … just trying to help? It’s a weird request, but please bear with it.”, Mikuni merely muttered before he fumbled with the bandages a bit and, eventually, put the bare skin back on that godly eye of his. This was bound to work somehow, especially if she wanted it as well, wasn’t it? “Is your age getting to you? Stop squirming!”

Genji shook his head. He couldn't remember. Why was this priest so insistent? If this goddess knew him and he wanted to know, why didn't he just ask her? A stinging pain lingered in the back of his head and the room felt awfully bright all of a sudden. His past eluded him as so often. The clearest was his time before the curse, but even then he couldn't even remember his masters face or voice. Sometimes he remembered things, but he forgot them again in the next moment, or he forgot something else in it's stead. Had it always been like this, or was this a recent development? Not even that was clear to him. His name was all he had left of himself, everything else was this curse. His nightmares, his deeds, his whole being. There was no past and if there was, it didn't matter anymore, so why remember it? There was only death, for decades and decades to come. He didn't know a goddess and she wouldn't be able to help him, even if he did. He didn't believe in fate.

"Something feels... ngh...", he couldn't finish his sentence, or his thoughts. All his attention was needed to keep the curse contained. He didn't want to hurt this man, yet the curse reached out as if it wanted to grab Genjis fingers already. The priest didn't leave like he asked him to, instead he came closer again. Wasn't he scared? He looked at his hand, the one that got grabbed, disregarding any warning. "Please... I can't...", he started, trying to keep his arm steady and from hurting the man in front of it. He didn't look at him, instead his looked at their hands, shocked because of what was happening. The bandages were ripped from his skin, it covered nothing of the curse yet, but when he looked down, he saw the blackness crawl over his skin. It never grew that fast. All the while the curse made it's way out on the other side as well. Slowly it crept up from under the bandages on Genjis neck and passed his jaw over to his cheek. His hand was pulled forward and he heard the voice once more. "You don't understand... it changed...", he answered, without even knowing what he meant by that himself. Genji felt that this was wrong and something terrible was about to happen.

The Revelation wasn’t pushing him to his limits; she was ordering Genji around like a dog that had to answer its masters whims - his curse fed on his fear, his anger and all those realizations without even knowing him, and the goddess, who hadn’t had her fingers on anyone in ages, suddenly felt entitled to attempt and force Genji to touch somebody, anybody, as long as it was a mortal vessel. Mikuni swallowed - the touch didn’t burn just yet, even if it took some pressure to keep the foreign hand on his face steady. It was as if he knew that he wouldn’t get hurt, though, he also knew that he’d never died before - he, who was supposed to preach about how the gods were live givers, how their bodies were holy temples, all the while his was decrepit and broken, ready to be swept off of the face of this earth. “Something? The curse? It’s … in your face.”, Mikuni told him, still smiling, as he looked up and saw the tendrils of smoke that slowly started to creep onto the right side of Genjis face, snaking their way upward from his shoulder and neck, softly caressing and then swallowing the softer skin. Was that part of that ancient punishment?

The priest felt a sense of foreboding in the cramping hand that he was unwilling to let go. Meanwhile, his own parasite - or curse, or blessing - was ringing ever closer in his ears, as if she’d crawl out of his body and tear it to shreds herself, only to be with this weird guy that she claimed to know. What was next? Was she going to make this curse tear out that eyeball, after she’d poured her very soul into it and tainted his skull by implanting her presence within? Mikuni didn’t know, but he wasn’t fearful as she giggled once more - she was interested in Genji, more so than ever, and he was sure that if she could have picked her vessel, she would have taken him in a heartbeat. “You can’t what?”, he sheepishly asked. Now, his hand was firmly holding that wrist - he was holding onto it like his life depended on it. It’d be a lie, he thought, if he didn’t take care of it and kept it close to his corporeal form to give it the best of treatments, and yet, judging from the expression on the blondes face, he clearly was trying his utmost to stay away, stay in control. Like this, Mikuni almost felt bad for him and reached out with his second hand, stubbornly caressing Genjis cheek to give him comfort - he shushed him. “It changed? You changed too!”, she hissed, audible to both. “Don’t let yourself be defeated by such an amateurish curse! You’ve had worse and you’d know that, if you’d have a better brain! Use it, damnit!”

The blackness of the curse crawled over his arm to seize control, to do something, something Genji didn't want to happen, whatever it was. According to the priest it also had wandered into his face. This was bad. When it was this far, it grew stronger and it got harder to control it. Normally it would have taken days or maybe even more than two weeks to have it grow this far, but that priests goddess, the one he apparently should know, forced it out of his prison. No, that wasn't it. First he thought it was scared and tried to flee, tried to take over Genjis body, so it could make him run away - it never ran before, that he knew even though his memory was fading. It didn't want to run now either, instead he believed it wanted to crawl closer and whatever it wanted, it couldn't be good. "I can't hold it back...", he finished his sentence, looking upwards, begging Mikuni and the goddess to stop. He wasn't sure what their goal was, but they were making it worse.

Genji watched helplessly when the curse crawled up his whole hand and fingers. It started to touch the skin underneath, the skin of the priests face. It was almost as if he could hear it sizzling. The voice of the goddess rang in his head again. The voice was familiar but he didn't know why. She was chastising him and he didn't know what she meant, but he knew she was wrong. "You don't understand...", he pressed out between gritted teeth. Suddenly he watched helplessly as the dark smoke seeped over, vanishing in the yellow eye and merging with the dark tendrils and then everything grew silent. He neither heard the goddess voice anymore, nor did he feel the curses pull and pressure. The dark manifestation on his body lay dormant too. His arm felt like his own and the urge to kill was gone, bus so was her voice. Heavily breathing Genji wanted to pull back, but instead he realized, that he was worried. He let his hand slide down a bit, away from the holy eye and instead grabbed the cheek of the face harboring it. "Otoha?", he asked worried, not knowing where this name came from in the first place.

His skin crawled - the foreign touch didn’t feel good, the curse burned itself into his very being, and he had to admit that no matter what he was trying, he was just going along with his goddess suggestions. The control over that body was his own, yet, it followed the thrumming of a different being, seeking out the curse with every possible holy instance that it could - was the Revelation attracted to or by the curse? Or was the curse beckoning her to crawl closer? Mikuni couldn’t tell. Not like this. Instead, he was just holding onto Genjis wrist, as hard as he could, to keep him in place, even when he felt himself wincing and trying to shy away - it felt like thousands of fire ants, biting his skin, before it got worse and the concentrated tingling turned into a literal burning sensation. She couldn’t want this! It hurt! So much so, that Mikuni was biting his lower lip, drawing blood from it and regretting every single moment of shutting up, as soon as the metallic taste clashed with his teeth and tongue. Gods, when was she done with this treachery? This had to be divine punishment, directed at both of them - the curse hurt him already, as if Genji was forcibly injecting him with it as well.

Labored breath was all that was left, as soon as the pain subsided and that hand finally let go of his face. It itched, it hurt when he tried to blink. Father Seimei would kill him if he’d injured the goddess. Mikuni fell down, onto his ass, and was no longer crouching - he had no strength left as he gasped for air. Soon thereafter, however, he realized how silent the world suddenly seemed to be - the curse didn’t call out for anyone, and the Revelation had disappeared from the back of his mind, all the while Genjis hand soothed the now burnt area - the smell was disgusting and hit his nostrils first. Then, the blondes words did. Mikuni was confused, for a bit that was, until he cramped up. Suddenly, his eye hurt - it burnt up. Fuck, that hurt! It was a sudden sting, nothing more, and then it subsided again - only to sting once more as he looked at Genji with it, so much so, that it felt like someone was pushing needles into his brain or optical nerves. “Otoha?”, he asked confused, but he figured who Genji thought it could be. The priest slouched forward, the tiniest bit, and then grabbed ahold of the former assassins wrist again. “She’s silent. How does … your arm … feel?”, he panted, slouching even closer to Genji, before he fell against his chest. He was beat. For a second. “How bad does my face look?”

The silence was eerie. How many years had it been since the curse fully stopped influencing Genji? it was as if it was gone, but looking at his hand, his skin was still dark and tainted. There was no pulling and no stretching however and his mind wasn't occupied by fighting the urge to kill. Was it gone? Over? No, then it would have left his body completely, wouldn't it? It much more felt like the curse was sleeping, recovering maybe, since it used up so much power to climb down his arm and up his face. What was it doing? What was his plan and what did the goddess want to do? Her vessel looked beat. He couldn't remain upright and he looked like he was in pain. Where was the goddess though? Why could Genji not hear her anymore? His mind seemed clearer, yet he didn't seem to remember her, only her name fell from his lips, but even then he couldn't be sure if it was truly hers, or someone elses. Genji didn't know what just happened, but he wasn't happy about it, even though he felt like himself for once.

"What do you mean? Where is she?", Genji asked agitated and worried. He needed to know she was alright, even though he didn't know why it was important to him. He looked at his dark arm and wanted to pull it back again, but the priest still held onto it, yet there was no burning anymore and all in all it just looked like regular, albeit black skin. "I can't feel it... but it's still there...", he tried to explain. The priests face was still covered by the smoke, much like the bandages and Genjis clothing usually were. It clung to him like little black flames. Maybe it would wash off. This time he pulled his hand out of the priests grip and then stood up with him in his arms. One arm lay under his knees and the other held his upper body. "I should bring you to a healer.", he told him. Someone needed to check him through and see if they could get rid of the lingering curse. Maybe some water was enough, but Genji didn't know and he didn't want to make it worse. This was his fault.

Where had she gone? Usually, she’d be nagging at him right now, or maybe having a pointless conversation with his thoughts, about how she wanted to see what the weather was like, or how old and shriveled Seimei had become. None of that happened - it was silent. Mikuni could, for the first time in forever, not only focus on his own breathing but that of Genji, whom he clearly couldn’t look at like this. He kept close to him, yes, but that was about as far as he could go - his limbs felt heavy, like they were filled with lead, and at the same time detached, as if they’d been made out of jelly; it made no sense. His face still itched and burned all the same, and yet, he barely had any strength to even do anything of importance - he could barely breathe, let alone speak. What was up with all of this? “How are you? What’s with the curse?” It was striking, crawling over Genjis face like that, and yet, they probably matched, if he accounted for the pulsating in and around his foreign eye - he still saw through it, very well in fact, but there was something missing, though, it hadn’t left him.

“Asleep. Tired. She’s fine.”, he mumbled and held onto Genjis - his own - clothing, to look for support and get back upon his feet. Mikuni failed. He tried again. Only to fail again. It was weird. Why had this happened? Something was off - he wasn’t as invigorated as he should he, and the absence of his guiding voice greatly bothered him. “Maybe they’re both … dormant. Asleep. For now.” If that was the case, it’d be a practical and not a peaceful cure. Unlike Genjis curse however, Mikunis goddess was sentient, not made of endless energy, and ad he told himself, she was very much asleep and enjoying her rest now, even if he didn’t know for sure. She was not gone. “Whoa, wait!”, he yelped as he was whisked up. Genji was strong, and yet, that was embarrassing. This needn’t be done. With a sigh, he let his head fall to the side and was soon enough resting it on the blondes chest. A heartbeat was, what thrummed into his ears - he was human, still, not that Mikuni had ever doubted that. “Why did you call her Otoha?”, the priest inquired and clung to the fabric of his own clothing, though, it didn’t touch his own body. His face, however, still felt awful. Somewhat swollen and burnt, actually. “I can heal myself, just bring me to the infirmary. It’s down … the tower and into the leftmost building. The door is unmissable.”, Mikuni mumbled. What, in gods name, was going on? The silence was horrid.

"I can't feel it. It's sleeping I think...", Genji answered and shook his head, before looking at the priest almost angry. "Why did you do that? You could have gotten hurt and it put her in danger.", he chastised him. The curse grew silent, yes, but it would wake up again. It wanted to get ahold of the goddess, he felt that. It was prepared for a fight and they had one as it seemed. Now both were licking their wounds or whatever was left of them. She shouldn't have done that. Genji believed his memory came back slowly, but he couldn't quite grasp it. The curse had been scared previously, but it wasn't anymore, as if it had learned a new trick. It felt like it was angry too. What did happen with that goddess, why did she know him and what did she try to do? None of this felt right, even though Genji felt good, in a sense that he didn't need to fight for control constantly, despite the curse having grown so much. It was the only reason he felt comfortable touching the priest right now.

"I'm sure it hurt her...", he mumbled, but now both had fallen into a slumber as it seemed. For how long? What did she mean when she said Genji had had worse? He still couldn't remember her, no matter how hard he tried. "Because that's her name.", he answered the priest and he was surprisingly certain, albeit not remembering anything. "You should rest." the priest felt limp in his arms, even though he tried to protest his help. Genji wasn't quite sure if he was truly worried about him, or about the vessel the goddess chose, either way, he didn't think about it for long and left his room. The curse wasn't hidden, nor was it missable that the young priest had been hurt. Genji didn't care, he didn't try to hide and sneak to the place Mikuni had told him off, he simply went there as fast as possible and he basically ripped the door open that the man in his arms had mentioned. Inside the infirmary he quickly searched for a bed he could put him on.

"You think?", he murmured. Thinking wasn't anyones strong suit in this monastery, so, if it was anyones, maybe it was Genjis. Mikuni just felt tired, exhausted even, despite not doing anything, and cuddled up to the man that held him, quite awkwardly at that. He wanted warmth and someone to keep him close, but at the same time, this wasn't what it looked like - they'd be thrown out if their relationship was like that, and news spread like a wildfire in this encampment of a small religion. Who was to believe him if he denied the rumors? They already hated his guts. "She wanted that. She urged me too, told me that she just needs to give you a little push, that I should hold out so she can do what needs to be done. Whatever that is.", he summarized. In the end, he didn't know what had happened, but he knew that whatever it was, it couldn't be anything good; especially if Genjiwas carrying him to the infirmary out of his own volition and his face felt like thousands of things, all at once, all the while the annoying voice at the back of his head had gone and disappeared for now - somehow, Mikuni felt like she'd sleep for ages - it was uncomfortably silent in his noggin.

"Me too. But I'm also sure she hurt it. Whatever it is.", he mumbled as they descended one staircase after the other, as Genji carried him over cobblestone and tried his best to keep his attention at an all-time-high. Mikuni yawned, though, he felt sick to his stomach soon enough and was still in no shape to move. "Otoha? Do you know her?" Not even he had heard that name before, and yet, this new friend of his seemed oddly convinced that it was, in fact, the truth. Whatever the case, though, he could only guess - Mikuni wasn't someone that would be able to tell a tale tell like that, to actually find out if it was the truth, especially with Otoha - the Revelation - deep asleep. So deep in fact, he couldn't even hear her slumber. Why was it this way? She hadn't passed - if she had, her gift would be no more, and yet, it wasn't like he'd ever had a goddess die in his head. The last thing he kind of noticed, though, was how Genji busted open that door to the infirmary. A voice shrieked. "What's the m- What on earth!?", another yelped. The man, apparently in charge of the priests well-being and cooped up in his own four walls, got up from where he sad and frantically looked at both Genji and the body he carried. "What did you two do!? And why are you wearing those clothes? Just put him down, on the bed over there, and then ... why ... both of you!", he hissed. Mikuni grunted and tried to move, to hide somewhere from all the loud noises. Could Genji make this guy shut up? Maybe, if he asked nicely ... "I'll get Father Seimei!", he hissed. What was this guys deal? "No need ... no need ...", he murmured. "I'll fix it, just shut up, brother.", he pleaded with the man. "Mikuni-no-Homare!? What did you do!" Now, that was a bit too much. Then, the man shifted his attention to the stranger. "What did you do to the vessel?"

"I won't let her do that again.", Genji told the vessel with utmost certainty. Even though the curse was silent now, he was sure it would come back. By then he would have left this place. it was stupid to come here and now they would kick Genji out anyway. That was fine, he didn't plan on staying, it was too dangerous and he wanted to get away from that goddess too. Whenever he had the urge to do something however, he questioned if it was his own idea, or if the curse tricked him. With the current silence however, he seemed to be the one in charge. What did he think coming here? All those years never had anything changed. He somehow didn't want to know how he knew Otoha either. It all was a big mess and his head, albeit clearer, still hurt when he tried to think about her and the past he lost. Had they been friends? It sure felt like it. He was worried about her, he didn't want her to be harmed and he had been kind of happy to see her again.

"I don't know...", he mumbled as answer to the question if he knew her. none of this mattered. The door to the infirmary swung open and hit the wall on the other side. They were not alone, another priest was coming forward soon. He told Genji to bring Mikuni over to one of the beds and so he did. He carefully bedded him there and softly forced one hand from his clothes he held onto, tu put it down on the bed as well. Getting Father Seimei sounded like a good idea, but the young priest refused and only now his colleague noticed who Genji brought in here. Genji didn't like the attention he suddenly got and lowered his head a bit. How would he explain all that? "I touched him... on accident..." that was a lie and an unbelievable one at that. He picked up parts of the bandages hanging from his arm still, the curse lingered on the fabric there as well, but it did no harm to the linen, nor did it look like Mikunis skin was physically damaged either. "That... tends to happen when I touch things..." Right now it didn't, but he still took a big step back and quickly tried to cover his whole arm with the bandages again.

"What if she insists?", he worried, obviously so. Mikuni didn't mind using his body if it helped her achieve whatever goal she had in mind, he'd do it, no questions asked. Who was Genji to tell him that he couldn't throw his life away like that? The Goddess had been with him longer than some guy that cared for him, or his body, however deeply that was, just because he'd found out that he housed an old friend of his. Maybe, just maybe, Genji was the same as everyone else - he'd see him as nothing but a piece of flesh that contained a being much more important than himself, and for that, not only did he envy him, but also have the sudden urge to care for him, like a knight would for his liege, or a mother for its child - everyone was the same. A pessimistic outlook on life was nothing that Mikuni claimed to have, and yet, all those years spent in this damn monastery had him made up his mind; he wanted to see what it was like to be his own person, without the irritating, grating voice at the back of his head, and if it was the last thing he did, he'd still do it. He had every right to.

"How can you not? How long has it been?", he wondered. They had talked about pinpointing Genjis age, and they should definitely do that - if Otoha was that goddess, she probably had a death certificate or a grave somewhere, and there had to be recods of The Revelation first ascending to godhood, or at least making an appearance in peoples lives. How old was this monastery? There were many things to explain, and yet, Genji focused on that one particular vermin that interrupted them - Mikuni rolled his eyes, which certainly wasn't his usual behaviour - but what else should he be doing? This was getting somewhat ridiculous. "Oh, fuck off. Just leave him alone, will you? He did nothing, it was all me - and now go get Father Seimei if you want to, I'll fix this on my own. Patronize something else, for revelations sake!", Mikuni grumbled as he tried to sit back up and looked at Genji. Lies didn't get anyone anywhere. "Watch your tongue, you wre-!" "Go.", he hissed. The fellow priest spouted something, as he angrily stormed off and closed the door behin him with the utmost force he could muster. Goddess, he was tired. "Genji ... can you give me some water and some of the tinctures from that cabinet? I need some serious rest after this ...", the vessel sighed and tried to sit back up. "How come you're not exhausted?"

The two priests fought and while they did Genji wrapped the bandages around his arm, hand and fingers. He secured it, but couldn't do anything about his face. It needed to stay how it was for now. The other priest stormed off and left them alone, while Mikuni sat up slowly to ask Genji to bring him something. He did bring the mentioned items over and set them aside near the bed, before retreating again. "I'm going to leave.", he answered the priests question from before. If he wasn't here, nothing like that could happen again and they'd kick him out anyway. It was a bad idea to come here in the first place. "I don't remember...", he continued answering. He must have been old, very much so. Whenever he met the goddess, did it even matter? He wouldn't meet her again, this here was over. Something terrible had happened, even if the curse lay dormant for now. It would come back. It was only a matter of time and until then he needed to be gone. He'd hide again and fight the curse as long as he could.

He wasn't sure if the lingering residues of his curse would harm the priest, but he could see that he was in pain. Hopefully this stuff here would help. He would have left right away, but it was probably better to wait for Father Seimei, in case he needed to know anything only Genji could help him with. He didn't answer Mikunis last question. he was exhausted and tired and for once it felt like he could close his eyes in peace, but not now. He couldn't just lay down in one of the beds and sleep. Once he was done here, he'd go back to his room and pack his things. He'd find a good spot to sleep once he travelled for a bit, as far as his feet would carry him was probably for the best

That was that. For now, the curse was being forced into a corner and didn't seem to act up more than it should - but even then, Mikuni wasn't satisfied with that. Was he aggravated on Otohas behalf? If only he knew, he'd be able to answer Genji truthfully, but he couldn't; he'd have to resort to lies while static ran through his head and left unpleasantries behind. What was this? Where was it going to go? The truth was, that no matter what, he was bound to fuck up at some point, and right now, one of them had. He sighed. "No.", he replied, without a proper explanation. His mouth had formed a thin line and his eyebrows furrowed, as his gaze fixated itself on Genji. That stupid eye hurt and was still on the slow side of things, though, it did his bidding. What even was it? A marble that contained someones soul? That sounded absurd, and yet, it came to his mind all of a sudden. "You can't. If you're leaving, I'll come with you. At least for her sake.", Mikuni demanded, almost like a toddler that had, once more, been told to sit back and stop making everything about him. As soon as Genji had come closer once more, he grabbed him again. This wasn't a sound decision.

"You can't go. I forbid it. We have to figure this out. Together.", was his declaration. There was no way in hell he'd be able to help himself stay calm, but even then ... he just couldn't lose sight of this guy. Somehow, it tugged on his heartstrings to hear those words, and while there were no tears in his eyes, he felt as if Otoha still had more power over him than he wanted her to. This had to be what she felt; she was passing it onto her vessel, as simple as that. "She doesn't want you to ... we can figure something out, okay?" Mikuni-no-Homare was a vessel, and he thought of Genji as his cure. Who knew if the goddess wouldn't prefer that body? Maybe they could ... swap her around? What if they plunged Genjis eyes from his sk- ... why was she making him consider all those things? Something was terribly off, especially as he realized how much his body was trembling when he reached out for the things that Genji brought. Fuck. This wasn't going to help at all. "Can you ... can you ... ah ... uhm." For a moment, he wasn't so sure what he wanted and grabbed one of the tinctures, which he opened with a struggle and then smeared across his eye, ignoring the label. There was some black stuff on his hands, but his eye stung even more. "Help.", he yelped.

The priest was insisting that Genji stayed at his side and so was the goddess as it seemed. He didn't know her, he didn't know what she wanted from him and he didn't want to know. "That's not your decision... or hers.", he replied to that stubborn priest. He wouldn't put any of them in danger, not any more than he already did. He couldn't allow it, no one should get hurt. How could he stay with them if they were so reckless and didn't take his own wishes and warnings into consideration. He lived with this curse for longer than he didn't, much longer, he knew it best and he learned to read it. This wasn't fear in its being, it was something different and it scared Genji. "Stop... it's too dangerous and she's stubborn." Was she? He actually didn't know, he didn't even know why he said that. Judging by her nagging voice he was right though. "This will not happen again. Someone will get hurt, maybe next time its not you, or her, maybe it is. Either way, I don't want any of it."

He felt incredibly bad for what had happened. It was his fault for being scared, for not being able to control this curse, for not being able to stop either being from what stupid fight they wanted to fight. The priest wanted him to do something else, but he didn't spell it out. Whatever he did, it didn't seem to help, he poured something on his eye and that seemed to be a mistake. "What are you doing?", he asked the vessel, stepping forward and taking the bottle from him to set it aside. Instead he shuffled away again, searching for some water and once he found some, he came back with a bowl of it. "Sit up...", he mumbled, helping him with it. Then he put the bowl underneath him and led Mikunis hand towards the water. "Come on, wash it out... maybe that helps with that curse too..." He didn't know what else to do, but until Father Seimei was here, he had to help somehow.

Wasn't he just the most pathetic? Mikuni could cry, if he'd have anything left in those tearducts of his, but even the blood that he previously would have accepted as a substitute for tears wasn't trickling from his face as planned - instead, it was dry, like a well that had long since lost any and all access to water. The truth was, that he was making a fool of himself if he believed that it all was fine the way it was, or that he could change anything about what fate had in store for either of them. "I'll make it mine. If you leave like that, I'll be forced to run after you. You can't just leave us here, not after what happened. You feel better now, right?", he inquired. What had happened to him? Mikuni felt numb, but at the same time he wasn't at all; he felt alive, he felt like he finally was his own person, even if he clearly couldn't be - it was a weird position to be caught up in, especially with what he'd done not too long ago, but ... that wasn't so bad, was it? He was learning from all of this, in his own way. "We are stubborn, we know that. But I don't mind. I have nothing to lose. If you must, I'll follow you wherever you need to go. Together we can figure something out, I'm sure!" But would they, really? Like this, they were useless. Completely useless.

"Genji, Genji ... listen. This will happen again, but next time I ... she won't get what she wants. But still, she's the key to your memories, isn't she? Maybe she's the key to the curse, too. We can't just leave it like that. Do you want to cut everything off, just because ... you got help?" Mikuni was baffled, in fact, he felt like the worst vessel ever, and even more horrid was the fact that Genji was just ready to abandon them both like that. As the dribbling, disgusting and sticky goop fled down his cheek, he wanted to catch it with his hands, but found himself unable to - he tried his best, but managed to grab nothing. Now, he could do nothing and relied on the blonde, that probably wanted to leave as soon as possible. What kept him from booking it out of the infirmary and the monastery? There was little he could assume, and less that he knew, but he did as he was told and washed it all away in the bowl - the water definitely was getting darker now, and his eye was feeling slightly better. "Come on, you can't ju-" Then, the door slammed open. The priest and Seimei had returned, with the latter wearing a gruff expression on his face, seemingly having been disturbed by what he'd heard when this weirdo had come to get him. "Genji." He didn't address or even look at Mikuni. "Jiro said you hurt Mikuni. Is that true? What happened?" Seimei furrowed his bushy brows. "Why is the curse all the way up to your neck and in Mikuni-no-Homares face? What did that wretched thing do?"

I don't feel better. You both got hurt.", Genji answered biting his lip. Nothing was good. No one died yet, but that didn't mean they would and he didn't trust the curse to stay asleep for a few weeks and only then would it have been worth it. The curse spread so fast so far, if it came back, he'd want a sacrifice immediately. Genji had to leave the monastery, even if they wouldn't kick him out. "No. You stay here. I'm going to leave. I don't want to hurt anybody else..." Not him, not the goddess and not any of the priests here. He was done. It was a stupid idea to come here and he needed to stay away from the goddess who had too much confidence in her powers. The connection he shared was unclear to Genji. He liked her as it seemed, he cared for her wellbeing, but that was only more reason to leave. If he left in silence, this boy wouldn't find him and that was exactly his plan. He'd even tell on him to keep him here if he had to.

"Not because I got help, because I hurt you and what good is the help anyway? Look at my face... once the curse wakes up again I am going to kill someone. If it is before two weeks have passed it was all for nothing. She can't keep doing this either... she just can't." She'd be killed, if that was possible for a goddess. He didn't want to find it out. If it was the curse killing her, everything just got so much worse. Maybe that's what it wanted - her, in its army of dead. He didn't want to discuss this and was saved by Father Seimei entering. As soon as he came closer Genji left the vessels side and lowered his head. "I am sorry. It was an accident, but I will leave tonight if you so wish.", he simply told him. There were no excuses and if he talked about the weird fact that the goddess seemed to know him, no one would believe him anyway. Besides, whoever was at fault, Genji planned on leaving as soon as he knew that Mikuni-no-Homare was fine.

"Hurt? We're fine!", he soon insisted. Neither of them were, that was apparent at first glance, and yet, he insisted that nothing at all had changed - and nothing would change. It was stupid to believe that lying to a master assassin - who's job also consisted of lying plenty, previously - was going to come to fruition in any way. And yet, Mikuni-no-Homare hoped that it'd stay that way and his quivering bottom lip would cease its pathethic display of lack in power at once, just so that he sounded more convincing. "I'm not. Take me with you. I beg of you.", the priest winced. He'd made up his mind; his future was supposed to happen elsewhere, not here, in this dirthole that spiraled out of control with each and every passing day. This wasn't where he wished to be, and frankly, he could make do with a change of pace. Wherever that would lead him was unclear - Genji needed answers for himself, and thus, they probably had to find a way to provide them. Appropriately. In a timely manner. "Then I will force her to stay away. This is my body. I can see your face crystal clear. It just means we have to fix it before the curse wakes up again. We can do that, can't we? You're strong! You can fight it off!", he whispered.

Father Seimei was already eyeing them with a gaze most stern, not interested in their weird conversation but their most questionable antics. They were not meant for one another, and as far as things could go, this was a mere ruse that one of them was trying to pull, wasn't it? Something was off - it was fishy, and yet, it evaded him. "No need.", he declared, then looked at both young men, as if there was something lingering in the air, which he was trying to catch. "Genji, I've found something to expell your curse with." Father Seimei announced instead. Jiro, who'd been standing next to him, sounded almost shocked over the revelation and, as far as good priests went, couldn't help himself but grin. Bullshit - this wasn't anything else than that. "If possible, I'd like you to join us at tonights mass? That way, we can ensure a controlled environment, in case the curse would potentially look for a new host." Mikuni was ... not saddened, but somewhat shocked. This had to be a lie, so much so, that he grabbed Genjis sleeve for support. Then, Father Seimei looked at him, too. "And you should rest. We need you tonight as well - you haven't forgotten what day it is, have you?", his voice thunderous, he turned away and gave both of them a sincere smile. "Now wash up and get some rest you two. I'll expect you at polaris' rise in the church, understood? And you, Jiro ... please inform the others of tonights festivities." Jiro simply nodded and then was on his way. "Do you need anything else, son?"