Chapter Text
My father is a folklorist and my mother is a successfully internet personality. Their budget is three hundred thousand dollars.
Sorry, that’s a bit of a dated joke.
Let’s start again. My name is Tyson Yagami. I was born in the United States but moved to Japan recently due to my mother and father choosing to do so. My grandparents in Japan were getting on in years and needed a bit more help around the house. The place they lived was one of those big, old, traditional Japanese homes out in the boonies and ‘family pride’ and ‘history’ meant that they couldn’t just move out of the place.
Plus someone has to host the yearly family gathering and all that and the old house was big enough for that.
Point is, because my mom and dad are the ones most able to pick up and change our entire lives compared to the rest of mom’s siblings that means we’re the ones who have to do it despite literally living in America.
I mean, it’s not like we didn’t visit Japan regularly. I mentioned those family get togethers and all that, so I could always actually visit my counsins or something if I wanted to. Plus I was finishing school over the internet rather than have to go through the nightmare of doing my last year of school in some out of the way highschool in Japan or having to take a two hour train ride just to get educated.
Thanks internet, you made my mom wealthy and me not have to deal with public school .
As an aside, the old Himuro Manor is located in what was once known as the Mutsu Province of Japan! It’s an ancient and deeply important location to local legends and lore so my father was of course absolutely ecstatic to finally be living there and able to explore and study to his heart’s content. He’d been on the phone practically every week with a friend of his called Akiharu planning to meet up and co-author some new papers.
My father’s interest in ancient human sacrifice rituals and Professor Akiharu’s study of the ‘Beast God’ faith apparently had a lot of crossover. Which sounds weird at first but then makes sense if you think about it. I mean, they were probably worshiping a cave bear as a god and feeding it humans occasionally to keep it sated and not attacking their town or something, right?
I’m pretty sure there was a town that did that in Siberia or something, probably.
Point is, raised in America now I’m in the backwoods of Japan. If I don’t want to spend all day in the honestly spooky house I now live in I need to get on my bike and just… ride away to somewhere else. There’s a couple of small towns in biking distance of the manor so it’s not like it’s a problem for me. Plus it’s good exercise and the weather’s nice in this part of Japan in the summer.
I mean, when it’s not raining cats and dogs. Sometimes I go out of the house even when it is raining cats and dogs because you can only hear so many ominous whispers and see figures out of the corner of your eyes for so long before you need a break.
Now I’m not implying my house is haunted… I’m stating it. There are spooks in my home. We made a deal that they don’t mess with me when I’m doing school work. Well, it’s more like I asked them out loud not to and I stopped seeing and hearing stuff when I was working on my classwork so at least the spookums respect my need for an education which is nice.
I try not to be rude to them since they were technically living in that house before I was probably, but a guy can only take so much before he needs a break.
All of this is me trying to explain why I was where I was leading up to the events I’m about to describe, you see.
S o I’ve biked on over to a nice little town that I’ve been to a few times, greeted all the ojii-sans and obaa-sans and generally been having a good time. Some of them think I’m a bit odd but all of them seem to really respect my family and the fact that we came over all the way from America to take care of my grandparents when the other ones who still live in Japan couldn’t.
Sometimes they give me free vegetables to take home which is always nice cause it means that mom’s gonna make fresh gumbo, hells yeah.
So I was there, minding my own business and getting ice cream from this little local store that sells various snacks and tasty treats from this tiny stall. It’s the sorta place that locals gather to get something to have along with the lunch they brought from home and then eat out at the picnic tables while chatting about the weather and crops and stuff.
You know, that kinda place.
Point is, I was there minding my own business getting ice cream when I noticed there was this little girl watching. She was wearing this huge, purple, oversized hoodie and a floppy beanie hat that looks kinda like cat ears. It seemed like she was hungry but glancing into this ridiculously cute gree purse that looked like a monster had her making a grumpy expression.
I figured she probably didn’t have enough money for ice cream and being flush with cash at the moment, I called out to her and asked if she wanted ice cream. She seemed unsure and I said it was my treat and after a moment she accepted and got herself some bright, red abomination that was apparently sweet potato flavor.
So that lead to me sitting on a bench, eating ice cream while this little girl decided I was apparently cool and sitting at the same table with me. She got to talking about stuff and I nodded and listened. She was smart, didn’t tell me personal information just used me as a sounding board to talk about various and sundry things she’s been thinking about. Scary stories, spooky legends, the Kemonogami, seven mysteries at her school…
Seems she was really into the occult.
Anyway, then she asked me who I was.
“Miu! Get away from her!” Someone else yelled as I opened my mouth.
And then I got sucker punched by a punk with a bad dyejob and landed on my own spilled ice-cream. I couldn’t just let that go of course, as spilling a man’s ice cream is an entirely valid reason to start a fist fight.
Plus, you know, he punched me.
So I kicked him in the gut, got up on my feet and then we fuckin’ brawled .
Not gonna lie, he had a fucking hell of a punch for someone who I had damn near twenty centimeters on. Seriously, he worked my ribs like a fucking pro every chance he had. Unfortunately for him I had a reach advantage on him and a passion for boxing so it was only a matter of time before I rang his bell aaaand-
“That’s when you showed up officer.” I explain to the concerned police man currently interviewing me while I sit at the table with the handcuffs on my wrists. A foreign looking man getting accused of being a kidnapper/pedophile/whatever he was thinking I was apparently was a cause for concern.
Then again, the punk got cuffed too so maybe it was just because we got into a fist fight. Apparently the officer had literally been on his way for lunch when he saw the kerfuffle in the parking lot. I feel kinda bad for the guy now since he’s lunch break is being wasted on two teenagers brawling for what sounds like some kinda misunderstanding.
I suppose some people would be angrier about getting punched out of nowhere but the kid looks like he really was just scared for his sister. He shouldn’t go around instantly punching people on assumption, but his heart is at least in a decent place.
I’m left thinking about that as I consider my options while the officer interviews that boy and girl next. The boy’s aggressive, snappish, but has a look in his eye that reminds me of a cornered animal. He’s scared, desperately thinking he’s got to protect something and doesn’t have any other options.
So when the cop comes back and takes my cuffs off and explains the situation to me, I know what to say. Apparently I’m in no trouble though I may have to talk to the police again depending on how things progress from here, but there’s a question of what to do with the boy considering he did throw the first punch and attack me.
“Well, it seems like it was just a misunderstanding on his part.” I rub my jaw at the phantom memory of that punch. “He was just trying to find his sister, and once he saw me he took things outta context and assumed the worst. Yeah, he shouldn’t have punched me but it’s not like I don’t get wanting to protect your little sister. So… I guess I don’t want to press charges? I mean, as long as he apologizes then I’m fine with him I guess.”
The officer seems to be… relieved, in a sort of professional sense. He gives me a polite smile that meets his eyes as he thanks me for my cooperation and then goes to speak to the boy and his sister again. The boy looks like he’s about to spit nails before his sister yells at him, calling him a dumbie and to just ‘make up’.
That gets him to quiet down and apparently accept whatever the police officer had to say and gets the cuffs off of him as well.
The officer steps back from the situation, speaking with the stall owner as us three kids sorta of awkwardly orbit towards each other. Eventually I just bite the bullet and decide to break the ice.
“You’ve got a hell of a right hook, man.” I compliment the Dye-job Punk on the most notable thing about him aside from being a dye-job punk.
“I-what-?” That surprises him, though it might be my attempts to be friendly despite his assault. “Whatever. Look, I’m ‘sorry’ that I punched you… but stay away from Miu! I don’t know-”
“Onii-chan, stop iiit!” Miu swats him with her sleeves, “He didn’t do anything wrong! It was you who came running in and messed everything up like always!”
“I didn’t-Miu, you left the house and didn’t tell anyone! Of course I was going to think the worst! I was just trying to keep you safe!” Dye-Job defends himself from his sister’s furious and pointed accusations as she swats him with a sleeve with each one she levels.
“You two are really good siblings, huh?” I speak up after a few more moments of their quibbling, drawing their attention back to me before I uncross my arms and hold a hand out to the Dyejob. “Tyson Yagami… or rather, Yagami Tyson.”
He looks at my hand like it’s some kind of offensive object before looking back to me.
“It’s my name. You were worried because your sister was taking candy from a stranger, yeah? I can’t blame you there, so I’m introducing myself so I’m not a stranger anymore.” This guy’s the first person even close to my age that I’ve seen out here. It’d be a shame to not at least catch his name.
“… man, what is with you?” Dye-Job gives me a confused look like he’s got no idea how to handle the fact that I’m just chatting with him. What, you think that I’m going to hold a grudge just because you punched me? Surprise, that’s basically just saying hello in Indiana!
“I’m Shinonome Miu, and this is stupid brother Kaito!” The small child introduces herself and the Dye-Job at the same time. “Thanks for buying me ice-cream, and I’m sorry my brother spilled yours.”
I shake her hand with a smile, “You’re welcome and that’s not your job to apologize for, in that order.”
“… what the hell, Miu!? He’s-” Kaito’s dander starts to get up before he gets flapped by Miu’s sleeves again. “Oi, cut that out!”
“Apologize! You have to, remember! You told Officer Oda you would!” Miu glares at her brother, crossing her arms and putting on the most ferocious pout she’s capable of.
Patiently, I keep my hand out waiting for that handshake.
Kaito goes through the five stages of grief, except in his case they’re just all anger but more so, before finally grabbing my hand and squeezing as hard as he can during the shake to try and make me regret being born. Jokes on him, I already do that on the regular.
“Sorry for spilling your ice cream.” Kaito grits out as he tries to grind my knuckles against each other. He doesn’t apologize for punching me rather pointedly, but that’s fine because I was more upset about the ice cream.
“Apology accepted, and it’s nice to meet you Kaito-san!” I decide that I’m going to befriend him now entirely out of petty spite. Sorry buddy, but we’re in a ninety thousand word slow burn enemies to friends tagged story now.
“Don’t act so familiar!” Kaito pulls his hand out of the handshake despite the fact that he was the one trying to crush my hand. Rude, crude, a bad attitude.
“Onii-chan, don’t be so rude! Say, Yagami-san, you’re not from around here are you? I’ve never seen you before, and you look pretty foreign.” Miu chides her brother while also displaying a blatant interest in whatever he’s not approving of.
Oh yeah, I’m definitely befriending him now. If I don’t there’s a non-zero chance she’s going to try and hang out with me to spite him and he’ll probably murder me in my sleep or something, and then because Himuro Mansion is haunted I’ll come back as a ghost and haunt him and I’m not looking to get tagged with ‘Major Character Death’, thanks.
“It’s true! I moved here a couple of weeks ago! Gramps and Grannie are both getting up there in age and need help around the house, and since Mom and Dad’s jobs are ones they can work just about anywhere we’re the ones who moved in to help.” I explain to Miu as her brother sulks nearby to also absorb the information.
“So… are you an American?” She asks, rapt with awe and attention as she makes her guess as to my nationality. It was a pretty good one admittedly, a safe one too given that there’s a pretty large number of Japanese descended Americans.
“By birth, yeah. Mom was born in Japan and moved to the US as a kid. My dad’s family moved from Japan to the US in like 1910 or so.” Always happy to recite my family history and bloodline at the opportunity! It’s the most American thing you can do, you know. “Dad’s a Yagami, mom’s a Himuro-”
“The Himuro!?” Miu’s eyes are sparkling as she all but bounces in place. “The one’s with the ancient mansion that the old people tell all the little kids to stay away from in the same breath as the Kemonogami Shrine!?”
Oh yeah, she’s want the D(ark Occult Secrets).
“Yeah?” I glance towards her brother who despite his intense, simmering dislike towards me is giving me an almost pitying look.
Aw fuck, I’ve stepped in it ain’t I?
Miu starts reciting a surprising laundry list of what sounds like myths, urban legends, and fucking unsolved cases relating to the family land I’m not living on. She’s talking about missing people and bodies covered in mysterious conditions and circumstances like most girls her age talk about ponies.
Aren’t girls supposed to get into this true crime stuff when they’re in college or something? Like the spooky stories makes sense but she’s talking about stuff like bodies found pulled apart as if by some great force like it’s no big deal.
“Yeah I’ve heard about some of that, gimme a bit though. I’m gonna get another ice cream. Hey, Kaito-san, what do you want?” I ask onii-chan what he wants.
The look I get would do wonders for keeping the ice cream frozen in this summer heat. “I don’t want any of your charity . Miu, come on we’re going-”
“Kaito! First you start a fight, now you won’t accept a gift!? If you keep this up, you really will end up in trouble with Officer Oda you know!” Miu flaps at her brother, flailing her arms.
“… Ugh, fine! Just get me vanilla, whatever!” Kaito sulks, surrendering to his sister’s furious concerns like a total pushover and softie. Oh yeah, it’s all coming together. He’s the overbearing worrywart of a brother and she’s the little sister who’s acting out to try and find herself and get her own space.
So I go and get him a vanilla soft serve and myself a chocolate. The owner tries to give me my ice cream for free, but I insist on paying this time so he ends up giving me a third ice cream of the same flavor that Miu had ordered for herself. Outplayed at politeness judo I’ve no choice but to retreat and lick my wounds (ice cream) in peace.
Frozen treats delivered, Kaito gives Miu and her second ice cream a look for a moment before he lets out a sight. “Fine, but only if you eat all of your vegetables tonight, okay? I don’t want to hear any complaints!”
“Yay! Thanks Kaito! You’re not the worst onii-chan after all~!” She declares him the ‘not worst’ before savoring her ice cream again. Which means that she’s at least not telling me about the sheer number of mysterious dead bodies found on the mountain I live on now.
Which leaves me and Kaito to carry on that conversation instead!
“… So you ever try out boxing?” I ask the dye blonde who is angrily eating his vanilla cone like it’s a personal affront to him.
“What? Uh, no.” He gives me a side-eyed glance and narrows his eyes in suspicion for some fucking reason. Come on man, I didn’t even say anything suspicious.
“You should try it out! You’ve got the instincts for it, not to mention the punch force. I boxed back in the US. Even if you’re not competing the exercise that goes into getting good at boxing is great for you. Plus, laying into the punching bag’s great for stress.” Maybe there’ll be a school team where he goes or something? Japan loves school clubs, right?
“I’ll… keep that in mind, I guess.” Kaito’s suspicion of me seems to be slowly lowering on account of me not being a shitty human being. Instead he questions my boxing cred by asking a question. “Were you any good?”
“Pretty good, yeah. I did well at exhibitions and tournaments as an amateur, though I wasn’t undefeated or anything like that. Most of the people who got wins on me were older and bigger though, usually cutting their weight to get into a lower weight class. You see that sometimes.” I explain to Kaito boxing drama and he nods, just a bit. “Some guys will do whatever it takes to get an advantage, even if it means starving or dehydrating themselves to make weight.”
“Sounds pretty pathetic.” Kaito huffs at the thought of such blatant chicanery. “… Still, boxing huh? Wasn’t there some anime or something-?”
“Hajime!” Declares Miu, bringing her arm down in a chopping motion as Kaito’s eyes light up in recognition.
“Right, that one! That show was pretty cool, I guess I just never thought about the boxing club.” Kaito seems to have relaxed a bit, though that might just be his intrigue at a social acceptable channel for his violent urges.
“You should probably have one, yeah? It was tough finding a junior boxing club in some parts of the USA, but boxing’s real popular in Japan isn’t it?” It’s also my sport of choice, in case it wasn’t obvious. There’s nothing like getting into the ring and really getting to know someone. Sure, some boxers are assholes but a lot of the people he’d met in the ring were people he celebrated with after the fights were over.
“I guess.” Kaito shrugs, somehow seeming more uncomfortable now that he’s not hostile to me than he did when he had all that aggression backing him up.
“So, tell me about Himuro Mansion! I’ve been able to detect a powerful spiritual force from that direction since we arrived! Have you seen anything strange or unusual~?” Miu cuts into the conversation, having finished her sweet potato ice cream and decide it is time for her to be the center of attention again.
“Oh yeah, it’s super haunted.” I agree with Miu without even a moments hesitation. “Like the sheer amount of spooky stuff happening is genuinely ridiculous.”
Miu draws in a long, exaggerated breath in deep and childish glee. “No wa- I mean, of course! I already sensed it with my spiritual powers ! So like what kinda stuff?”
“Honestly? Mostly the sorta passively spooky things. Like, they’re making me aware of their presence but I’m not getting attacked or anything like that. Stuff gets moved, you see and hear things in the next room over when you know that no one is there.” I explain with a wave of my hand like it’s no big deal. “Probably freakiest thing that happened so far was that I heard someone playing the koto in the old building of the house, and when I went to check it out I could see a person silhouetted by a candle or something… but when I opened the door there wasn’t any light and the music stopped the second I pulled the door.”
Miu is waiting for baited breath for what comes next, and Kaito’s just giving me a look like he doesn’t believe me.
“So… I apologized for interrupting and stepped back to close the door… and it got slammed shut in my face.” I shrug. “Like I said, it’s not like I’m waking up to them floating outside my window, demanding I ‘return the slab’.”
I make sure to say that last part in a spooky voice.
“I wanna see!” Miu both states and demands, throwing her arms up in excitement. “I want to see the ghosts for myself!”
“Miu, stop that! And you-!” Kaito turns towards me as he revs up his engines towards anger again. I guess because his sister was just talking about wanting to go to an older guys house which is, you know, actually a pretty valid reason to be angry if we’re being honest here.
“I don’t think that’s a great idea.” I try to let Miu down gently, but she looks hurt at first and then turns that hurt into anger at her brother for seemingly being at fault. “What I mean is that my family is still settling in and I don’t even have permission for anyone to visit or anything. Tell you what… I’ll talk to my parents and grandparents later and if they’re okay with it then you and your brother can both come visit, okay?”
Kaito seems to be partially mollified and also a bit confused that he’s invited too. My guy must be getting whiplash from all those assumptions he’s getting corrected on.
“Really, you’re not just saying that?” Miu presses, leaning onto and over the table to give me that demanding stare that small, bossy girls are masters of. It’s a pretty specific stare, you learn to know it when you see it.
“Scouts honour. Besides, I’m sure mom and dad will be happy that I’m ‘making friends.’ Oh, but you have to bring your brother with you okay? I really don’t need the villages around here to start talking about the Himuro’s starting up the child sacrifices again.” I also don’t want Kaito to turn my floating ribs into a fine powder, but I keep that reason internalized along with all my repressed childhood traumas.
“… what’s that thing you’re doing with your hand?” Kaito’s eyes narrow at the scout sign I’m making while making the promise.
“Oh, that’s the gesture of the American Boy Scouts association. You use it when you’re making a promise because then it’s not just your honor on the line, but the honor of the Scouts themselves.” I inform them. “If you break a Scout’s promise, the punishment is dire.”
“… Like a curse?” Miu enthuses, latching onto that spooky shit.
“They say that all of your Merit Badges begin to disappear one by one until you’ve made good on your promise… and with them, the skills and knowledge the scouts instilled within you. If you don’t change your heart before it’s too late… you lose everything.” I say with a slash of my thumb across my throat.
Kaito rolls his eyes, while Miu is delighted. Well… technically what would happen is you would get a chastising letter from the association most of the time, but if you really screwed up they would ceremonially strip you of all your decorations and then kick you out of the Boy Scouts. They take the Scout’s Honor very seriously .
Still, there’s no harm in letting her think the Boy Scout’s practice warlockery.
Eventually they had to go home, Kaito saying they needed to leave time for him to make dinner. That meant it was time for me to make my way home as well. Mom and Dad both seemed happy when I told them about the meeting (while leaving out the brawl), and Grandpa and Grandma were both willing to ‘host my friends’ as they put it.
I guess they’re happy that I’m settling in well since I’m young and all, but it’s not really a problem for me.
What is more of a problem is when I hear a familiar sounding song playing that night when I’m trying to fall asleep. A koto is being strummed right outside my window that leads into the central courtyard and a faint light flickers on the sill.
Absolutely fantastic.