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It was supposed to be just a bit of a prank. There wasn't any reason it shouldn't be funny that he could think of — even Kurama and Ikaruga got in on it. Sure, it practically cost him an arm and a leg to rope them in, but it all worked out in the end. She'd gotten him pretty good before, with the initial round of bean toss, so it was time to return the favor.
Plus, it was for a good cause. When Kai had fled the Underworld, he hadn't expected to love the surface world as much as he had come to. There was so much to offer, between the bright sun and the delicious food. Though he was half human, he'd always believed most humans were kind of… awful. And really, why would most people like an oni? To them, they were monsters.
Yet he'd found a home. Yachi continued to let him put off paying, Kotaro was always up for some fun, and the rest of the remaining population of Autumn Village didn't even blink at his mask. They'd just accepted that was who he was, and continued on with their lives.
So now that his divinity had come back to him, he wanted to share that realization with the rest of his people. Share the warmth of the sun on their faces, the sights of the trees in Autumn Village, the food at Yachi's. These were all experiences Kai had grown so attached to, so wasn't it natural he'd want to share his joy with his people?
He knew he wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed. He'd always known that — Ura had made sure to remind him of that fact too, during his brutal beat down years ago. But Kai was sure this was a good idea. He was positive. What better way to share the joys of the surface than with fun games?
Pranking Kaguya was really just the cherry on top. The Earth Dancer and he had become fairly close recently; she was always seeking him out for some reason or another. There was something about her that made it so terribly easy to talk, to share his thoughts. She was the kind of person he wanted to look his best in front of, to the point where he'd been genuinely embarrassed by Yachi talking about his tab in front of her.
He knew why, Kai wasn't that stupid, but that was part of the joy of getting to prank her. Maybe it would make the feelings settle, a bit. Maybe it would make the inevitable rejection sting a little less, if he could feel like they were at least close. Close enough to prank, to play silly jokes, to care about the other.
Kaguya was far too good for the likes of him, half-oni or not. Divinity didn't matter in the face of someone that honestly good. There was a reason she'd been able to become an Earth Dancer, and it wasn't just the fact that her dancing was the most graceful thing he'd ever seen in his life.
Seeing her thrown off guard was like a once-in-a-lifetime chance. He couldn't help but snicker to himself as she looked around their makeshift battlefield, eyebrows furrowed. He'd definitely gotten her good, oh yes.
"What, can't you tell? We're having a bean toss!" He said, grinning brightly at her.
Kaguya blinked. "Then… the war…"
Kai sighed, half exasperated. He didn't expect her to take the joke so far — she'd always been pretty quick to join in on the fun. "Pah. What, you're still going on about that? There IS no war, never was." He crossed his arms, nodding in satisfaction. "And I'm damn proud of this idea, too."
He really, really was. This was, by far, the lightest his soul had felt in many years. The oni throwing beans at the kids, completely losing themselves in the ridiculous game was a sight to behold. The kids were giggling with every toss, Kurama was obviously having a blast, and even Ikaruga — someone he'd come to know as fairly expressionless — was cracking a smile here and there. Maybe it wouldn't solve the problem entirely, but hopefully, this could lessen the divide between them. Even just a little.
"A good old-fashioned bean toss is a great way to convince all the oni in the Underworld to come topside. I mean," he laughed to himself, "we're baked into the whole tradition to begin with! Oni, get on out and all that."
Yes, Kai had truly outdone himself this time. A pat on the back was well deserved after his hard work.
Though Kaguya still seemed to be catching up with the program. "The role we were always meant to play…" She repeated his words from earlier, and he brightened.
"Exactly!"
"But, didn't you say you were going to take things by force!?"
Kai shrugged. "Well, yeah. We aren't gonna get that good fortune by sitting around on our butts. You think we came all this way just to get beaned in the face a few times? This is a chance for all the oni in the Underworld to get better acquainted with humans! Now that's what I call fortunate."
Maybe she just wasn't seeing the vision yet. Which was strange, because she knew better than anyone else his thoughts on wanting the oni to come live up on the surface, rather than in the dark and dreary Underworld. Sure, it had been his home once too, but…
His home was up here, now. There was a large part of him that wanted his kin to join him.
"That's what this was all about?" Kaguya asked, looking down at her feet as she held a hand in front of her chest.
Kai, however, didn't notice. He laughed loudly, right from the belly. "Yep! And I gotcha good, didn't I?" Perhaps she just needed the joke spelled out for her. He wouldn't judge, he… unfortunately often needed something spelled out for him.
"Got me? How?"
"What, don't you remember? This is payback for pinning a target on me before! And I persuaded everyone to help me, too," he told her proudly. "Even Ikaruga and the windbag were down, said it sounded hilarious!"
He expected her to laugh. Maybe even pout a little first, at finally getting to be on the receiving end of a prank instead of the giving end, but definitely laugh. She was usually on his wavelength when it came to these sorts of things, after all — maybe she wasn't always causing a ruckus the way he was everywhere he went, but she sure didn't have a problem dropping everything for a game or little practical joke.
What Kai didn't expect was for her to glare up at him, eyes shining a little in the setting sun. "That's so mean!" She didn't stomp her foot, or even give him the pout he'd thought she'd do. Instead—
Her eyes became even more watery, and she tried to furiously blink away what were — oh no — definitely tears. "Like, why would you do that?"
An angry flush spread out over her face, and normally Kai would take a moment to appreciate how unfortunately adorable Kaguya was. Now, though, it was accompanied by actual, real tears, and a sad, glassy-eyed glare. He was even sure he heard her sniffle a little, and he recoiled violently on instinct.
Oh, gods, he'd fucked up. "Hey — don't cry, now. A-are you crying?" A stupid question — she was obviously crying, fat tears falling freely down her cheeks. "Oh no, she's crying. Stop crying. Please?" He floundered, his brain completely short-circuiting at this point.
"I— I was scared out of my mind, Kai!" Kaguya cried, burying her face in her hands. "I thought you were seriously going to start a war! And then, I… I…!"
She hiccupped, unable to finish her sentence, and a white hot flash of panic made its way through his veins. "I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm so sorry!" He tried to get the words out as fast as he could, hating the way she looked right then.
Not that she looked bad — she was still unfairly gorgeous, the most graceful crier he'd ever seen and that was really not what he should be focusing on, right then — but he'd caused her to cry. His little joke that he thought she'd find funny, that she'd laugh about with him, had made her cry and he never wanted the ground to open up and swallow him whole that badly in his entire lifetime. How could he fix this!?
"I went overboard, okay!? It's my fault, all of it! Everything is totally and completely my fault!"
Behind him, the bean toss fake war continued on without care. Kaguya stood in front of him, tears still streaming down her face, and Kai's hands awkwardly hovered near her. Should he hug her? They'd never really hugged before, but would that help? Would that make it worse? He was at a complete loss.
One of the children came up to him, then, with a glare on his face. "Ooh, you made her cry," he sang, rubbing salt in the wound. "Bad oni who make girls cry get this!"
Kai turned around to tell him off when he threw a good handful of beans at him, before running away giggling. One of those beans went directly into his eye through the hole in his mask, and he flinched, momentarily distracted from the awful situation he'd caused.
"Shoot. Right in the eye slot," he said, turning back away from the fighting to remove his mask for a moment. Ugh, that was going to sting tomorrow.
"Um…"
Kai startled, glancing back over to Kaguya. Oh man, he wasn't finished apologizing. He opened his mouth to continue, to be sure she never cried because of him ever again, when he realized the expression on her face.
Kaguya was no longer crying, which was a great start, but now she looked… flushed. Her eyes were wide as they stared at him.
For the life of him, he couldn't discern what that look was. "What?"
"I… didn't know you were that handsome, under your mask. Wow." The last word was practically whispered out, and he short-circuited for a second time that night.
Wow. He'd be thinking about that, unfortunately, far too often. He'd never really cared what others thought about his appearance — in fact, sometimes he hated that he looked so human, compared to the oni he presided over. But Kaguya thinking something good about him, after he'd made her cry? He'd take it.
But then it caught up to him. "Under my..?" Right, he was holding his mask. In his hands. Instead of keeping it on his face, where it belonged. He swore under his breath, bringing it back to his face without a second thought. She'd gotten him so distracted, so careless that he'd taken the damn thing off. In public.
Still, he couldn't help but check: "You… you saw?"
"Just a peek," she said, giving him an awkward smile. Her cheeks were still a brilliant pink, practically glowing as the sunset nearly finished its descent.
"Damn it," Kai swore again, sputtering. "Every time I'm around you, I let my guard down!"
That was probably a little too honest. Kaguya's eyes widened once more, surprised by the admission. Yeah, he was surprised too — that was an inside thought, not an outside one. A second panic of the night set in rapidly.
"Listen, you saw nothing! You better not tell a soul, hear me?" He said quickly, quickly glancing behind him. The bean toss was, thankfully, still going. It didn't look like anyone had noticed.
"You mean about that cute face of yours?" Damn, this girl was really going to be the death of him. "Why? If you've got it, flaunt it. At least, let me take another peek?"
Her eyes were still a little glossy from her earlier tears, and that combined with the way she was currently looking at him was proving to be an absolutely lethal combo. Nobody should look that pretty, ever, especially not when he—
"Shut up! No!" Kai was honestly more talking to himself, at that point. He could not go there. He could not let his thoughts continue to go there.
Finally, the expression he'd expected to see at the beginning of all this made its way onto her face. Kaguya pouted, looking up at him through her lashes. It was the kind of look that would make far too many people bend over backwards, himself included, and she didn't even know.
"Aw, come on! Is it that big a deal?"
Nope, no, absolutely not, he had to keep himself on the straight and narrow here. There was a reason he kept the damn thing on all the time, and he shouldn't fold that easily! He was the Valiant Herald of Rebellion, not some weakling!
"It is to me," he said, mentally clapping himself on the back for standing his ground.
But this was Kaguya, and nothing was ever that easy when it came to her. "Please?" She drew the word out, giving him the most deadly puppy dog eyes he'd ever come across. "It can't be all that bad."
"Would you drop it already!? Damn…" He was flustered, and he knew she knew he was flustered, but maybe he'd get away with hiding it behind his discomfort rather than the reality of the situation.
Though Kai couldn't lie — it was definitely a bit of an ego boost, to know how attractive she thought he was. A double-edged sword, to be sure, because it was part of what separated him so thoroughly from his own people. Definitely a bit conflicting, but he'd take whatever scraps he could get.
Thankfully Kaguya seemed to take the hint, and didn't say anything else for a moment. Behind them, the bean toss was still ongoing, and his mood turned a bit melancholy now that the worst of it — her tears — were over and done with.
He'd wanted, more than anything, for this to be a bonding moment for two vastly different cultures. He needed to show the oni that not everyone topside was so horrible. That there was a lot of fun to be had up here, even if they were nervous. Even if change was scary.
And Kai had never been the best ruler. He'd never been the strongest, or the fastest, and definitely not even close to the smartest. In truth, he wasn't even sure how the hell he'd ended up the God of the Underworld in the first place. Hell knew he didn't deserve the title.
Despite that, he wanted to do good by his people. Especially after he'd abandoned them all, running away with his tail tucked in between his legs like a pathetic kid. He owed them a lot more than just a fun night of bean toss. He'd hoped that maybe the fun stuff up there, the joys of the living, might help ease that burden.
When Kaguya didn't make a move to leave, he hesitantly asked, "Do you, uh… do you think I did a good job as a bridge?"
The smile she gave him was genuine. "Maybe one that could use a bit of upkeep," she admitted, "but a sturdy one all the same." As always, she was honest to a fault. It was one of the many things he—
"I'll take it," he said wryly, finally turning back to survey the makeshift battlefield and cutting his thoughts off there.
Ikaruga had bowed out, standing off to the side. His cat eyes were intently following the oni, and while that irked Kai a bit, he couldn't blame the guy completely. His job as a mystic was to protect others from threats, and he'd — obviously — seen a lot of threats in his lifetime caused by oni. Maybe this would make him a little less wary, in the future. Their eyes met briefly, and he gave Ikaruga a nod, grateful for his help despite their somewhat terse relationship.
As expected, Kurama was still going strong, unable to separate himself from a game if he'd gotten roped in enough. With the endless energy from the oni and the kids, he'd probably be there for a while.
Which left him and Kaguya, observing each other quietly.
"I, uh, really am sorry," Kai blurted, breaking the silence that had stretched out between them.
He really was an idiot, because of course that had terrified her. He'd kind of realized it, back when she'd chased him down to the Underworld to plead for him to stop, but he'd thought she'd… well, get it. Figure it out. She was always quick on her feet, physically and mentally, and was so aware of everything that went on around her. Whenever someone had an issue, or something they needed to sort through, she was there, in whatever capacity they might need. A shoulder to cry on, a listening ear, or even just someone to laugh with you if you were feeling down.
The fact that she even gave someone like him the time of day was astounding.
Kaguya gave him a level look. "I'll forgive you," she said. "But never scare me like that again, okay?"
His heart pounded furiously in his chest. He'd really come close to fucking things up completely, hadn't he? And he hadn't even realized it. Wow, he was so stupid. And yet she was still there — still willing to forgive his not-so-momentary lapse in judgment.
"I won't," he promised.
She did something surprising, then, and made her way closer to him. He looked down at her in confusion before she put her arms around his waist, hugging him.
Oh, Kaguya was hugging him. She was hugging him of her own accord. Without his input, his arms moved to circle around her, pulling her closer. For some reason, he hadn't expected her to be so warm. Hadn't expected the way she rested her cheek on his shoulder, a shaky exhale going through her. His grip tightened at the sound.
"I'm serious," she breathed out. "Don't ever scare me like that. I thought…"
Kai forced himself to swallow. His senses were in overdrive with her being so close, so comfortable with him, even after he'd made her cry. And made her cry over something so stupid, too. "Yeah," he said, unsure of what else he could say to that. If he thought he lost her…
He didn't even know what he'd do. He was still trying to wrap his head around the fact that she found him attractive, let alone that she cared so much about him. They were friends — of course they were — but no other friend had ever hugged him like this. Had ever worried about him the way she did, so naturally, like second nature.
She worried about everything and everyone like that, he tried to tell himself. He wasn't special. He sure as hell wasn't special enough to stand out to someone like Kaguya, who was as bright as the damn sun.
Still, she hugged him, only pulling away a bit after the longest minute of his life. His arms were now hanging loosely around her waist.
He turned away from her, clearing his throat to try to alleviate his awkwardness. "Well! That's enough of that," he said, but made no effort to let go of her. Kaguya, as well, made no effort to move away from him. "Time for a drink!"
That finally got her to pull away, and Kai mourned the loss for a fleeting moment. He nearly sighed in relief as a normal smile graced her features.
"I suppose you're right," she agreed. Nodding towards where Ikaruga was standing off to the side near Kurama, who was still playing, she continued, "Should we grab them too?"
No, he wanted to say. He'd really like to be selfish with her, sometimes. All of the time.
Instead, he nodded. "Yeah, a party is always in order after a successful day of combat!" And, well, a drink definitely didn't sound bad. He could use some alcohol after the stress of making Kaguya cry.
Now, instead of tears, she had that playful look that only spelled Trouble, capital T and all. "Great! I'm sure Yachiyo won't mind another round on your tab," she said, spinning away from him before he could even take offense.
Kai could only grumble as she made her way to Ikaruga. Somehow, she always managed to have the last word.