The Fox Can Love (Tomoe x Reader)

Chapter 1: A Peaceful Life

DISCLAIMER: I do not own anything, Kamisama Kiss belongs to Julietta Suzuki. However this is my original story, so please do not copy or re-upload this story anywhere. Thank you so much! (Note: Yukiji does not exist in this. This story takes place in the PAST of Kamisama Kiss, in feudal Japan. This is before Tomoe becomes a familiar. It's somewhat based on the Kako-hen ovas or you might have read it in the manga.)

Key:

(Y/n)= your name

(F/c)= favorite color

(H/l)= hair length

(H/c)= hair color

(E/c)= eye color

(Y/a)= your animal (example: (Y/n) is a (Y/a) yokai)

(Y/n)'s P.O.V.

I sit, hidden upon a tree branch, gazing down at the human children who play with each other in the creek below. There are five of them, all happily splashing each other and laughing. I close my eyes and sigh as the wind blows through my (h/l) (h/c) hair and breathe in deeply. I don't know why I watch over the children as I do. My distrust of the humans runs deep, and yet, there is something about the children that softens my heart a little. Them, I can stand, I can make sure they're safe. They are not corrupt like their elders.

Then I hear a big splash and a small yelp. I open my eyes to see one of the little girls has fallen in the water and is struggling to get up from the rocks. The boys laugh at her.

"Stop acting like yokai! You're scaring her!" The other little girl yells at them.

At those words, disappointment floods through me. The humans feared and hated my kind. Could I blame them? Yokai were known to kill, loot, and burn down entire towns. Violence was second nature to them. But not to me. Long ago, that violence ruined my life. I have never been the same. And so, because the humans hate me unfairly for who I am, I can only hide my true form. A life hidden away.

The sun sets low in the sky and dusk approaches. The children notice, cheerfully skipping back to their homes. After they are gone, I leap down to the ground and walk to the river. I glance at my reflection, brushing my hand across the surface of the water. Through the ripples, my (e/c) eyes stare back at me, wide and uncertain.

~Time skip~

Heading in for the night, I perch up in my favorite tree right outside the village in the forest and wait for sleep to come. It wasn't exactly comfortable, but I'd gotten used to it over the years. I'd rather not deal with the nuisance of going back to the world over yonder to sleep. Eventually, I feel my eyes droop and I slowly drift off...

.

.

.

It was that day. The day that everything changed. I was in the yard of our home, sweeping the leaves, when my mother came out with a somber look on her face.

"Mama? What's wrong?" I asked. She did not reply, instead holding her side with sweat on her brow.

"Mama? Is your condition worsening again?"

She shook her head. "I'm fine, (Y/N),"

"You're clearly not. I can go get you some water or-"

"This is not the time, my dear girl," she says, her voice distraught.

I dropped the broom, rushing over to her. "W-what's going on?"

And then I heard it in the distance. The loud roar of villagers.

"(Y/N), you need to leave right now. They're coming for us!"

"What-what are you saying?! Why're they doing this? We didn't do anything!

My mom grabs me by the shoulders. "You think that matters to them?" she cries, "I don't know how, but they found out what we are. They won't hesitate to kill us, (Y/N),"

Shouts sounded in the distance and a flaming arrow flew down from the sky, landing in the yard. I screamed and jumped back as a circle of flames burst from it, scorching the grass.

I grabbed onto my mother, making to run, but she didn't budge. I looked at her in bewilderment. "What are you-"

"Leave me here, girl. I won't make it,"

Tears sprung into my eyes as my heart dropped. "Mama, come now. I can't leave you here," I said, desperately trying to drag her along with me.

But she stood stubborn. The sound of the villagers grew nearer.

"I can barely walk, (Y/n). Go! Go right now!"

"No! I won't leave you!!!"

"You must! I am too weak, I'll only slow you down. Please, go, before it's too late. Do it for me, (Y/n)."

When my trembling hands finally managed to ply themselves from her arm, I slowly backed away from her toward the forest in uncertainty. I heard a loud crash from the front of our house. The villagers must have kicked the door in..

"Go!"

"Mama!" I sobbed. We shared one last look before I turned and ran. I didn't stop running for hours. I ran until my feet bled and my eyes grew dry from crying out every tear left in me. When I stopped running, I felt numb. I sunk to the ground, shaking and out of breath. It was done. I couldn't save her. It was then that I realized I had forgotten to tell her the most important words of all..."I love you..." I whispered under my breath.

That day, a deep, dark bitterness started growing in my heart for the humans who had taken my mother from me. And a hatred for my cowardice grew with it. Could I ever forgive myself?

.

.

My eyes fly open. I gasp for breath, my heart pounding wildly. It had only been a dream, or rather, a memory of the worst day of my life. It still haunts me to this day. Aside from my current state, something isn't right. An orange haze thickens the air, the smell of smoke filling my lungs. I look over at the village and gasp in horror.

Thank you for reading! Pls vote and stay tuned <3