Ryozanpaku

[Bloodedge]

Kou had become anything but stable, it seemed. There were already so many things going on in his head, he couldn't fathom much more. Speaking of things he couldn't fathom, Tamamo's rebuttal made a few interesting implications. What he first heard could have easily meant 'yes' in a roundabout, teasing way of saying so. That smile was almost unnerving as a result, but he'd be lying if he claimed he wouldn't have enjoyed mind-reading being the case in this particular situation. Could he be so openly truthful, though? It sounded impossible, and still sounded far easier than it actually was. Silence was the answer.

Interestingly enough, it was not at all the ability to hear or see his thoughts that brought this about. Tamamo herself claimed to have the ability, but specified that she had not been using it. No, it was instead the similarities between them which led her to such a conclusion. His face even gave it away? How repulsive it was that his own visage would betray him. On top of that, there was an unavoidable, horrible question. Did he desire just what he alluded to? If she saw his mind, would her reaction be the same? She wasn't wrong about their similar mindsets, but perhaps there were some key differences which stood out more than necessary. Giving proper consideration, there was but one conclusion─ one proper retort. "Well... what did you come up with, without using it? Step one is finding out if it's necessary, right?" It was a bit of a trap, his suggestion. On one hand, he could use it to avoid incriminating himself upon answering. On the other hand, he could fish for a fair bit of context.

[Apollymi]

A look of inquisitiveness crossed this lass' face. She couldn't help but wonder about his silence, but she could practically see the gears turning in his head. Using the same method she had to make the assumptions about his thoughts concerning what she called him, she began to work through how he would in fact approach what she'd said so recently. Those golden eyes of hers retained an amused light, and she appeared to be rather openly flirtatious regardless. She wouldn't actually mind answering his questions, but she had to maintain some air of dignity or she'd be too forward. But then did one really care about being too forward with their intended? These were the mental questions that Tamamo worked through, that plagued her own mind, and led her to the idea that the lad would indeed ask a question that wouldn't necessarily incriminate himself. And as she stared coming to that conclusion, he came with an answer that was more of a question. But not just a question, a question which would take more information than it gave on the side of the person who asked it.

"Sou ka, step one is a trap. The Akiza approach then... Mikon, you are asking a girl to reveal a lot about herself for so little in return~" she teased the lad about his question choice. This was indeed true, but it fit into the line of teasing she was content to take. This version of Kimiko seemed to have inherited her directness without the aggression of her Dragonoid form. "You'll have to make it up to me~" she chimed with satisfaction. If she was going to answer his question, she had to be quiet about it, still she wanted to be close enough to continue watching his face for cues. After all, there was still a base difference between men and women, perhaps in giving information she thought, she could find the line her directness couldn't or rather shouldn't cross, mediating a bit more of her own anxiety. "What was obvious was a few more words with two syllables that could be said with the same cadence. 'Darling' or 'Master' or 'Daddy' are the ones which come to mind first. There is always the fun of knowing and saying ones given name as well..." she said sufficiently. "But the words alone aren't all... there are the situations that come to mind when they could be said... in the heat of the moment, clothed or unclothed, in different positions..." she commented her mind had wandered in such a way. Hell, in her other form she had still been thinking actively about the windows on the ship. She could leave him with those whispered thoughts.

[Bloodedge]

Kou's plan managed to be perfectly interpreted by Tamamo. Was this the work of her Avatar, or her aforementioned mind-reading ability? No, that couldn't be quite right. The only ability to show itself was the normal workings of Tamamo, Tatsuki, Miki, whomever Ashikaga Kimiko chose to be; it was her natural mind at work. True enough, there was a certain lack of directness that would have been found in a Dragon, but this amount of forward behavior was still surprising every time it reared its head. She was now saying he'd have to make it up to her for making her reveal so much, for so little even. That wasn't quite true; his question was merely a leading one. The white-haired male fully intended to match whatever was spoken.

The names Tamamo listed, happened to be the ones most prevalent in his vision. If he didn't have faith enough to believe her earlier words, he would have thought she had been reading his mind after all. A couple of those things made total sense, while the rest were... quite specific visions that came to him as byproducts of seeing this Avatar. What made her follow the same train of thought? One could only wonder. The way Tamamo spoke, it didn't seem to be necessarily leaning toward an offer of any sort... but when paired with her clause that started all this, it could have been nothing else. She presented herself quite openly, at the end of the day. It even became something worthy of note that she was more entranced by the situations resulting in such titles being spoken. "A─ well..." he spoke, losing himself in thought once more. He wanted to simply answer, but there were also things he wanted to ask... and things he would rather have been doing, but that was neither here nor there. "Ho─ that's an unexpected list. It's weird though, isn't it? Like... what could even make some of those things appropriate, and all..."

[Apollymi]

It was fair that Ashikaga Kimiko's normal mind was the one at work beyond the faces of her Avatars. Each one seemed to have its own kind of problems... interpreting her will though. In the case of Tamamo, there was less of an overall problem with the interpretation. She got to be as direct as she wished without the extra anxiety associated with her saying the things on her mind. Perhaps there was a reason for this. Maybe, it was being a fox that simply made seduction feel natural? Maybe it was the previous nights activities and the extra flirting which made it more, alright? Maybe it was a combination of things, including the knowledge that the lad was interested in her forms and multiples of them even.

Whatever the case, Kou was working through whatever process and the words she'd spoken seemingly with some difficulty still. Tamamo unlike her other selves took this as further confirmation of his interest, "Oh? You think it was unexpected... it looks to me like you're comparing notes," she said simply, her tone still teasing. She didn't mind this at all. Actually, it would likely be better if she were as open as possible and he could decide what all he wished to share from that point forward. "Still, you would think it'd be pretty obvious. Situations like the one last night where we aren't just trying to fall asleep could easily bring about the use of a few new words or titles," she mentioned coyly. Of course, this conversation was rather intense for general purposes, but if he'd rather clear everything up in the moment, she'd do the same with that mischievous glint in her eye. "I mean, I can think of more than a few situations where you could ask me and I'd call you whatever you like. Or maybe, you have some specific things that you'd like me to call you based on who I am at the time or what I am wearing? I can change clothes pretty easily now~" she seemed to have started off pretty seriously but the teasing came back immediately. There was an openness to how she spoke and she meant all that she said. She had a fantasy or two she wished to explore and she thought the lad just the outlet. After all, what was Ashikaga Kimiko? A degenerate, an heiress, virgin, teenage girl with very direct communication skills and who apparently wanted the white haired lad she was interested in to indulge with her.

[Bloodedge]

This Avatar was becoming more and more... cheeky, to say the least. She picked apart everything he was saying; how? Had she managed to get him so flustered that he couldn't resist wearing his every thought on his face? Perhaps he had such an honest visage anyway, and this kitsune had a certain goal to read into the specifics. "That makes two of us then, doesn't it?" he asked in the end. Surely Tamamo, too, was doing nothing more than prying for information. While Kou's own prying was undoubtedly for knowledge and potential later use, Tamamo seemed to be more certain about everything. It almost seemed like, if they were not in the company of others and in the middle of a task, she would have seen the pair of them enacting one of their apparently shared fantasies. No, it wasn't so simple; that was exactly the case as he figured.

Hearing reference to the previous night was... quite interesting as well. Indeed, if it had gone differently, if the stars aligned, they could have approached things in far more interesting ways. What could he have heard from her during that time? How different would it be if he relived that exact moment with this Avatar? Bringing himself to request a particular title for the heat of the moment was a ridiculous concept to Kou, but he did wonder what she would come up with naturally. Could he wonder that for very long? No. Tamamo spoke of how easily she could change clothing, and his mind raced anew. What would this form choose to change into? Something classy? Something skimpy? Something that would make one's mother disappointed? The options were nearly infinite, which left Kou with a single choice. "Er... I guess I'm not sure. What would you even change to?"

[Apollymi]

"Hai hai," she said in confirmation of the idea that she was just checking their likeness. If she was being fair, it was one of the few things she did to make sure that this lad and her had similar enough interests. Beyond that point, she also wished for him to realize a bit that the direction of her previous Avatar was limited a bit by its existence. This version of herself was a bit closer to her usual self, and she needed confirmation of his acceptance.

It seemed her mention the previous night caused some strange shift in the lad's thoughts. She couldn't be certain, but it seemed that he considered they could do the same as they were now and have a different outcome. This was somewhat true as this version of the lass would be fairly direct about what she wanted. But she wouldn't get to dwell on this for very long. She spoke on the ease of her outfit shifts, causing the lad to begin thinking again. It was clear on his face that he had several ideas in mind, but he seemed to narrow down his speech to just asking her a question. "Oh, well anything... I could go for something more mainland you seemed to like that well enough," she said with a wink. "Oh, or school girl chic, that one seems like it'd be a bit of a winner. I also have a ridiculous amount of lingerie so all types of that as well~" she chimed the last in their whispered conversation. The whole of this time, Kuroka had been watching and she saw this interaction evolve and devolve several times. It was obvious to her whatever they were talking about wasn't meant for anyone else to hear, but it was obviously something very important. She thought about the things she knew of Ashikaga Kimiko and wondered if the lad fit all of her preferences, 'Well... he is a teen boy, it can't be that hard to find someone who will let her properly express herself... She still reads those manga too, she's probably developed a few deviant quirks. Hell the whole Youkai Fox thing is kind of Deviant when being played so obviously like a seductress.' the thoughts of the doctor raced a bit as she came to a couple of conclusions. 'Still, she seems to have focus. I always figured she would, that alone will stop another one of... those.' she cut her eyes thinking about a specific kind of girl that was the bane of the existences of all other girls.

[Bloodedge]

There were far, far too many possibilities for Kou's overloaded mind to process fully. The more he asked, the more this kitsune provided, and then some. What would the bedroom be like, he wondered. Could he truly make requests; nay, demands? Would they truly be so easily met? What if he desired one of the aforementioned outfits here and now; would she don it? Those weren't even all the questions on his mind. What if they went above and beyond? Preferred position? Ideal approach during the heat of the moment? Protruding tongue? What would happen?! Kou found himself desiring nothing more than figuring out the answers to these questions, right here, right now. He wanted to ignore the onlookers, to fully immerse himself in an experience. Alas, he could only stammer and blush as his urges manifested in every physical way possible. Most prominent, of course, was the tent he was pitching in a manner of speaking. Luckily for him, the other two present would not find it within their line of sight... as far as he knew. Was that a positive, though? Perhaps, or perhaps not. "Well... anything works, really. I've seen a lot of stuff, and I don't dislike much of anything," the lad clarified as he honed in on those golden orbs once more. "Surprises are fun as well, I guess─"

[Apollymi]

Tamamo's eyes glanced over the lad before her. He had all the signs and makings of a man who knew what he wanted to question and do. It was quite similar to the time she'd spent as Tatsuki most recently, whether she knew it or not, but also quite different. Tamamo had on offer anything the lad could like, she seemed to be rather open about what she wanted to do. In fact, she wanted to see all the things Kou would like, because she wished to engage in such things. She was also fair in her application of things, she hoped he understood that he could ask anything he liked of her, she she'd likely try it, but in the same vein, she'd wish to have whatever random thoughts or desires she had in her mind satisfied. "Hoh?" she questioned when the lad went on to mention what he'd like. His body, his face, all of him seemed to be on board with the ideas she presented. "You like surprises and have open enough tastes for it not to matter what I do... hm," she seemed to be thinking about it for quite a bit. "Mikon, we're going to have so much fun!~" there was a light in her eyes that was devious. If they didn't have anything else to do, she'd likely have been the one instigating something far behind this conversation. But as it stood, her body's placement was the only thing standing between this lad and exposure for his deviance.

[Bloodedge]

Indeed, he could be considered a plan of pleasant surprises. Indeed, he was quite interested in seeing what filled this one's mind. Indeed, he was limited partially by the proximity of others, yet saved from being revealed by the proximity of Tamamo herself. What she intended with those alleged 'open tastes' of his was a mystery to be solved, and Kou could assume she very much meant to solve it. Fun? They were going to have fun? Well, it certainly seemed so. For the time being though, there was a task to be completed. Kou knew he had to acquire something else for his own Avatar creation. The kusarigama alone would never suffice for a proper youkai of any sort, and none of his existing Avatars had the proper source code to create one easily. Somewhere here, there had to be some sort of... museum, or a similar structure. An Artifact was all he needed; he could acquire one with just a bit of searching and... a bit of theft. Alas, he could not yet move without revealing his erect state to the others. What did he do to make up for this? Simply put, he merely continued conversing. "Y─yeah... I could use some help picking up an Artifact from around here too. That should be fun in its own way─" he said in a somewhat nervous fashion, doing his best to think away the stiffness to his manhood.

[Apollymi]

Everything about what this lad was giving off let Tamamo know that he'd be quite accepting of anything she offered him. Strangely, he seemed to shy away from it just now, but she took that to be a because of the others and their impending work and not simply a matter of turning her down. As if to confirm this, Kou himself began speaking about an Artifact he wished to pick up, one which he thought he could use to help create his new Avatar and help them along with getting into the Youkai area a bit more properly. "Hm? I can help you with that in multiple ways... what do you need?" she asked of the lad. The sentence came off a little more suggestive than she may have intended but... given their most recent conversation, she couldn't really be blamed for that. At this moment the mirror she had emerged from one of her large sleeves and she held her hand over it. She could use it as a catalyst for any magic and aside from that could use it make use of her witchcraft in various forms. As such the tool itself was one of the most useful that this woman had in her arsenal. At the same time, she was deliberately giving the lad as much extra time as she could, to avoid his embarrassment and give them both a chance to divert back to more normal conversation.

[Bloodedge]

It was an easy enough ordeal. So long as Kou could focus on the task ahead, he could do something about his visible situation before someone else saw. That, sadly, was not to be. Tamamo's every word sounded seductive in some way. When she said she could help in multiple ways, he couldn't help himself wondering exactly what ways she meant. That wasn't helping his situation at all, yet somehow, he... liked it? Well, this was a predicament. Maybe he was just reaching at this point, even expecting things and assigning undue purpose to certain phrases because of it. Either way, he had to do something. Tugging on his pants, he lowered where he stood. A sitting position with crossed legs was best, though he was only able to conceal himself then by leaning forward just a bit. Luckily, however, he managed this movement without being in total view of the others.

Perhaps this could become a more normal interaction from that moment forward, but... did he even actually want that? "Er... well, I need..." Oh no; it was taking quite some time for his normal thoughts to even return properly. Nevertheless, he seemed to manage in spite of a few upward glances. What an interesting angle─ no! It was time to think! "Uh! An Artifact linked to something physical... probably an Oni. Just... not a Kappa."

[Apollymi]

With her mirror floating out before her, Tamamo was left to think about how to help the lad in his endeavor. Strangely, or maybe not so, he took a seat. This was likely some kind of tactic to help out the physical signs of his arousal. Tamamo understood enough about male anatomy, or rather Kimiko did, to know that blood flow was rather important. She knew her words had been a bit too suggestive, but she couldn't help them, and she didn't really want to. This version of the lass, was more content to be open about who she was with this lad, so she wouldn't hide, even in normal conversation. Beyond this after he sat, he stole a few upward glances and she took note of them... oh then perhaps he really did like that up-skirt view he'd gotten of her blonde haired alternative self a few weeks ago. "Sou ka... something physical..." she wrote a talisman with her magic with the kanji for strength and sank it into the surface of the mirror which rippled like a still lake. "Oni" she made another with this word and sank it in as well. "Not Kappa," she dropped this one in as well after its creation. The whole of this took only a few seconds and even from her higher elevation she dropped the mirror before the lad's face reflecting it back at him. It was a still silvery shimmer. Each of the talisman's she'd made were infused with her body's own special form of magic. If he touched this mirror as well with his ideas in mind he would be lead to what he was looking for. "Make an offering... and then seek your fortune. You'll find what you need," she said with a knowing smirk. Such magic was strange to her but here it made total sense, an offering to a deity. And if he made an offering of himself in this moment, he'd be relieved of the pressure in his loins and it would be used as a catalyst for the magic instead of plaguing him in the moment.

After this 'offering' was made as a catalyst for the Dakini Heavenly Method, he'd see the Artifact he saw and where it could be found within the mirror. This spell was a basic plea for sight to a certain goddess who used Tamamo's body as an extension of her own Divinity.

[Bloodedge]

After hearing out his requirements for an Artifact, Tamamo inscribed her mirror with the specifics given. She went on to present him the mirror, though not without seeming as if she'd been made privy to his mental dealings once again. He really had to get his face under control if he was to continue in a semi-professional manner. Luckily for him, there was some sort of offering required to the mirror for the locating spell to function properly. What would it be? As vaguely as it was mentioned, it could be literally anything. As such, he decided his offering would be his urges for the time being. At the rate he was going presently, Kou knew they would return naturally with as little as a sentence spoken by the fox, but he could at least do away with it long enough to start moving again.

His erection faded, and with that fading came the gradual appearance of a vision. He saw a mask in the shape of an Oni skull, a single horn protruding from its left brow. This mask was under lock and key in a manner of speaking, stashed behind numerous curses and pathways within a temple. It didn't seem like it would be too much of an arduous task, especially considering the abilities likely possessed by Tamamo. "I can see it. It's in a temple to the east. There are a lot of small, dim corridors littered with magical traps, but... I think we've done way worse."

[Apollymi]

Kou made his offering and the mirror showed him what it was he wanted to see. The Artifact he searched for was apparently held within a temple to the east. According to the lad, the temple contained a series of dimly lit corridors and magical traps. That didn't actually sound that bad. She smiled, when he stated they'd done worse, and she could only agree. "Hai hai, I can think of several things worse than a few snug corridors. Actually, that sounds enjoyable!~" she chimed seemingly amused by the whole thing. Her eyes were still practically glowing and full of that devious light she always seemed to have. "Come on then, we'll get you all set. And then... breakfast~" she offered with a wink. She didn't really think about the other two people in this group right now, but that was pretty normal. Her line of focus was very narrow since taking on this Avatar. At this point Kuroka was still watching and seemed to think little of the entire scenario though it became obvious they were about to set off.

"If you've found what it is you need to make your next Avatar. I am not really interested in anymore dungeon crawling. I'll gather some more information about the situation here and we can meet up here when you are finished," she offered. Beyond not wanting to go into a Dungeon for an artifact that wouldn't be useful to her, she also thought the teens could use a little bit of alone time, not that she'd say that aloud.

[Bloodedge]

Of course she would find the mention of corridors to be an acceptable, even enjoyable one. If he was being honest, Kou could say the same. There was that one manga in which two protagonists were sealed in a house together, constantly being guided toward producing an heir to a royal lineage. The more he thought about that, the more his desire returned... and the more he realized how many similarities there were between that, and this new life of his, but that was an aside. "... Hai. It seems to have some puzzle elements to it," he said, though his expression would easily reveal that it wasn't the potential puzzle at the forefront of his mind. Instead, it was the vision of being in those snug places with nothing but flickering torches lighting the area.

Lo and behold, Kuroka's interjection implied that the pair would be alone in this endeavor. One glance toward an ever nonchalant Rimuru further confirmed this; that lad wasn't going to be going anywhere without his companion of choice. In fact, Rimuru was almost disgusted by the idea of accompanying these two, considering how they'd been interacting with one another these past few minutes. "Fair enough. It shouldn't take too long to handle it, so we'll meet up soon? I know where to go." Thankful to have avoided another erection already, Kou stood. He gave only a single nod to Kuroka and Rimuru before taking those first steps east, knowing just where to go for the sake of reaching the temple in his mind.