Of Sages and Oni

Chapter 7 - Carry On

Y/N POV:
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I was running as far as my feet would carry me. All I could think about was how Alhaitham, the one man that captivated my attention, had found someone else. Itto was pants-less right in front of him and I had just walked right in on whatever they were doing.

I came to a stop a good 15 minute run away from the camp. I panted and took a seat under the tree, trying to get my breath under control. As I calmed down though, the tears started to come. "Why did things have to be this way..."

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Alhaitham POV:

"Can you see him yet?"

"No. How far did he even go out in that short amount of time? That guy's crazy to go out this far by himself." I hummed in agreement with the Oni's statement.

"He would've probably ran in the direction from the camp with the least amount of trees in the way. If he was trying to be quick he'd need to take the least populated path to avoid many obstacles. So, I believe we're headed in the right direction." I looked up to see that Itto had occupied himself with a small butterfly. "Did you hear everything I just said?"

"Huh?" Itto's face looked disappointed as his little butterfly companion flew away.

"We need to keep moving this way. We're heading in the right direction."

"Oh! Right- Find Y/N." Itto ran ahead of me and I chased after him. We ran for quite a bit until he came to an abrupt started.

"Why did y-" The taller male put one of his fingers to my mouth and pointed over at one of the trees in the distance. There he was. Y/N was bunched up into a ball and it seems like they fell asleep. Upon closer inspection their eyes were still wet and their face a little red from crying.

"Poor little guy..." Itto looked down at Y/N.

I scooped his sleeping form up and cradled him close. To be fairly honest, this was the closest I'd ever been to him. Observing the rising and falling motion of his chest filled me with ease, however seeing his tear stained face brought me great concern. "Let's get him back to the camp."

"Right! Can I hold him for a little bit too though? It looks like funnn." Itto pouted a little.

"Fine. I'll trade off with you about halfway there." I started walking. The only got about a minute into walking when I felt a change around my chest. Looking down, Y/N was now nuzzled entirely into me. I felt my cheeks warm up.

"You alright, Leaf Man?"

"Oh... y-yeah!"

"It's not fall is it? Because your face is turning red."

"I swear to god you'd get along with my other acquaintance who makes terrible jokes." Speaking of which, it wouldn't be bad to invite Itto to the Akademiya. We've already learned so much about his home and he invited us here, so it would be only right to return the favor and let him catch a glimpse of our world.

Itto was now looking in my direction. "It's my turn."

"It's only been three minutes."

"And? I want to hold him now."

"He's comfortable, Itto. Please just wait a bit longer."

Itto whined, before he started to reach for the sleeping male in my arms. I turned away so that Y/N would not be disturbed. It was already too late though as I watched him open his eyes a tiny bit.

"Al..." They snuggled closer to me.

My cheeks flushed an even deeper shade of red. His voice just from waking up really tickled some of my nerves. "Y/N?"

Itto huffed and stood off to the side. He plopped down on the ground.

"Warmmm..."

I giggled, but internally I was panicking. I wouldn't let Y/N see though of course. I have to maintain somewhat of my normal and serious composure. "Are you comfortable?"

"Very." At this point, I noticed them looking around a little more and trying to get a baring of their surroundings. The moment I saw them panic, I finally came to a realization. It's very possible that they had a crush on me as well. Why else would they be blushing right now? Their cute e/c eyes squeezing shut as embarrassment fills their mind.

I kept a straight face and set Y/N down. "We found you in the woods and asleep."

"You're lucky we found you before someone else did." Itto chimed in.

"Oh! I'm so sorry about that...I must have gotten tired from my walk and taken a nap." He scratched the back of his head, grinning nervously.

I knew he was lying, but I let it slide as to not pry any further. "Well when we get back to the camp, you can sleep a bit more."

Y/N yawned. "Alright. Let's go then.." They looked like they could fall asleep again any second as they pushed forward. It seems I wasn't the only one who noticed this as I saw the Oni run up beside them.

"Y/N? Would you like me to carry you the rest of the way?"

"Sure!"

Much to my dismay, Itto scooped Y/N up and cradled them close to his chest. I felt a wave of jealousy rush over me as he got to hold the other as they fell asleep once more.

That should be me. Holding Y/N close. Being there for him. The one that he holds most dearly to his heart. I'd already been trying to push them away from Itto, but I feel like my efforts were futile. I shouldn't have let him accompany me to search for Y/N. I should have left him at the camp, and maybe, just maybe I could be holding him right now.

This was going to be a long walk back home.