Announcent
Hello all you nice people! I have great news, my official published version of the Red Hand is ready! I've put it on Amazon as an ebook which will be dropping next Tuesday Aug 29th and you can get to it's listing !
Hardcover is !
Thank you to anyone who purchases it, and to those who already did thank you as well. If you end up buying either a hard or ebook version let know and I'll give you a special role on discord to celebrate!
"Wha?" Akagi was surprised as Yumi tackled her. She'd not expected to be pounced like this, and was even more confused because of the apology.
"I'm so sorry, my Lord!" Yumi squeezed her. "I've caused you such great pain..." From her perspective, she forced Akagi to take an action that was now causing her distress, sothing the Priestess couldn't handle.
"No! Why are you apologizing?!?" Akagi wriggled free and flopped to the other side of the bed. "I'm the one at fault! So what the hell are you sorry for?!?" She had no idea why Yumi was apologizing, and was getting annoyed.
"I'm apologizing because my words forced you to make the decision that you did!" Yumi tried to hug her again, but Akagi kept her away with a barrier.
"NO!" Akagi scread. "Yumi, that's wrong!"
"But-" Yumi was cut off.
"My decision... I did it because I was selfish! I chose what I believed what was best for you, and put my judgnt above yours!" Akagi continued. "You did nothing wrong! I asked for your opinion, you told NO, and then I overruled what you wanted, just because I thought I knew better!" Her fists tightened. "I... I'm not better than Shima... I ignored you and imposed my will just because... because I could..."
{Even if it was for a good reason... I still did sothing wrong...} (Akagi)
"It's fine!" Yumi shook her head. "I was just too afraid to say yes! I just didn't want to relive the pain of losing my family again, so it's fine!"
{Please... this was all my fault...} (Yumi)
"IT'S NOT FINE!" Akagi scread again. "You should be mad at or sothing! But you don't even understand anything!" Akagi stood up on the bed, glaring down at her. "You ca in here to apologize, and you told that it was your fault that I was upset! That you forced to make the call that I did, and that you are responsible for my behavior and emotions! But that's all bullshit!"
"No, it's true!" Yumi wasn't backing down. "If I'd just been more honest with myself, then you wouldn't have had to overrule ! So it is my fault! I'm the one who put you in the position, and so I'm the cause of your-" Yumi stopped as she could tell that Akagi's anger was about to boil over.
"You... you..." Akagi's aura flared up around her. "That.... that stupid ntality... it's the one and only thing that I hate about you and everyone else in this family." Her words were filled with anger, but were quiet, and sent a chill down Yumi's spine. "The way you're speaking now is no different than a person making an excuse for dostic abuse!" She growled. "You're basically saying: Oh, it's fine, she only beat because I did sothing bad. That's basically the sa kind of logic you're using right now!"
Akagi retracted her aura and cald herself down. "Listen to !" She glared at Yumi. "You are not to bla here, nor should you be making excuses for my actions! I made a decision, one that I do not regret, but one that I know was not in line with how I should treat you!" She might not take Yumi's advice on matters sotis, but blatantly ignoring her wishes on a personal matter like this was not sothing Akagi ever wanted to do. "This entire family is like this, ALL of you!" Yumi just sat and listened, she could tell that Akagi was venting frustrations both related and unrelated to this whole situation. "You idiots seem to think that when you clash with , that giving way and just conceding is not only the right choice but the ONLY choice!" She gave a dry laugh. "I understand having loyalty to , and hell, I can even get the religious thing a bit, but co on! I'm sick and tired of you all thinking yourselves beneath !" She ruffled her hair in frustration. "I knew that you wouldn't be angry with , but to actively push the bla on yourself... that's just.... NO! This whole situation has gotten out of hand, and I'm to bla for letting it go this long without addressing it properly!"
{I should've fucking dealt with this whole screwy relationship the mont we got out of FWO, but no I kicked the fucking can down the road because it wasn't causing a problem, and look what that got ! A fanatically loyal group of people that take my word as divine fucking law! I was hoping, praying that Yumi wasn't as bad, but she is... and I need to fix this NOW!} (Akagi)
"My Lord, I understand your-" Akagi interrupted her.
"And then there's THAT!" Akagi pointed at her as she scread. "WHY DO YOU NOT CALL BY MY NA, YUMI?!?" Her venting only got worse, and Yumi could tell that the Demon was bottling up more frustration than expected.
"I. AM. AKAGI! You are my bonded soul and my equal, Yumi! I understand if the others want to address in a more formal manner, but YOU of all people shouldn't be doing that!" Akagi growled. "It makes think you still don't see as... as soone you can connect with... and it feels like there's still a wall between us..." She slunk down onto the bed. "Is that all I am to you? Your master and lord? Am I not also your friend, and soone you love?"
{She's really been holding a lot in, hasn't she? I never imagined that so many things were troubling her...} (Yumi)
"Listen, I... please tell that you don't think it's strange how much love and revere ? Think about it! Isn't it strange that the first thing you'd do when I'm upset is blaming yourself for causing it?!?" Akagi said with a defeated laugh.
Yumi thought about it for a mont before answering. "Y-Your right." Yumi looked down at the bed. "I... I'm not sure why but... the first thing that ca to mind was that I was the one at fault for your pain, even though... you're correct."
{That is strange, isn't it?} (Yumi)
"So you do understand what I'm talking about?!?" Akagi groaned.
"Yes... and you're right that I've acted strangely. I guess... I guess I never really thought about it..." Yumi looked back through her ti with Akagi and never really found any instances where she was truly upset with her. But she did find an extrely large amount of tis where she scolded herself for causing Akagi trouble, even when it wasn't Yumi's fault.
{Perhaps...} (Yumi)
"Perhaps you were right... perhaps the ga did have an effect on us." Yumi gave a wry smile. "I don't recall anything ever forcing to act the way I did, but looking back... I think it may have influenced towards prioritizing your happiness and well-being, even where I shouldn't."
{Many tis my mind would be flooded with the desire to make her happy or to see her will be done. I always thought that was just because of my feelings for her, but... maybe there was sothing else at work?} (Yumi)
"So then... you all were controlled..." Akagi started to cry at the thought that Yumi's and her family's feelings were all fake. "You all really don't care about ? It was just the ga making you like ?"
"NO!" Yumi dove onto her and pulled her into a hug. "No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no." The Priestess moved to prevent Akagi's mind from collapsing, as she knew that could easily an the end of the world in this situation. "We weren't controlled, just influenced! Our love and affection for you are real!" She squeezed her. “I love you! I love you so much, don't go thinking that's fake!”
"But-" Akagi tried to speak, but Yumi stopped her by kissing her.
"That influence has nothing to do with my love for you!" Yumi started crying. "You've done so much for ! You gave a place, a ho, and a purpose! You did so much for when I could give you nothing in return! Over the years, I never really understood my feelings, and it wasn't until the end of our ti in FWO that I ca to understand the truth! I love you Akagi, and I always have! Nothing ever made love you other than my own heart! So please, don't go thinking that our feelings for you are nothing more than false emotions implanted within our minds because that's not true!"
{And even if that was true, it won't change how I feel, so it doesn't matter!} (Yumi)
"But if the ga changed people's-." Akagi tried to speak, but Yumi just squeezed her harder.
"Trust , even without so kind of influence, all these feelings of mine, no of OURS, are real!" Yumi said while crying. "And, even if the ga influenced us, rember we're in the real world now, Akagi."
Akagi's eyes went wide as she understood what Yumi was getting at.
"If the only reason we cared for you was because the ga made us, then why would we still feel this way nearly a year after we left?" Yumi giggled as she hugged her tighter. "During this last year, I've never felt that sa kind of pull towards you that I did in the ga, which ans we're no longer under its effects! Since then, I've never once felt the urge to leave you, and even now, knowing that my mind may have been influenced, I don't care." Yumi looked Akagi in the eyes. "Even if it's true that the ga was affecting my mind, that doesn't take away from the kind of person you are." She cupped Akagi's cheek. "You still saved and all the other mbers of this family, and you still helped every one of us when we needed it the most. So I'd say we already had plenty of reason to love you. All the ga did was push us to love you even more than we already did." She smiled as she looked the Demon in the eyes.
"Are... are you really ok with that?" Akagi asked quietly. "Knowing that you're mind might have been ssed with?"
"I get to be with the person I love." Yumi chuckled. "For what possible reason could I be unhappy with this situation? As we all told you before, even if these feelings were thrust upon us by the ga, that doesn't stop us from feeling them. Even if you were to tell today that the only reason I love you is because the ga made feel this way, I wouldn't care. Because, no matter the reason why, I love you, Akagi. And I assure you that all of us feel the exact sa way."
"I..." Akagi had no idea what to say.
"But... you're right that my refusal to see you as my equal has kept a wall between us." Yumi bit her lip. "It's just that... you... you're such a powerful person, you can do anything... and... and you just seem to be so much better than that... that I just... I couldn't imagine thinking of you as being on my level." She shook her head. "To consider you and I equals... I kept telling myself that doing so would be arrogant... I'm just a village Priestess, and there's nothing special about . So how dare I see myself as your equal?"
"Yumi..." Akagi hugged her back.
"But... you're right... I need to stop thinking of myself as being lower than you. None of that should matter between us. You might be the Demon Lord, and I might just be a village Priestess, but we're partners bound together forever." Yumi pulled Akagi down onto the bed beside her. "Akagi, I'm sorry that it took so long to see how stupid I was, and I promise that I'll stop depreciating myself. You asked to stay with you forever, and I know that you've never once thought of as anything less because I'm just a normal girl." She put her head against Akagi's chest. "So it's ti I started doing the sa."
"I..." Akagi squeezed her tightly. "Yumi... I... thank you... thank you for everything..."
"And thank you, Akagi. Thank you for everything." Yumi giggled." For saving my life, for avenging my village, for being my best friend... and for giving back my sister." She gripped onto Akagi's shirt. "I won't say I like the idea of you going against my wishes like you did... but this one ti... thank you... I would have regretted it..."
"I promise you... I'll never do it again." Akagi laughed. "I can't handle that kind of stress."
"Well then." Yumi sat up. "How about a bit of stress relief?" Her wily smile told Akagi everything she needed to know.
"Sure, but I've got a lot to blow off." Akagi tackled her to the bed, and the two began an extended period of stress relief.
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