Chapter Text
The old shrine reeked of mold, the miasma of a yokai thick in its decayed foundation. Momo held her nose with the same hand she was holding her talisman
“Let’s just hurry and get rid of this bastard this place is rank as hell” She was attempting to sound confident but really this place gave her the creeps.
“What’s over there?” Okarun stepped ahead picking up what looked like someone's phone, unlocked and still recording.
Okarun held the phone up so Momo could see the screen. The recording was shaky—whoever had filmed it was breathing hard, the camera bobbing as they ran through the very same shrine they now stood in.
On screen, a voice whispered, “Something’s following me. I can’t see it, but I can feel it…”
The camera swung toward a crooked statue at the back of the shrine—its stone face cracked, one eye missing, the mouth twisted in a grin too wide to be human.
“That’s the statue,” Okarun said, pointing ahead. “It’s still here.”
Momo narrowed her eyes. “Wait. Pause it. Look at the timestamp.”
Okarun froze the frame.
“Two hours ago,” she muttered. “Who the hell filmed this? There’s no one else here.”
As if in response, a low creaking echoed through the shrine.
Both of them froze.
“…Did you hear that?” Momo whispered.
"Yeah," Okarun said, swallowing hard. "So. Definitely a yokai."
"No shit," Momo muttered, eyes flicking up to the altar. Where the small stone statue sat, it had been cracked down the middle. Its face looked human… almost too human. Smiling wide. Way too wide.
"It’s looking at me, right? It’s totally looking at me."
"It’s a statue," Okarun said. "Statues don’t—"
Craaaaaack.
They both froze as the statue’s face shifted. The smile turned into a gaping hole.
"Back away—" Momo said, raising her talisman.
Too late. A gust of wind exploded outward from the altar, knocking them off their feet. Her ears rang, her vision blurred—then everything went quiet.
Not silence.
Something worse.
Okarun sat up beside her, dazed. “Ugh. What the hell was that?”
(What the hell was that?)
The voice echoed inside her skull.
Momo blinked. “Did you just—wait. Say that again?” (Did he say that twice? Or is my hearing impaired from the fall)
Okaruns eyes widened at the unfamiliar thoughts echoing in his own head, (am I hearing Momo’s thoughts?)
Her face erupted in a blush hearing him think that so casually, “you use my first name in your head??”
That solidified his understanding of the situation, they could hear each other's thoughts.
“W-well it’s your name?” He fumbled his hands around awkwardly trying to excuse himself.
Before they could get into it the statue shifted again, the same way it had before it attacked.
Before the attack could reach them Okarun had warped effortlessly into his yokai form in seconds, taking Momo into his arms out of the blast range.
“So like, what do we do yo?” His mannerisms changing with his body.
Momo closed her eyes trying to sense the aura of the yokai, but to her surprise it was nowhere in the shrine.
(So the statue isn’t a yokai, it’s a cursed object..)
“Okarun go ahead and take us home- the statue won’t leave, we need granny for this”
“What a drag” he slumped, Momo still in his arms. He started sprinting away from the shrine towards granny’s.
(I could have walked myself) Momo thought, knowing he can still hear it.
By the time they made it the sun was setting over the horizon, the danger from before no longer existed but the consequence still loud and clear in eachothers minds.
They stepped inside expecting to smell dinner at least being started but the house was empty and dark, “Granny?”
There was a note in the kitchen, Seiko was out on urgent extermination business and likely wouldn’t be home tonight.
(Great) Momo thought sarcastically.
“Looks like we figure this out alone until she’s back”
Momo plopped down on the tatami mat around where they usually eat, her arms crossed and face flushed from before.
(Alright calm down.. this is probably only temporary..)
Okaruns thoughts chimed in with hers (what if it isn’t though?)
Momo’s head snapped towards him “You aren’t even trying not to think at me!” She hissed
“It wasn’t on purpose! I can’t control what I think” he protested “I can’t control hearing you either”
Momo sighed, “alright let’s just- focus on what we can control” she stood back up hands on her hips “let’s test how this curse works first”
Trying to do 500+ words per chapter, let me know about any mistakes I’m more of an artist than a writer ;;