Chapter Text
If he could learn to love another and earn her love in return by the time the last petal fell, then the spell would be broken. If not, he would be doomed to remain a beast for all time. As the years passed, he fell into despair and lost all hope. For who could ever learn to love a beast? (Beauty & the Beast, 1991)
“They say that he’s 10 feet tall, can run faster than the wind and he has these massive claws all the better to grab little girls with to EAT THEM!”
A sharp shriek pierced the air. Without pause, Tsuyu whipped around from the stove and thwapped her brother with a wooden spoon.
“Ow! Sis, that hurt!” Samidare yelped.
“If you don’t want to be smacked again, you’ll stop scaring Satsuki with such outlandish stories,” Tsuyu said calmly, turning back to stir the porridge on the stove.
“But it’s true! The kids in my class were all talking about it, and they heard it from old man Torino. They even said that old man Torino saw the beast when he was a younger. And he told us the beast was hugeeeee,” said Samidare, waving his hands around for emphasis. From the corner of her eye, Tsuyu noted Satsuki shrinking lower in her seat, eyes wide with fear.
Giving her brother another small rap on the head with the butt of the spoon, Tsuyu quickly spooned out three bowls of porridge, deliberately giving herself a smaller portion. With a motion of her head, she had Samidare standing up to grab the bowls, sliding one to Satsuki and keeping the other for himself.
Seating herself between her siblings, Tsuyu began eating slowly. “If you used those ears to listen half as well to Mr. Cementos as you do these tall tales, you’d have better grades Samidare.” Turning to her little sister, she offered a gentle smile, “It’s just a made-up story Satsuki.”
Perking up, Satsuki smiled back hesitantly, “Like the princess and frog story you read us?”
“Ugh, not the frog story again!”
Calmly smacking her brother on the back of his head, Tsuyu nodded. “Exactly. If you’re both very good today and you pick lots of berries, I’ll read it to you when you get back. And” she continued, seeing Samidare open to his mouth to complain, “I’ll read a story you pick. Nothing too scary though.”
Satsuki beamed, while Samidare pouted, but both nodded in acquiescence. The three siblings quickly finished breakfast, cleaned up, and got ready for the day under Tsuyu’s careful supervision. Once ready, they trailed out the door, baskets in the younger two’s hands.
“Now, where are you going to pick berries?” Tsuyu asked.
“The western blackberry grove,” Satsuki and Samidare answered.
“Where won’t you go?” Tsuyu continued, staring particularly hard at Samidare.
“Past the old meadow,” her siblings chorused back dutifully.
Noting the scowl on Samidare’s face, Tsuyu tapped his forehead with her finger. “I mean it Samidare. Do not go past the old meadow. There are wild animals past that point and it’s dangerous. You need to look after Satsuki, understand?”
Grumbling, her little brother nodded and reluctantly held his hand out for their little sister’s hand. “See ya later sis,” Samidare tossed over his shoulder as the two began their trek into the forest. Satsuki turned back to wave as long as she could to Tsu before the forest swallowed the younger duo.
“That Samidare.” Tsu sighed. She peered skyward, taking note of the position of the sun and turned toward town hurriedly. Their small home was on the outskirts of town, and it was a good fifteen-minute walk to reach the town square. With the late summer sun shining at her back, Tsu could already feel a light sheen of sweat on her forehead by the time she reached the Red Eye Tavern.
Despite the early hour of the day, the tavern was already bustling with travelers, coming from overnight travels or preparing to set off as early as possible to make it to the next town before nightfall. Tsu skillfully dodged loaded wagons, jumpy horses, and scolding parents chasing their playing children. The last made her heart pinch painfully, but she shoved the feeling aside as she entered through the tavern’s backdoor.
“Good morning Tsu!” two voices called out, drawing Tsu away from her downcast thoughts and pulling a smile to her face.
“Ribbet! Good morning Jiro! Good morning Sato!” she replied, hurrying to grab her apron from the hook by the door. Once she had tied it on over her dress, she made her way to the table where Jiro was peeling potatoes and grabbed a knife to do the same. “How are you this morning?”
Jiro groaned in response, flicking a peel at the pile of discarded potato skins she’d already amassed. “Same old, same old. The old man was caterwauling till near 2 in the morning as usual! And of course, he expects me to be here bright and early to peel potatoes,” she huffed, shaking her knife at the swinging doors between the kitchen and the tavern room.
Tsu let out a series of croaky chuckles. From their point of view, they had a clear view of Hizashi Yamada, more commonly known by his nickname: Present Mic, Jiro’s uncle and one of the co-owners of the Red Eye Tavern, who despite the supposed late hour of “caterwauling,” seemed no worse for wear. He was animatedly talking at Mr. Aizawa, the tavern’s other co-owner and namesake, jabbing his elbow every other phrase into the dark-haired man’s side, while swinging a tankard around in the other.
The purple haired girl grinned at Tsu, glad to have drawn out a laugh from her friend. “How was your morning?” she retorted, skillfully dodging a huffing Sato as he slipped by, arms loaded with fresh loaves.
“The usual,” Tsu replied simply. She paused in her peeling to place a finger thoughtfully on her chin. “This morning Samidare worked Satsuki up in a bit of a frenzy though with some horror story. Something about a beast in the forest.”
“Oh, that old tale?” Jiro said, dumping a basket of carrots onto the table. “Seems like it’s making it’s circuit through this younger set.” Seeing Tsu’s inquisitive look, she shrugged. “I hear things. The tavern is always filled with old gossip and horror stories and after they tell this tale for a good couple of months, it’ll die down then pop up again in a few years’ time.”
Tsu hmm-ed in response. “It would be nice if he wouldn’t tell such stories at home though. Satsuki is going to have nightmares from hearing these kinds of tales.”
“Well, she is seven and Samidare is eleven,” Jiro paused, waiting for Tsu’s nod of confirmation. “They’re growing up, Samidare especially. You remember how boys that age are, always doing stupid things and acting like they’re not afraid of anything. Or being general bullies.” She nudged Tsu with a smirk.
This drew another smile from the green-haired girl, catching the reference. Tsu’s family had settled in the small town of Yueei about six years prior. As an unknown stranger in town, Tsu hadn’t been welcomed very easily into the tightknit band of eleven- and twelve-year-olds who’d known each other throughout their lives. Along with being seen as an outsider, Tsu’s gangly adolescent build and neutral facial expressions had been the target of much teasing, often described as “frog-like” and “ugly.”
The only person who hadn’t made fun of Tsu was another girl in her class, a petit purple-haired girl with slightly longer earlobes, who shied away in the back corner of the class. Adolescent Tsu had noticed Jiro right away, but the two hadn’t had an opportunity to talk until Tsu had come across a small gang of boys bullying Jiro behind the schoolhouse, pulling at the girl’s ears and chanting that she had no family.
Tsu had immediately rushed at the bullies, grabbing a large stick and whipping it around, until the gang had broken up. That day, Tsu had gotten in trouble and gotten a good scolding on why ladies should not fight, but more importantly, she’d also gained a best friend in Jiro Kyoka.
“I certainly hope Samidare doesn’t become a bully. If he does, I’ll whip it out of him,” Tsu said, half-seriously. “How are your parents by the way?”
“They’re doing well. They sent me a letter and I think they made it over to Hosu.” Unlike what the bullies had teased Jiro so long ago about, Jiro did in fact have parents. Both her mother and father were traveling bards and musicians who made their way through towns, entertaining folks far and wide. They had made the decision long-ago that such an unstable environment wouldn’t be the best for their daughter and left Jiro in the care of her uncle.
Before Tsu could do more than nod, Mr. Aizawa’s drole tone called through the swinging doors. “Two breakfast plates. As soon as possible…” The girls shot smiles at the mumble and Tsu scooped up the requested plates from Sato, making her way through the doors into the tavern.
By mid-afternoon, the tavern was jam-packed with hungry and thirsty patrons. Jiro and Tsu rushed back and forth between kitchen and tavern with little pause, while Sato cooked frantically in the back. Even Mr. Aizawa who often sat limpid behind the bar, was on his feet, pouring drink after drink, while Present Mic shuttled the tankards to the tables.
Tsu carefully balanced another tray of dishes on her shoulder as she made her way toward the doors, just as Jiro passed through them. The purple-haired girl stopped her and gestured toward the tavern with raised brows. “They’re here,” she said meaningfully, rolling her eyes. “You okay serving them today?”
“Ribbit,” Tsu nodded with a grimace. She made her way to one of the tables by the window where two familiar figures waited, one blonde with a streak of black and the other with distinctive purple-balled hair.
“Tsu~ I was looking for you and your sexy figure!” the shorter of the two cried in excitement as Tsu plunked the dishes onto the table.
Minoru Mineta, a.k.a. the biggest lecher in town, was notorious in Yueei for a number of things. First, he was the son of the wealthiest merchant in Yueei and could often be seen twirling a bag of coins around his stubby fingers, flaunting his wealth up and down the streets. Second, he was Yueei’s number one pervert. The short young man spent most of his time drooling over women’s bosoms and trying to sneak peeks up their skirts. Given the status of his father in town and with gold to spare, he often got away with such despicable actions. Third, since Tsu had hit her growth spurt at the age of fourteen and become a well-developed young woman, Mineta was tremendously hung up on her.
The short male usually dropped by the Red Eye Tavern at least once a day to use tired old lines on the green-haired girl and stare unabashedly down the front of Tsu’s dress when she put his food and drink down. Today was no different and Tsu could feel Mineta’s lecherous gaze on her chest as she placed the final tankard down.
“Hey, hey! Tsu! How about you and me go for a walk when you’re done with your shift?” Mineta said, leaning his face against his palm, so he could be eye-level with Tsu’s breasts, inadvertently pushing his elbow into a pile of mashed potatoes. His other hand pushed through his grease-laden hair as he blew a kiss at her.
“No thanks,” Tsu quipped, redistributing the dishes left on her tray to even the weight, and turned to go to the next table.
A warm, unwelcome weight brushed against her derriere, causing the girl to pause and turn back. Mineta’s hand was held up, eyes half-drooped in an attempted, seductive look. “Oh, c’mon Tsu. Stop playing coy! I can treat you to anything you want y’know.”
Tsu sucked in a deep breath, resisting the urge to slam her tray into the purple boy. Much as she would have loved to put him in his place, she knew that the clean up wouldn’t be worth it and drawing Mineta’s father’s irritation at the Red Eyed Tavern was the last thing she wanted to do. That however didn’t mean she couldn’t give him a proper tongue lashing.
“No means no. I have no interest in you nor your ill-found money. I am not interested now, nor will I ever be interested in going out with you because you are a disgusting troll. Kindly keep your money and hands away from me.” With that, the green-haired girl, walked away from the table.
“Tsu!”
Tsu paused, turning to look at the other man at the table. Kaminari Denki was a cheerful young man, who despite not being the brightest bulb, was well-known and liked around town. Rumor had it that he had been hit by a bolt of lightening as a child which had changed his then-black hair mostly golden. Tsu had no beef with the blonde aside from the fact that he hung out with Mineta, and she waited for Denki to speak.
“Can you say hi to Jiro for me? I know she’s here,” he said hopefully, raising up in his chair to try and peer into the kitchen.
Tsu smothered a giggle at his eager expression and nodded. “Sure. Enjoy your meal Denki,” she said pointedly to the blonde, not deigning even a look at Mineta. After distributing the rest of the meals to the other patrons, she made her way back to the kitchen, where Jiro was scrubbing dishes.
“How bad was it today?” she asked, rubbing a particularly difficult stain.
“He slapped my butt today,” Tsu stated blandly.
Jiro turned, indignant. “What?! You should tell Mr. Aizawa or uncle! Even if the little wart is filthy rich, that doesn’t give him a pass to harass you like that.”
Tsu reached for one of the cleaned dishes and began drying with a rag, shaking her head. “No, he’s certainly disgusting, but nothing I can’t handle on my own. I would hate to bring trouble to Mr. Aizawa or Present Mic after all they’ve done for me.” Catching Jiro’s concerned gaze, she continued. “If it gets to be a real bother, I’ll let them know. For now, let’s not worry about it, okay?”
Jiro peered at Tsu’s face, assessing, before nodding reluctantly. “More importantly, a certain someone wanted me to say hi to you for him,” Tsu continued, elbowing her friend with a sly grin.
“I-I don’t care that that blonde idiot says hi to me!” Jiro huffed hotly, the tips of her ears shining pink.
“I didn’t even say who it was,” Tsu teased. “I see you knew who your admirer was already though.”
“Tsuuuu,” Jiro whined, flicking water at Tsu, who dodged it with a smile. Hearing another call from Mr. Aizawa, the green-haired girl grabbed the plates prepared by Sato and made her way back out into the fray.
Three hours later found Tsu wiping tables in the tavern. Though there was a slight lull an hour earlier, the early evening crowd had already started to pile in. Straightening up, Tsu peered outside the windows, noting the setting sun and wondered if Samidare and Satsuki were back at their home yet.
“Tsu! Psst,” Jiro hissed from the kitchen doors, waving Tsu over.
Noticing the anxious expression on her friend’s face, Tsu hurried into the kitchen and was surprised to find Satsuki seated at one of the stools in the back. Once she spotted her sister, the child immediately broke into sobs and flung herself at Tsu.
“Shh…shh…” Tsu soothed the younger girl, rubbing her back and settling into the abandoned stool, pulling Satsuki into her lap. Jiro hovered uncertainly, before stepping back into the tavern to pick up the work Tsu had left behind.
Once the two sisters were alone and Satsuki’s cries had quietened, Tsu pulled away to look Satsuki in the face, dabbing at the girl’s face. “What’s wrong Satsuki? And where is Samidare?”
“He…he…he’s gone!” Satsuki wailed, muffling her face into Tsu’s shoulder.
“Gone?” Tsu grasped her sister’s shoulders and consciously kept her voice calm. “What do you mean gone? Tell me everything that happened today.”
It took a few more minutes of comforting Satsuki before the girl spoke. “We were picking berries all morning and we got a lot! We filled all three baskets,” she said proudly, before her expression fell. “Samidare wanted to play tag since we finished early before we went home. We played so long we kinda lost track of time…by the time we got back to the baskets, the sun was already setting.” Here, Satsuki let out another loud sniffle. “That’s when we noticed the cat.”
“A cat? What cat?”
“It was a very naughty cat, Tsu! It grabbed one of the baskets and ran off with it,” Satsuki cried. “And then Samidare chased after it, even though I told him to stop! That’s when he ran into the woods, past the meadow line. I wanted to chase him, but it was so dark and scary, and you told us not to…”
Tsu shushed her sister calmly. “It’s okay Satsuki. You did the right thing to come back here and get me. I’ll go right now to find Samidare. He can’t have gotten far.”
Satsuki grabbed Tsu’s arm and shook her head, protesting. “No! It’s too dangerous Tsu! What about the beast in the forest?”
“It’s just a made-up story Tsuki,” Tsu said, crouching down to stroke her little sister’s forehead reassuringly. “I’ll take Shoji with me and father’s bow just in case. You stay here with Jiro and Sato, and they’ll take good care of you. I’ll be back in no time at all with Samidare.”
“Promise?”
“I promise,” Tsu vowed with a quick hug to her sister. Once Jiro returned, Tsu quickly relayed the story to the purple-haired girl with the same reassurances she’d given Satsuki. She knew that Jiro was reluctant to let her search for Samidare on her own, but given the busy state of the tavern, they couldn’t afford for both girls to run off and both Mr. Aizawa and Present Mic for fully occupied with the tavern’s patrons.
Once Tsu had settled Satsuki down at a table to watch Sato shape biscuits as his “chief biscuit sampler,” she walked out the back, closely followed by Jiro.
“You’re sure you’ll be okay Tsu?” Jiro asked, worry evident in her furrowed brow.
“Ribbit,” Tsu responded assuringly. “If for whatever reason I’m not back by nightfall, please let Mr. Aizawa know. But I don’t want to worry them needlessly since it’s likely Samidare is just off playing in the forest and giving us the runaround. Please take care of Satsuki for me.”
Jiro smiled. “You can count on me Tsu. Satsuki is like a sister to me and if the tavern gets too busy, I’ll grab Koda from the stable to help out. Just get your troublesome brother back here as soon as possible so you can give him a good tongue-lashing.”
The green-haired girl nodded and with a wave of her hand, took off for home and then into the woods.