Chapter 209: A big situation

Chapter 209: Chapter 209: A big situation

A Few Hours Later

What had begun as a visit from Yasaka, Kuroka, and Koneko ended up becoming something much bigger than Damon had expected. After a few pats on the head and a generous amount of sweets, Koneko got over her little tantrum with him easily enough. Matatabi appearing in her smaller form finished the job, because from the moment the Bijuu ended up in her arms, the Nekoshou lost almost all interest in staying mad at Damon.

Kuroka, of course, had been a completely different problem. The black-haired woman took every opportunity she could to make advances toward the redhead and remind him that he owed her compensation as well. Fortunately, Damon had enough common sense not to fall for any of her games. Whether he would be able to maintain that same resistance forever was something that remained to be seen.

Leaving all of that aside, Yasaka’s arrival gave Amaterasu the perfect excuse to organize another celebration. Finally having the woman she probably considered her best friend in Olympus had put her in an excellent mood and, although Damon wasn’t particularly eager to deal with another party, the Goddess of the Sun promised him that this time it would only be them.

Unfortunately, between the food, drinks, and music, that promise quickly ended up forgotten. Several minor goddesses and nymphs began wandering over out of curiosity. Fortunately for Damon, the situation never turned into some massive celebration across all of Olympus, much less an impromptu orgy. Most of them understood that it was still a private gathering and had enough common sense to keep some distance.

The same couldn’t be said for Aphrodite.

The Goddess of Love and Beauty had been acting for quite some time as though Damon’s temple were simply another place in Olympus she could walk into whenever she pleased. Add in how much she enjoyed any environment filled with music, alcohol, and people having fun, and her appearance was practically inevitable.

Damon didn’t even waste his time trying to throw her out. He knew perfectly well that Aphrodite wouldn’t listen unless he actually decided to get serious, and the redhead had no desire to argue with anyone that night.

Nor was he surprised when Aphrodite’s attention immediately landed on Yasaka.

The goddess wasted no time approaching the Kyūbi and striking up a conversation. Yasaka was accustomed to receiving attention because of her position, her nine tails, or simply because she was the leader of Kyoto’s Yokai, but even she seemed somewhat caught off guard by how intensely Aphrodite was examining her.

"You’re gorgeous," Aphrodite declared with complete naturalness.

Yasaka blinked before letting out a small nervous laugh. "That’s quite flattering coming from the Goddess of Beauty. And rather direct too."

"Why waste time pretending you’re not?" Aphrodite took a sip of her drink while studying every detail of her appearance with interest. "The hair, the eyes, the tails... even the way you wear your kimono. Everything works perfectly together. Maybe I should consider trading some Greek fashion for Shinto fashion."

From there, Aphrodite became lost in her own ideas. She started talking about fabrics, colors, designs, and all kinds of possibilities involving Shinto clothing until Grayfia had the misfortune of passing close by. The Goddess of Love wasted no time using the silver-haired woman as a guinea pig for some of her new ideas and, considering Grayfia also had quite an interest in fashion, it wasn’t long before the two of them were trapped in their own little world.

Amaterasu took advantage of the opportunity to rescue Yasaka from Aphrodite’s clutches and reclaim her friend for herself. The two ended up sharing a hug that lasted considerably longer than either of them normally allowed in front of other people. Yasaka returned it without hesitation and, when they separated, her attention dropped toward Amaterasu’s stomach before returning to her face.

"You took your time getting here. I almost thought you’d forgotten about me," Amaterasu commented with a playful smile.

"Between Kyoto and everything that comes with keeping the Yokai under control, free time has become a luxury." Yasaka arranged her nine tails behind her before sitting beside her friend. "But I wasn’t going to miss this. Congratulations, Amaterasu-sama. I’m genuinely happy to see you like this."

"Thank you." The Goddess of the Sun rested a hand over her stomach, a gesture that already seemed to come naturally to her. "Although there still isn’t much to see."

"Maybe not there, but I can see it on your face." Yasaka smiled as her attention returned to her friend’s stomach. "It still feels strange imagining you as a mother. Even more so knowing you decided to go through the full nine months like a human. That could end up being dangerous."

Amaterasu raised an eyebrow. "Dangerous?"

Yasaka took a sip of sake before answering, clearly amused. "Let’s just say pregnancy doesn’t always improve a woman’s temperament."

Damon understood where she was going long before she needed to explain. Amaterasu could already influence the Sun without much effort; combining that with months of mood swings wasn’t exactly a reassuring thought. All it would take was for her to wake up angry over something stupid one day for an out-of-place solar storm to become a problem for the entire mortal world.

And naturally, a good portion of the consequences would end up falling on him. Other pantheons demanding explanations, humans trying to understand why global temperatures were suddenly rising for no apparent reason, and Damon having to deal with everything an abnormal increase in solar heat could trigger. And that was only the simple version. If he seriously started thinking about it, he could spend the rest of the day listing problems.

Damon glanced sideways at his beloved, wondering for a moment whether he had really thought all of this through. Amaterasu caught the expression and frowned. "Why are you looking at me like that? You know perfectly well that I’m a very calm person. We’re not going to have those kinds of problems."

"If you say so, dear," the redhead murmured.

Yasaka burst into a laugh much louder than was usual for her, enough that she had to wipe away a small tear of amusement. "That’s exactly what I thought when I was pregnant." Her smile lasted a few more seconds before fading slightly. "Then I found out that wasn’t exactly true."

Amaterasu laughed, but Yasaka lowered her gaze toward her cup before continuing. "At least you have Damon here to take care of you when those days come. I..." She paused, slowly swirling the sake inside her cup. "Well, let’s just say my experience was different."

She didn’t need to explain much more.

Amaterasu knew Kunou’s story perfectly well and what had happened with her father. Some of the amusement faded from her face, although Yasaka clearly had no intention of turning the moment into something sad.

"But I survived," the Kyūbi added with a calmer smile. "And I learned quite a lot too."

An awkward silence settled between them, but Yasaka didn’t allow the bitter memory to ruin the mood. She drank a little more sake and changed the subject, asking what name they had chosen for the child.

"Ameos," Amaterasu answered.

Yasaka repeated the name to herself and nodded approvingly. "Ahhh... all of this almost makes me miss being pregnant."

Amaterasu didn’t waste even a second taking advantage of the opportunity. A mischievous smile appeared on her lips as she raised her cup. "You could always do it again."

"Amaterasu-sama, that would require a few things first, wouldn’t you agree?" Yasaka replied with a somewhat nervous smile.

The Goddess of the Sun raised her eyebrows and calmly took another drink, not needing to add anything. Yasaka didn’t have to be a genius to understand what her goddess was implying.

"Amaterasu-sama..."

"What is it, dear?"

"Please don’t."

The faint blush that appeared on Yasaka’s cheeks only amused Amaterasu further. Damon, who had momentarily gotten lost in his own thoughts, shifted his attention between the two women when he realized he had clearly missed something. "Is there something I should know about?"

"It’s nothing, Lord Damon. Just some things between women," Yasaka replied, trying to maintain her composure while Amaterasu hid her smile behind her cup.

Even the Goddess of the Sun herself didn’t know whether she genuinely wanted to see the idea she had just planted become reality or whether she was simply enjoying teasing her friend too much. With the pregnancy still in its early stages, Damon probably wouldn’t rule out a mood swing having something to do with it either.

The night continued, and several familiar faces passed through the temple. Hestia and Hera were among those who appeared to share a few drinks and talk with Amaterasu and Yasaka before eventually leaving. Amaterasu tried to convince them to stay a little longer, but both had responsibilities to handle over the next few days and ultimately declined the invitation.

Aphrodite, of course, was more than willing to take the spot they had turned down.

"I can stay," the Goddess of Love offered without the slightest shame. "I have absolutely nothing important to do tomorrow."

The forced smile that appeared on Yasaka’s face was enough for Amaterasu to understand everything her friend didn’t want to say aloud. It wasn’t that the Kyūbi had anything against Aphrodite; in fact, they had gotten along fairly well. The problem was that if Yasaka had learned anything that night, it was that the Goddess of Love could keep a conversation going for hours without showing the slightest sign of exhaustion.

Aphrodite literally never shut up.

Amaterasu decided to take pity on her friend and turned down the offer, promising they could do this again another time. Aphrodite, who had deliberately allowed the alcohol to affect her divine body, gave a small pout before accepting defeat and returning to her own temple to spend the rest of the night with her attendants.

Little by little, the courtyard emptied out. Damon barely noticed when the small celebration had dwindled down to just him, Amaterasu, and Yasaka. A few nymphs cleared the tables some distance away while several empty bottles of sake accumulated near the three of them.

For Damon and Amaterasu, the alcohol was little more than a pleasant drink. As Aphrodite had demonstrated that same night, they could allow it to affect their bodies if they wanted, but neither of them had been interested in doing so.

"I’m starting to think drinking with the two of you was a terrible decision on my part," Yasaka commented as she turned the cup between her fingers. "I’ve been drinking all night and both of you still look exactly the same."

"One of the perks of divinity, dear," Amaterasu replied, settling naturally against Damon.

Yasaka let out a small sound of protest. By that point, the alcohol had already loosened much of the composure she normally maintained as the Yokai Queen. She wasn’t drunk and hadn’t lost her clarity, but the warmth in her cheeks, her tails spread with less discipline, and how easily the occasional giggle slipped out made it clear that the Kyūbi wasn’t completely sober.

"You’re still speaking perfectly fine," Damon commented. "I’d say you’re handling it pretty well."

Yasaka narrowed her eyes. "You need to work on your compliments, Damon. I don’t have your divine super-defenses," the kitsune replied casually, all the formality she had shown earlier completely thrown out the window.

The conversation continued through jokes, although Yasaka began noticing that she was growing increasingly warm. Amaterasu had spent much of the night pressed against Damon, completely relaxed in his arms, and the way the two treated each other made the intimacy between them difficult to ignore. Yasaka had spent a long time paying little attention to certain needs tied to her Yokai nature, but that didn’t mean they had disappeared. With the sake taking effect and a clearly loving couple practically right in front of her, keeping those thoughts buried was becoming harder than usual.

Amaterasu seemed to notice. She took Damon’s face between her hands and kissed him naturally, showing little concern about having company. Damon returned the kiss, although after a moment he pulled back slightly.

"Ama... Yasaka is still here."

He wasn’t scolding her. He knew his beloved perfectly well and wasn’t exactly uncomfortable with intimacy himself, but Yasaka was still a guest in his home and Damon wasn’t going to assume she would be comfortable with the situation.

"I know," Amaterasu replied without the slightest hint of shame.

Yasaka let out a small giggle, placed her cup on the table, and began to rise. "I think that’s my cue. I’ve already taken up enough of your time tonight."

"Ahhh, don’t be such a killjoy, Yasaka-chan."

The Kyūbi stopped and turned toward her friend. "Amaterasu-sama, I think the night is starting to head somewhere my presence isn’t needed."

"Who said that?" Amaterasu settled back against Damon, clearly entertained. "The night’s meant to be enjoyed. Stay a little longer."

Yasaka opened her mouth to answer but ended up keeping the words to herself. Leaving was probably the sensible choice. The problem was that, at that moment, she wasn’t particularly interested in being sensible.

Damon noticed her hesitation but remained calm and let her make her own decision. Amaterasu could be shamelessly bold when she wanted to be, especially when Damon was involved, but the redhead still maintained his respect toward their guest.

In the end, Yasaka sat back down. "Just a little longer," she murmured as she picked up her drink again.

Amaterasu gave her a pleased smile. "Of course, dear."

After that, Yasaka was never entirely sure what had happened....

Maybe it was the many bottles the three of them ended up emptying or the increasingly daring jokes and games they started throwing at one another. All she knew was that her barriers had fallen much farther than she had expected. One thing led to another and, when she truly stopped to pay attention to what she was doing again, she found herself beside Damon, wrapped around one of his arms while Amaterasu occupied the other.

Yasaka lifted her face toward the redhead. Damon caught the lingering blush on her cheeks before the Kyūbi closed the distance and kissed him without the slightest hesitation.