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When was the last time Shouta remembered feeling?
Decades? Centuries?
Not long enough.
Immortality had become easy for Shouta when the last few followers had perished under the short lives mortals had. He didn’t have to sit on his throne, listening to the pleads and prayers anymore. The pitiful voices got on his nerves the majority of the time.
Being a god was a pain.
If Shouta could rescind his immortality he would. But then again, an eon's long sleep sounded perfect to him. It had been something he welcomed with wide and welcoming arms as he felt the last dying prayer of entry to heaven from the last mortal who remembered him.
Shouta wasn’t that heartless that he didn’t grant it.
Ever since the mortal realm had developed with technology and became less primitive, the old ways died out. Shouta wasn’t like the other gods, the ones who adapted to the times, changed their ways so that they would still be remembered.
He didn’t want that. Didn’t need that.
He was perfectly content to stay in his realm, his safe haven where no one mortal could reach him. Even those with the divine powers would struggle getting in. Shouta liked it that way.
So, when the fog shifted ever so slightly, Shouta felt it.
He felt it.
The sleep that held Shouta in its clutches slowly released him, the disorientation hitting him for a second before his realm came into view.
It was a nice realm in his opinion. A deep, dark and seemingly endless forest that held magical creatures that he created. Most looked like what the mortals called a cat, but these were better, these were more vicious, more beastly.
Shouta was fond of them.
There was a low rumble from one of the beasts that guarded the temple that Shouta resided at. It was a simple temple made of a grey marble like substance, it gave off a ghostly glow from the moon that eternally shone within his realm.
Shaking off the silk that covered him, Shouta stood tall, taking languid steps towards the forest. Towards the disturbance. To the mortal, creature or whatever has disturbed him. It would be its resting place, no matter what.
The air was cool and the smell of the forest was calming, but not enough to satiate the growing hatred that Shouta felt. He hated being woken. The last time had been centuries ago, he was sure.
His friends had popped in for a visit.
Shouta had made sure to buffer the boundaries of his realm after that, he didn’t want any old thing walking in and disturbing him.
Which is why this was odd. So very odd.
It didn’t take long for Shouta to find the situation. The short walk was enough to stretch out his long limbs, he hadn’t walked in centuries.
He was about to smite them without even waiting for answers. His fellow immortal gods knew better than to come to him and anything else, they were just unfortunate that they ended up in his realm.
He was about to do it, his hand raised, the familiar crackle of power tingled at his fingertips, when he heard it.
Like a knife slicing through the quiet. Like the sound of stars being born, which was something Shouta used to love to watch when he was younger.
It sounded like life, something that Shouta was far too unfamiliar with at this point.
Shouta peered into the glowing glade surrounded by gnarled and twisted trees, the leaves rustling with the threat of destruction from Shouta.
The sound happened again, twinging something deep within Shouta, moving something within him, causing him to stumble back a step. What was this?
In the glade was a small mortal clothed in colourful rags, no shoes covering his tiny feet. A shock of deep green curls bounced as the small mortal made that noise again, its eyes filled with an emotion Shouta hadn’t recognised in a long time.
It’s why it took a moment to recognise.
Happiness. Joy.
It was a feeling that had long been absent from this realm.
The tiny mortal was surrounded by three of the beasts, but rather than devouring the mortal the beasts were laying, their tails moving contently as the mortal gently stroked the beasts heads. From where Shouta stood hidden in the shadows, he could hear the soft purrs coming from the beasts.
“Good kitties,” The tiny mortal spoke out, its voice a little higher pitched than Shouta was expecting. Had mortals grown smaller in the centuries that had passed? Was this mortal even full grown?
There were too many questions that it was starting to give Shouta a headache. He craved his bitter ambrosia, he was sure he had a store of it somewhere within the temple. He made a mental note to look for it before he went back to sleep.
The noise occurred again as Shouta watched the tongue of one of the beasts strike out, licking the mortal's face, causing him to make that noise once again. Shouta narrowed his eyes. His beast’s were useless sometimes.
He watched for a little while longer, coming to the conclusion that this tiny mortal was in a situation that he really didn’t want to deal with. He was sure one of the older beasts would come along at some point and put the tiny mortal out of its miserable existence.
He was sure of it.
He melded into the shadows, reappearing back at the temple. He stalked to the store rooms, digging around the useless treasures that he had procured over the years from the donations and the offerings his old followers gave.
None of the fruit or the food had gone bad, the joys of being in a godly realm. Shouta cursed it sometimes, it had meant he had to extend his temple even more just to store the useless things.
He finally found the chest, picking it up with ease and carrying it back to the throne room, placing it down next to the chaise. Opening it up, Shouta was welcomed to the site of gold containers of his bitter ambrosia, the smell heavenly.
He grabbed one, taking the top off, sipping it.
Waking up wasn’t so bad after all.
Shouta wasn’t sure how long passed before he had made his way through half the chest full of bitter ambrosia, he didn’t hold himself to time much these days, immortality did that to a person. But it was at this point he knew it was time to nap again, he was sure his problem would be gone by the time something woke him up again in the next few centuries.
He was sure of it.
So why was it that if he was so sure of it, that he couldn’t get rid of the thought of the tiny mortal? He tossed and turned on the chaise. Each time he thought he could finally drift into nothingness, an odd pang rattled his core, flashes of the tiny mortal's smile and wide eyes. Shades of green that looked very similar to the mortal's hair plagued him as he shut his eyes.
The tiny mortal must be a witch. Shouta despised witches, they were sneaky and mischievous, dealing with things they didn't understand. Calling upon gods and otherworldly beings to lend them their power.
He had been cursed. He was sure of it.
The rage simmered within Shouta as he huffed, rising up from the chaise. He slipped into the shadows, popping out on the outskirts of the glade he had found the mortal in to begin with. The beasts were still there, napping with the tiny mortal sitting comfortably between them.
There were no weird noises this time. The tiny mortal was just staring at the eternal moon with a look that Shouta couldn’t place. Gone were the wide eyes filled with joy, gone was the smile that lit up the mortals face.
Instead the mortal’s eyes were shining bright with liquid, which fell down its cheeks, falling onto the earth beneath it. Its lips were pulled down in a frown, opening slightly from time to time as Shouta watched, accompanied by the sound of the tiny mortal sucking in mouthfuls of air, like it couldn’t quite catch its breath.
Strange.
Shouta took a lazy but tentative step into the glade, his steps making no noise as he moved. The beasts sense his presence first, lifting their heads to look over at the newcomer before realising who entered, their heads bowed slightly.
The tiny mortal notices the change in the beasts and turns to look around before he settles on the figure of Shouta, its eyes wide with a strange awe. The liquid in its eyes seems to halt for a second before a small smile and a gasp leave the tiny mortal.
“Hello sir!” The tiny mortal pushes itself to its feet, waving his hand.
Shouta huffed. He didn’t need to greet this tiny mortal, this intruder. He was here for one reason and one reason only. To get rid of this curse that has been placed upon him. To rid his realm of the tiny mortal so that he may sleep for more centuries.
Although, there was a small part of Shouta that held an odd fascination with the tiny mortal. Centuries back when Shouta was a new god and deigned his followers with his presence, most cowered in fear at his look.
Shouta had changed a lot since he was a human, he can’t remember much from back then but he was no longer that person. His bottom half was always coated in black shadows, clinging to him like trousers that faded into his lower torso. His chest was always bare but the darken veins of power were prominent against his paler skin. His fingers were black, covered with the same shadows on his bottom half, fading into his skin on his palm.
Horns sprouted from his forehead, black as they can be. His long shaggy hair was always covering his eyes which blazed red most of the time as his body thrummed with his power. There used to be a time where he wore his weapon but that was a long time ago. He hadn’t fought in some time, no need for it.
People likened him more to a demon than a god. That was fine for Shouta, less people to have to be bothered by. He wasn’t like the other gods who loved the praise they got, who bathed in the offerings from the mortals.
Shouta was fine as he was now.
This tiny mortal stood in front of Shouta, no shiver of fear or drips of sweat from terror in sight. Its heart rate stayed steady, its breathing not even changing. The signs that Shouta had learned from his past when he appeared in front of other mortals.
Shouta tilted his head slightly, stepping even closer to the tiny mortal. The tiny mortal copied the head tilt, a smile still on his face.
In a split second, Shouta appeared in front of the small mortal, holding its chubby face between his hands, not hard enough to hurt, but firm enough that the mortal couldn’t move. Its skin was damp but warm in the cool air of the forest. Up close Shouta could see just how dirty this mortal was.
The mortal gasped, wriggling a little to try and get out of Shouta’s hold before giving up, staring up at the god. Shouta peered closer till there were nearly nose to nose, staring at the mortal, trying to pick up any sense of magic or the filthy blood that ran in a witches body.
They always smelt overly sweet. Like overly ripe fruit. Rotten to the core.
Instead of the overly sweet smell, Shouta just smelt the forest and the dirt that was caked on to the mortal. There was not even a drop of magic that seemed to course through the mortals body, which left Shouta at a loss of what to do.
What was going on? Had someone else entered his realm without him noticing? That would be practically impossible. Shouta couldn’t even imagine that.
“You’re very pretty sir,” the tiny mortal said, even though his lips were squished together slightly. Shouta bared his teeth slightly. He had never been called pretty before.
Scary, demonic, terrifying, ugly. They had all been rather common insults that were thrown his way.
Never pretty.
“What sort of creatures have you met that deems me pretty mortal?” Shouta’s voice was a little huskier than he remembered, but then again, he hasn't bothered to speak in centuries, he was out of practice.
“Creatures?” The tiny mortal echoed. “Like animals? I mean, you aren’t an animal.”
“No, I am something much worse.”
“Worse?” The tiny mortal had a thing for repeating back words which Shouta didn’t like. It was like it was undeveloped in its knowledge. “I don’t think so sir, you have such cute pets.”
The beasts had never been called cute. Their bodies were covered in a thick coat of fur, their legs huge and bulky. Their tails were hairless and pointed at the end with a stinger. Their fangs were large and were always on show, their eyes a haunting black. They were built for protection, made for destruction and killing.
They were not cute.
Even if Shouta did have an odd protectiveness over them. They were his creation obviously. He was their creator, so of course he had a responsibility over them, to make sure they were looked after. He gave them this whole forest to live in, he let them hunt other prey till their heart's content.
They were not cute .
“You are very wrong mortal,” Shouta replied, still holding the mortal's face in his hand, his elongated nails starting to leave a little red mark. “What are you doing here?”
It seemed like the question that should be asked. Shouta needed to rid himself of this tiny mortal. He was not about to be sucked into a conversation of debating his skewed version of pretty or cute. Even though the tiny mortal had very interesting views on the subject.
“I don’t know,” the tiny mortal seemed to suddenly turn a different colour as its eyes started to leak. It finally clicked that this mortal was crying, the saltiness of the tears permeated the air. Shouta had never actually seen a mortal cry up close before. “Mummy just left me at the park and told me to go exploring!”
Exploring? Left him? This tiny mortal didn’t speak like a grown mortal, maybe it was an offspring, he hadn’t actually met any as his followers always tended to be older. But if this tiny mortal was offspring, then it would be the mare’s responsibility to collect it.
“Where is your mare?” Shouta asked.
“I don’t know! Mummy left!” The tiny mortal let out a horrific wail, the tears streaming down its face and onto the hand that Shouta was holding it with. The tears were oddly warm and the sensation was uncomfortable.
Left? That didn’t seem right to Shouta. He may be out of touch with mortal relations but even back when he was present in their realm he was sure that offspring were always near their mare, never far from sight.
If the offspring was this dirty, had he been abandoned? Was the offspring a runt? Is that why? It was rather small, the mortal was dwarfed compared to Shouta’s looming size, his hand was bigger than the mortal's face.
Tiny and fragile.
This mortal was too weak to be without its mare and they had left it.
But that didn’t explain as to why it had come to his realm. It didn’t explain how it had ventured through the boundaries and ended up here. Shouta wanted to growl in frustration but a part of him didn’t want to make the offspring wail even more. It was becoming loud and obnoxious.
“Hush,” Shouta brought his other hand up, wiping away the tear with a clawed finger, humming deep in his chest as the mortal suddenly quietened down at the movement. The tears still streamed down its face but they were slowing. “How did you get here?”
There was a pause as the child seemed to inhale a few breaths, its whole body shuddering before it let out a long breath, its whole body relaxing. The wailing had thankfully stopped, the hushed calm returning to the forest.
The beasts that had been curled around the mortal were now standing at attention, watching the two of them with their black eyes, waiting for something to happen, it was as if they were watching Shouta and his interaction.
Had they betrayed their creator and bonded to this tiny mortal?
Interesting.
“I found a temple,” the tiny human mumbled. “It was dirty and broken but mummy always said I should pray, so I did.”
Shouta felt the pieces fall into place. How far had this mortal walked during its explorations that it had found a forgotten temple of his? The matter was almost laughable now. Fate had finally found its own comedic karma in making Shouta a god, only to realise he had no real passion for it.
“What did you pray for, little mortal?” Shouta asked. “Word for word.”
“I prayed for a safe place, where I would find someone to help me.”
There was no safer place than Shouta’s realm, not many things could get through his barriers. Although Shouta may seem bitter towards mortals and the realms in general, he always had a small soft spot for strays.
For things unloved and forgotten.
Things so similar to him.
There was a loud rumble throughout the clearing and for a moment Shouta thought the beasts had made the sound, but they were standing still, eyes still watching the two of them. Shouta looked around till a small noise that Shouta first heard when he saw the tiny mortal filled the air.
“That was my tummy sir,” the tiny mortal made the noise again. “I am hungry.”
Hunger. What a curious sentiment for mortals. Gods never wanted for nothing. They were self-sufficient beings, immortality keeping their vitality stable. Food and other delicacies were still fun to taste and indulge in, but pointless in the long run.
“Come tiny mortal,” Shouta spoke before he even thought, an odd occurrence. But it seemed that his mind had been already made up. This tiny mortal was his now. With no mare wanting him, he was to die in the wilds of the mortal realm, a fact that Shouta did not like.
Why not let him stay in the realm forgotten and unloved but most except the very creatures that live there?
Shouta finally let the tiny mortal go, standing up to his full height, towering over the mortal in almost a comedic way. Shouta turned and started to walk when he felt something touch his hand.
The instinct was a surge of a power that crackled in the air around them. The life filled noise occurred again as Shouta looked down at the mortal holding on to Shouta’s fingers.
“That tickled sir!”
Shouta stared down, letting the mortal hold his hand, dimming the power till it was just a silent throbbing. The mortal looked up with wide eyes, its mouth slightly agape.
“Do it again?”
Shouta felt the compelling need to do it again. He let the power thrum through his body, the familiar buzz comforting as the air crackled once again, the noise escaping from the tiny mortal. Shouta turned down the power as the tiny mortal started to squirm more, the noise becoming even more high pitched, still full of light and life.
“What is that noise that you make?” Shouta was curious. The sound was so foreign yet oddly delightful, especially coming from the tiny mortal. It almost made the darkness of the realm brighter.
“The noise?”
“Yes, the noise you made when my power touched you.”
“It’s laughter sir!” The tiny mortal must’ve thought the question as odd as it dissolved into laughter. “You laugh when something is funny!”
Funny.
Had Shouta been so out of tune that he had forgotten humour? Flashes of past centuries of his younger self laughing with his other immortals, a brightness in him that he hadn’t seen in a long time.
But Shouta’s laugh had never sounded like the tiny mortals, like life itself. It was carefree and not weighed down with anything that most mortals seemed troubled with. This mortal seemed untouched by whatever blight the mortals who prayed to him used to be plagued with.
“You’re quite funny sir,” the tiny human commented as they started walking again at a slow pace, as the small legs could not keep up with the large strides of Shouta.
Shouta had not been labelled as funny before. This mortal had called him pretty and funny, words that had never been used for Shouta. He was sure that no one had even thought to use them even in the vicinity of his presence.
It was still a fascination that the mortal wasn’t even slightly scared of Shouta. He was sure that mortals used to tell stories of creatures that may have resembled him to scare their offspring, did they still do that?
The beasts had decided to follow the two of them as they meandered through the forest, towards the temple. The two had fallen into a comfortable silence, apart from the odd rumble coming from the mortal which Shouta was starting to find rather endearing.
Mortal’s were such odd creatures.
As soon as the temple loomed up in front of them, the tiny mortal let out a gasp, staring with those wide jewelled eyes. Raising a finger to the temple, it turns to look up at Shouta. “Is this your home?”
Shouta nods, leading them closer.
It was a rather marvellous creation on Shouta's behalf. The temple itself was like any other temple found in the mortal realm, a single structure, although this one was made out of the grey marble. There were large pillars outside, holding up the roof that overlapped the building, sheltering the wooden floorboards from the weather. There were benches that were cushioned lining the front with potted plants. There were a few beasts lazing around, although they stood up at the arrival of Shouta and the mortal.
There wasn’t a door but rather an archway that led into the main room where Shouta slept. He had gotten rid of his throne a long time ago, replacing it with a large chaise that he much preferred to lounge on. The pillars continued inside with black silks draped between them. It was empty apart from that.
There were a few other archways, one led down to the storage rooms below, the other to the training rooms with weapons. The thought of getting the tiny mortal training with weapons sent a thrill through Shouta, it had been a long time since he had even stepped foot in the room.
He would have to bulk up the tiny mortal first. Too fragile, it would break too easily.
Shouta directed the young mortal to the chaise, realising that it was much too tall for the mortal to even clamber up on to. With a heavy sigh, he bent down and lifted the child with ease. Much too light. Plonking the child down, forgetting that he had to be a little gentler, Shouta stood back up.
He held out his hand, like he did when he used to try and train the beasts. “Stay.”
Shouta melded into the shadows before popping out into one of the store rooms that held the fruit and other offerings. He perused the selection, unsure of what tiny mortals need to grow strong. He grabbed a gold tray, picking out a few pieces of fruit. He couldn't remember exactly what they were but they looked edible and smelled far too sweet for his liking. He grabbed a few bits of what looked like dried meat, placing them on the tray, nodding in satisfaction.
This would be a good meal for his new tiny mortal.
Shouta was about to leave when he spotted a pitcher empty of its contents. His tiny mortal would need a drink too, his ambrosia wouldn’t suit his mortal. Yet.
Maybe in the future, when it was bigger, stronger.
He slipped back into the shadows, entering the room that he left his mortal in. His tiny mortal hadn’t even realised his return by the fact that he was exploring the chaise. Shouta was curious as he watched the mortal grab the silk covers, wrapping them around itself, a content sigh leaving it.
The beasts hadn’t entered the room, knowing better than to disrespect their creator, but the three that were with his tiny mortal were sitting, their claws mere centimetres away from the threshold. They looked like they wanted nothing more than to come in and sit closer to the mortal.
Silly bonds.
“Eat my tiny mortal,” Shouta stepped forward, placing the tray and the empty pitcher down, waving his hand as the fresh water filled the pitcher. The mortal had that wide eyed look again before breaking into a smile, grabbing a piece of the dried meat off the tray, chewing it.
“I’m not called mortal,” the mortal exclaimed through the chewing of the meat. “I’m Izuku.”
Izuku.
It was a decent enough name.
“Then I shall call you Izuku,” Shouta replied, standing over his Izuku as it ate.
Izuku looked up, pausing on his second piece of dried meat, his eyebrows furrowed together. It looked like it was expecting something from Shouta. Had Shouta forgotten something? It wasn’t his fault, he hadn’t dealt with mortal matters in a long time.
Why was he suddenly fretting like a mare would over its offspring?
Although the thought hit him hard, Shouta had already reached out for the pitcher, about to offer the mortal, no, Izuku a drink when it spoke.
“Are you not going to tell me your name?”
Name.
His Izuku wanted to know his name.
The situation was laughable. Shouta’s name used to be revered among his followers, whispered in prayers and on dying mortals' lips as they asked for a blessing. It was a sacred name among his temples.
It was a name that had long been forgotten. No one had even whispered his name in centuries.
“Shouta. You may call me Shouta.”
There was almost a pulse in the air as Shouta spoke his name. They always said names had power, that they held immeasurable amounts. His Izuku mouthed the word, feeling out the syllables with his tongue before he smiled.
“Shouta.”
There was a deep and resonating rumble within Shouta’s soul. Like something had lit the flame once more, deep deep within him. It was like life was suddenly breathed into him. It had been so long that Shouta had forgotten what it felt like to be remembered, for someone to even utter his name.
Shouta felt strange, like he was almost relieved that this tiny mortal, Izuku, was the one to say it.
“Shouta.” Izuku giggled as it said the name, biting into the fruit, the juices dripping down its chin and on to the silk coverings and its own rags.
He had forgotten about the rags, they were filthy and certainly not something his new mortal should wear. He was sure there were clothes down in the storage rooms, something he could make fit the tiny body of Izuku.
Although, the mortal was filthy. It would need a wash. They had the river that ran through the forest but it belonged to the beasts of the forest and Shouta didn’t feel like trekking out to it. Izuku’s little legs were far too weak and short to make that distance at the moment.
He would have to make a body of water by the temple. Shouta guessed it could be worse.
“Shouta,” Izuku called out for Shouta’s attention. Shouta switched his gaze to Izuku. There was a large wet patch on the silk and on its rags from the juice from the platter, which, much to the new feeling of delight of Shouta, made the corners of his lips turn up. “Who are you?”
Shouta pondered the answer. He wasn’t known anymore, the mortal didn’t need to know who he really was. No one needed to remember, not even Shouta fully remembered, he had spent far too long in his realm to even think about being a god to the people again.
Being Shouta to Izuku was enough, which was something Shouta didn’t realise he felt. He didn’t long for sleep like he did before, he didn’t long for quiet. Not now that he heard the joyful life in Izuku’s laugh, the way he gazed at his offerings and ate them with gusto. The way the tiny mortal viewed Shouta and his realm as pretty. As funny.
“I am just Shouta.”
Izuku let out a small hum as its small face scrunched up. Shouta almost let out a huff of amusement as he could almost see how hard the tiny mortal was thinking. It wasn’t long before Izuku started nodding.
“Okay,” Izuku looked over at Shouta, narrowing its eyes slightly. “But you have magic. Can you show me some more?”
Shouta was always using magic. His very essence fuelled this realm, it was his to change as he deemed fit. The shadows he melded into were part of him. He could travel wherever he wanted to in his realm. He could do the same in most realms. But it was always strongest in his home.
No one had ever asked him to show off his powers before. They asked him to lend them his power, to grant things, to bless them. But to never show off what he wanted. All of that was pittance compared to the vast well that was his magic inside him.
Shouta strode forward, perching himself next to the almost vibrating Izuku. Shouta held out his large hand, watching for any signs the tiny mortal next to him was scared or terrified. Instead, Izuku grinned wide, eyes watching Shouta’s hand like if Izuku blinked, it would miss it.
Dipping into the vast well, Shouta brought out a sliver of his power, dark ribbons of shadows suddenly swirling on his hand. They danced around itself, looping and swirling before taking the shape of various creatures within the forest. The creatures moved on his hand until Shouta gently blew on the shadows, causing them to start to pulsate with a glowing light, growing bigger as they jumped off Shouta's hand, landing on the floor.
Shouta waved his hand as the shadows multiplied, the creatures all running around, disappearing into the walls only to reappear elsewhere in the main room of the temple. Izuku jumped up to its legs as one of the shadow creatures blew past them both, a loud burst of laughter coming out from Izuku.
Shouta watched in fascination as Izuku bounced on the chaise before turning to Shouta, pointing at the floor. “Down please!”
He gently placed Izuku down on its feet, watching as the tiny mortal suddenly took off, its feet slapping on the wooden floors as it joined in with the throes of shadow creatures. Shouta whistled out a low tune as the shadow creatures turn and start to chase Izuku, nipping with no real aim to hurt.
Izuku was in splits of laughter as it ran around the room, trying to catch the shadow creatures only for them to disappear just as it was about to catch one. Shouta watched, observing. The tiny mortal may be small but it was fast, nimble. Shouta smiled to himself, there was promise in the mortal yet.
The shadow creatures soon melted into the surrounding shadows, leaving Izuku breathing heavily in the middle of the room. Shouta stood up, walking over to the tiny human, picking it up under the arms.
Shouta had never actually carried a mortal before and was unsure how to proceed. Izuku seemed happy enough with this.
Shouta just held Izuku at arms length, as he took the mortal back out of the temple and into the back area, behind the temple. It was just more forest back here but that would soon change. Shouta placed the mortal on the ground, holding out his hand again. “Stay. Watch.”
Izuku nodded.
Shouta stepped forward, not wanting to endanger Izuku as he did this. Shouta breathed in deeply and drew on his power. The area around them dimmed as the sky grew darker, the shadows grew larger.
Shouta moved his hands, swiping across an area of trees. The shadows that had amassed moved with predator speed, consuming the trees in the blink of an eye, leaving just an empty space. Shouta dug his hands into the air and the shadows followed suit into the ground.
There was now a large hole, certainly big enough. Maybe a little too big but Shouta was never one to do things half assed. He also couldn’t be bothered to fix it.
He brought the shadows of the hole, covering it completely. He waited for a second before pushing down on the air in front of him. The shadows dissipated with a loud crackling sound. What was left was a large body over water, rippling in the breeze.
Shouta nodded his head slightly, admiring his work. It had been a while since he had changed such a large area of his realm. It was a little taxing but Shouta shrugged it off, turning back to his Izuku.
Izuku stood there with stars in its eyes, twinkling with a mixture of joy and awe. “That was so cool!”
Shouta felt a bubble of pride. He quickly squashed it, but not quick enough to feel the warmth that came with it.
“Time to bathe. Strip. I have new rags for you,” Shouta waved a hand and the rags he had spotted in the storage earlier appeared along with some silks to dry with. Shouta used to rather enjoy the relaxing process of baths, although he hadn’t had one in a little while.
Izuku shyly took its rags off, leaving them in a dirty heap before racing towards the water. The water was cold and Izuku let out a loud yelp but continued anyway, until it stood with the water up to the middle of its chest.
Shouta would burn those dirty rags later.
There was another issue that he realised he hadn’t remedied yet. He didn’t even know the gender of his Izuku. Gender was a fluid thing within immortality and gods, people were who they wanted to be but Shouta had forgotten that humans tend to stick to specific genders.
“Izuku,” Shouta called out, stopping the mortal from splashing in the water, its hair already wet and sticking to its forehead. “Are you male or female?”
“Male! Our neighbour used to call me a good boy and give me sweeties!”
Shouta nodded. Male. He could work with that. He was male himself, he at least knew how they functioned.
“How old are you, Izuku?”
Shouta watched as Izuku brought up his chubby little hand, counting on his fingers before holding up four. “This many! What about you?”
“I don’t have enough fingers,” Shouta admitted, making the tiny male gasp, covering his mouth with his hands.
“You’re really old!”
Shouta wanted to feel offended, he would’ve smited any other mortal who dared make a comment so blasphemous but Izuku said it with such childish innocence that Shouta couldn’t help but let it go.
The tiny male wasn’t lying.
Shouta had forgotten how old he was at this point.
The bath continued, the three beasts joining them eventually, settling at the side of the body of water, resting their heads on their paws as they watched Izuku bath and play around in the water. Izuku had even pestered Shouta into making some shadow creatures that leapt out of the water and played with Izuku.
Soon enough the young male began yawning and shivering, the colder air settling in around them. Shouta called out to Izuku who wadded back through the water, letting Shouta wrap him in the silks, drying off the small pale body.
With the filth gone, Shouta could finally see what his Izuku looked like. His hair was a vibrant green, almost matching the colour of the leaves within the forest. His eyes were large and were only a couple of shades lighter than his hair. They looked at the realm with such awe that made Shouta smile to himself. The male mortal had freckles spread across his nose and cheeks, which were rosy with the cold. He still held his baby fat, which made his face round and squishy.
Shouta thought that Izuku was certainly one of the most adorable creatures in the realm.
The new clothes were much nicer on Izuku, even if they didn’t fit well. It was just a tunic wrapped with a fabric belt, the pants hadn’t fit, much too large.
Izuku rubbed his eyes, yawning again. He slowly blinked his eyes a few times, trying to keep them open, but was failing. He held his arms up and Shouta quickly gathered what the male wanted. He bent down and picked him up under the arms again, carrying him into the temple once again, laying him down on the chaise.
The silks had been replaced and Shouta grabbed them, bringing them up to cover Izuku, who grabbed them in his tiny fists, cuddling them into his chest, heaving a tired sigh. Shouta sat next to him, legs out straight.
He watched as the tiny male wiggled on the chaise until he snuggled up against Shouta’s legs, relaxing. Shouta shifted slightly, sighing as he beckoned to the three beasts that were sitting once again by the archway.
They instantly stalked in aiming straight for them until Shouta waved his hand to the corner at the end of the chaise. The animals paused and chuffed before following his orders. They settled down, watching Izuku.
“Please don’t go,” Izuku whined out, making Shouta look down again. The young male was looking up with wide eyes, a worried look etched into his face. “Please don’t leave me alone.”
Shouta shook his head, waving his hand at the ceiling as suddenly, rather than the grey marble, the ceiling was replaced by an endless night sky, stars blinking, shooting across the sky. Izuku let out a small coo as he looked up, his tired eyes darting all over the stars.
Shouta patted the soft curls of his Izuku.
“Sleep tiny mortal,” Shouta whispered as Izuku slowly shut his eyes. “Sleep. Tomorrow begins anew.”