A Frozen Flame (Shinobu x Male Reader)

What Are You?

3rd Person POV

Yoshiwara Entertainment District, Edo Era

As the citizens clamor their way through the streets of the city, there seemed to be something very wrong with the city... Something was hiding in the shadows, however, it seemed as though this strange darkness was coming to the light...

In one of the many primary houses of Yoshiwara, a courtesan started walking through the halls, everyone else in the halls and rooms cleared the way for her, heading through the halls, the courtesan very visibly annoyed by something, though what she was annoyed by was unknown...

At the same time, over in another room, another courtesan was busy putting on their makeup finishing things off by applying some of her lipstick with her brush. The woman then proceeded to close an envelope with her lips, leaving a small red mark behind on the letter.

As she works to finish her letter, the courtesan from earlier suddenly bursts through the doors, seemingly annoyed by the woman in front of her.

Courtesan: (Slightly annoyed) You know, this all started when you got here. People are going missing. Do you know anything about this? What is it you've been doing on the side when you're not working!?

The shady woman in response turns her head to the courtesan, offering a small chuckle and a very shifty smirk. Seemingly out of frustration, the courtesan walks through the door, closing it behind her...

As soon as the door closed, a few short moments had passed, which soon opened once again. However, as the door opened, the mysterious woman slowly emerged from the room, walking away silently... Upon looking within the room... There wasn't a soul in sight. The courtesan who had originally barged in the room was completely gone without a trace...

Flashforward

Yoshiwara Tokyo, Taisho Era

As usual, the city was bustling during the daytime. Of course it wasn't nearly as popular and crowded as during the night, but regardless of that fact, there were still several hungry patrons willing to hand over their money for some service.

One man in particular seemed very interested in one of the houses as evident by one of the books he was looking through, a house where one of the boys was currently working at...

Perverted Man: (Looks through his book) Aha! This is it, the Ogimoto House. (Chuckles)

As the man is guided into the Ogimoto House, a quick look above in the upstairs rooms reveals a dark room covered from wall to wall in obi belts... Among the belts sat a beautiful young woman, tied and bound to the wall and floor. This woman had short black hair with the front of her hair being bright yellow. This woman was Makio, one of Tengen's three wives.

As Makio lays against the wall, the belt demon which held her captive repeated her question from before, throwing several letters down on the ground, wishing for an explanation.

Belt Demon: Now then, answer me... Who was it that you were writing all of these little letters to? What was your name...? Oh, I remember... It's Makio, isn't it?

Makio looks up and glares at the belt demon, refusing to answer the demon's questions about who she was writing to. Something which didn't bother the belt demon... As she had all the time in the world to get answers from her.

Belt Demon: Answer me at once, Makio...

Meanwhile, just downstairs, Inosuke and Soi Fon were both looking up the stairs where Makio was being held, having overheard a few workers talk about how she has supposedly been sick for a while.