57. Throughout the Year
05-11-2024
A/N: Hi guys, I'm back! This is a chapter with 2 short stories set within the year that Senku and the gang built the ship! These ideas come from the suggestions you guys made in the "Before The New Arc Starts" chapter! I might make other short story chapters in the future.
Also, the music isn't for any specific story. It's just music for how I felt as these days passed for them: calm, exciting, new--yet enjoyable. A normal day in the Kingdom of Science.
Q: Anyone doing anything for Mother's day?
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A Day For Cosplay
The air was getting chilly as it had slightly bit at your skin. The leaves were beginning to turn into the warm hue of reds, oranges, yellows, and browns. The cool wind carried the fallen leaves across the country, only to rest at certain periods of time. But despite that, the sky was still clear with puffy white clouds. Fall was upon the Kingdom of Science.
"They're back!"
You looked up at the sky to see Senku, Ryusui, and Chrome coming in through the hot-air balloon. With a wide smile, you waved at them.
"Senku, Ryusui-san, Chrome! How was your journey today?" You called out as they landed near the observatory.
"It was great! Look at what we found, (Y/N)!" Chrome shouted as he held up something large and round, running up to you like an elated child.
You looked at it and recognized the massive, orange produce. "Wow, you guys found pumpkins! We can make more food with this!"
"Too bad we can't have any of those pumpkin spice lattes that were popular back in the day," Senku chuckled as he came up to you.
"Well, we can cut it open so we could make something like pumpkin pie!" you told him with a smile.
"Oh! I wanna try that!" Chrome exclaimed with excitement. "What is a 'pie,' anyway?!"
"A classic dessert worth eating!" The sailor answered his question with a tasteful grin on his face.
The three men followed you as you happily ran over to the laboratory to get Senku's different tools so you could cut it open. As you cut it open with the help of the others, they would take the insides that were scooped out and place it in a clean bucket. While they cleaned it, you took it upon yourself to dispose of the outer layer. That is, until you had an idea.
"Ta-da, a stone world Jack-o-lantern!" You showed off your carved pumpkin that you cut up with your blade. The boys exited the lab to see your new creation.
"What a coincidence," Senku chuckled as he placed his hand over the large gourd.
"Coincidence?" You wondered.
"Yes! Halloween is tomorrow! A day for dressing up and partying of the like!" Ryusui exclaimed with a grin.
You widened your (E/C) eyes, then let out a groan. "Man, I really need a calendar. I can't keep track of the days in my head like you guys can. But...do you want to dress up like old times?"
"Of course! We can ask Yuzuriha to make some costumes and we can sell it for drago!" The sailor gladly offered with a grin.
Your eyes lidded with disbelief; eyebrows furrowed and mouth curling downward. You then turned to Senku to say something about that behavior of using Yuzuriha for profit. But the look on his face had shown you that he also had the same idea.
Taking your hand, you chopped it down on his head, splitting his spiked hair in half. His evil grin faded when he saw your expression of displeasure. "Don't put too much work on Yuzuriha just for profit."
"Fine, fine, I won't put too much on her," Senku agreed to your request.
~~~
"Welcome to Yuzuriha's Halloween fashion show, featuring the Five Wise Generals!"
The "Five Wise Generals" and a few others were standing behind the stage as Yuzuriha had prepared their clothing. It was dark outside, and your only sources of light were the moon and the spotlights overhead. Meanwhile, the chosen host of the show was the only other person with enough charisma to match Gen.
"I am your host, (Y/N) (L/N), and I'll be announcing all these new apparel for you to see!" You loudly revealed to the crowd that surrounded the stage. You started walking to the front end as you continued speaking, "Before I begin, I will explain to those who don't know what Halloween is. It had different celebrations around the world depending on culture and religion. In some parts, kids would go out in scary costumes to get candy! In other places, it is a day that marks the eve of All Saints Day, a day where you honor the dead. But in Japan, it's a holiday where we party!"
"Can we get candy?" You heard some children ask from the crowd.
With a grin, you replied, "Yep, after the show! You'll get more if you wear something though! That's why we're showing off our new costumes!"
As the first person started walking through, you looked to see that it was Haru going first. You immediately held in a laugh when they came out. This was because you could tell that this raven-haired child had the intention of scaring some kids--they had a red-faced mask with a long nose and big eyes.
"First up, we have a tengu, a sky yokai that plays pranks and punishes priests or monks that are bad! They also hate vain and arrogant samurai! So make sure you kids are good or else they'll attack you!" You shouted at the crowd.
Haru then ran up to the front of the runway with black monk clothing, spreading their dark wings out for everyone to see. They got close and personal with the children in front, which caused them to scream in terror. The adults found it quite amusing. As they shook the metal staff they held, the young warrior let out a loud noise, "RAHHH! YOU KIDS BETTER NOT ACT BAD OR I'LL GET YOU!"
"So they say!" You said with a grin. Before Haru headed back, the both of you gave each other a thumbs-up for the performance.
Next was Chrome. He barged through the curtains and ran down the runway with a grin on his face. He wore a brown jinbei and had a green scarf on his neck. With brown ears and a tail, he had blades wrapped on his arms with cloth. "Look, I'm a kamaitachi!"
You let out a snicker before talking, "As Chrome said, he's a weasel with blades for arms. They ride the wind and cut your legs to suck out your blood! Be careful on these windy days!"
Now up next was Ukyo. With fake, white ears and a fake tail, he donned a short, yellow scarf with a matching colored haori. He also had striped top and brown hakama pants as the base.
"Here we have Ukyo dressed up as a classic 'nekomata,' a yokai that terrorizes humans and eats them! They can grow into different sizes and stand on their two hind legs!" You explained as you pointed at him. "But unlike normal yokai, this one is pretty harmless!"
"Hey now..." the white-haired man said with sweat rolling down his temples.
The villagers seemed to understand the concept a bit better after seeing the three costumes. Many thought he looked quite cute rather than scary though.
Soon, a boastful laugh was heard from behind the curtain. Out came Ryusui, who was wearing golden robes around his waist, as well as baggy black pants and a sleeveless shirt. He had toe-less socks with beads around his ankle and neck, as well as a gold pendant and beads hanging from his neck. Two horns were sticking out from his head, as well as a fluffy yellow tail.
"Like his name, Ryusui is dressed up as Ryujin, the dragon god of the sea! He ruled over the waters and blessed this land with gifts. But if he's displeased, he would send heavy floods or even take humans away!" You explained to them as you waved your arms around, making your dialogue extremely dramatic.
"HAHAH! Bow down to me!" Ryusui cried out with the snap of his fingers. He then looked over to you and winked. "How about you become the Dragon Queen, huh, (Y/N)?"
"Haha, no," you replied with a fake laugh, then turned back to the crowd as he left the stage. "Anyways, don't you dare displease this god or else he'll take you away from your families!"
Suddenly, a wave of smoke started coming out from the bottoms of the curtains. It spread out from the back to the front of the stage, giving the show an eerie feeling.
"Oya, oya, seems like this is a problem, isn't it?" You heard a voice come from the middle of the runway. As the spotlight shone down on the person, you saw that it was Gen, who was sporting a white and purple exorcist costume. With that, he had white fox-like ears and a bushy tail. In a mischievous tone, he spoke up, "Well, this is no issue for me~"
You then started to speak with a tone that mirrored his, "As a sly man, it fits that Gen is the evil version of a kitsune spirit, a yako. Unlike your kind fox, this one likes to play tricks on humans for their own amusement, as well as change into different things. So be careful when you approach them~"
Despite Gen leaving the stage after showing off, the smoke didn't clear and it appeared to be getting thicker. Soon, another figure showed themselves, but approached you rather than the crowd.
"How does my costume look, slowpoke?" You heard a whisper in your ear, startling you.
You turned to the voice to see Senku standing next to you. However, when you looked at what he was wearing, you face darkened due to how handsome he looked. It's a good thing that the smoke covered everything. "S-Senku! You're dressed up as... an oni?! A really good-looking one too!"
"Huh?! Am I not scary?" The boy furrowed his eyebrows in annoyance. But you weren't lying to him. Despite having tiny horns on his head to show off his yokai appearance, he wore a loose, pine-colored yukata with a dark green haori. Around his abdomen, there were white wrappings that stopped just below his exposed chest. He wore a necklace that had three, red tomoe, and a sake bottle hung from his waist.
You looked away from him with a slight smile on your face and a hand nearly covering your mouth. "No, it's kinda hot, actually..."
"Are you frickin' kidding me..." the scientist sighed as he placed a palm on his head. But under the moonlight, you could see his ears turning red in embarrassment. It was quite adorable. "Well, time to make it scary then."
"Wait what--" Before you could even say anything, he wrapped one arm around your neck and used all his strength to pull you down to the floor, your back facing the floor. This caused you to yelp out, and the crowd let out some concerned whispers. You pushed yourself up with your elbows, and he started smearing a red liquid over his hand and on his lower face, then all over your neck. "Senku, what the hell are you doing?!"
"Making it look like I kill you for fun," he let out an devilish laugh as he looked down at you. It only got louder as he waved his arm around to let the one clear. Everyone's eyes were dead set on the two of you as the lights shone down. The sudden brightness caused you to close your eyes, and Senku spoke, "Kukuku, how's this for a Halloween night?!"
"DID SENKU JUST MURDER (Y/N)?!"
"HE'S A MONSTER!"
"NOOO (Y/N)!"
You then heard Gen laughing with a few others in the back as the children cried. He came up to the runway and began to explain, "Senku-chan is a real oni, alright! His wickedness flowered from his soul and he became a man-eating demon~! So you better be good, dear children~!"
You started letting out soft laughs as you listened to everything going on. Senku let go of you as you opened your eyes, and you stood up to bow. "Hope you liked the fashion show! We'll be handing out some candy that we made for you kiddos now! But make sure to visit Senku's Department Store to look at more of Yuzuriha's works!"
All the young kids cheered and walked to the front of the stage, and you and the Five Wise Generals handed each one of them some bags full of hardened sugar drops. Thus, came the end of the fashion show. Or so you thought.
"Oh, there's another costume, right there!"
All of you looked behind to see a tall woman wearing a white nagajuban with blood all over her top half. Her long, dark hair covered her face, and she was limping across the stage. Small groans and grunts were heard with each step she took. Through her strands of hair, it looked as if her eyes were glowing.
"Who is wearing that?" You wondered, then turned to the others, who had shocked looks on their faces. This caused sweat to drip down your head. "...guys?"
Senku immediately grabbed your hand and ran off, leaving the others behind as you heard then screaming at him in disbelief.
~~~
"Alright, why'd you drag me away like that? Was it because you were scared?" You laughed as the two of you walked around a forest clearing.
"No. It was obvious that it was your old hag dressing up to scare the kids. I heard the brat talking with her and Yuzuriha before the show," Senku replied with a smug expression. "I just wanted to take you out here so we can eat some of these together. We're not about parties."
He handed you a small bag, and you opened it to find the same candies you've given to the children. They were like colorful, little marbles all bunched up together.
"Wow, very romantic, Senku," you said with a slight giggle. You plucked one candy from the bag and raised it up high to see it shine against the stars. Then, you held it next to his mouth. "Say 'ahh'..."
He grabbed your arm, then opened his mouth to bite down on the candy and on your fingers. As he pulled away, he picked his lips, causing your face to heat up. He looked way too good, especially since he still had a bit of "blood" on his face.
"Sweeter than I expected..." he mentioned.
"Y-Yeah, well, I hope you don't mean me, considering that you also tasted my hands," you quietly admitted.
An evil smirk appeared on his face, similar to that of an actual oni. "Oh? Do you want me to eat you then?"
"Senku, stop it, you weirdo!" You said as you smacked the top of his head with a heavily, darkened face.
"Ack, I'm just kidding!"
-End of Short Story #1-
A/N: Bottom images are what I used for reference. Haru's outfit is what Hyoga is wearing because he's in jail still. Also, I has to do so much research to find out what they were dressing up as. It was kinda hard considering there's a lot of yokai.
( ï¿£-ï¿£)
Also I know that some of you wanted the Sophie/Howl costumes but I'm actually saving that for a very special chapter <3
Monthly Cycles
It was a beautiful day outside. The birds were singing and the flowers were blooming. The bright sun was shining down on the Kingdom of Science in the early morn. On days like this, with people like you...
"...am in hell..." you muttered as you curled up under the blankets.
It was the season of spring, where all life begins to come anew. But not for all. You may be full of life, but this week was a week of hell.
Senku was sitting next to you as he watched your balled up figure underneath the covers you both shared in the observatory. He sighed and asked, "Period?"
"Period," you bluntly replied, peeking your eye out from below the cloth.
"Alright. Let me get the extra rags," he told you as he got up from his spot.
"Thank you, love," you said. Before he climbed down the ladder, you called out, "Senku, I want sweets...can you make something sweet for me?"
He raised his eyebrows, then rubbed the back of his head. "Cravings already? Okay, just wait a bit longer then."
The boy then left you alone in the observatory to get the things you needed and requested. Kohaku and the others were in the village and had met up with him in the fine morning.
"Hello, Senku-chan! I see that (Y/N)-chan isn't with you this morning~" Gen greeted, smiling before him.
"She still sleeping in?" Kohaku queried with a grin.
The scientist looked at the mentalist and lioness with a pained groan, then started heading toward the little village supply hut. "She's out of commission for the next few days. It's that time of the month again."
The blonde girl cringed in acknowledgement as she heard that. She completely understood what you were going through. Meanwhile, Gen just frowned in pity. The man asked as he steadily started following the green-haired boy, "Oh...how is she?"
"She's just stuck in the observatory and already asking for sweets," said Senku. "Usually, she'd be fine if it were her normal ones, but this time, it's especially bad."
Kohaku then questioned him, "Senku, I've never brought this up, but how were our cycles dealt with in the modern world? Using rags and cleaning thoroughly is all we've been taught, but science surely has made something for us, right?"
"They're not much different from now, but how we dealt with them was improved thanks to science. We actually had safer painkillers and disposable items for your flow," he replied as he was able to get a bunch of cloth for you. Gen and Kohaku helped him carry a few baskets worth of them.
Your boyfriend continued as they walked back to the observatory, "There were times where you could get medication to stop it or slow it down. Implants of many kinds and organ-removing surgeries could also be done. But each one of these had several different side effects depending on the severity."
"I could imagine how removing your organs can have severe side effects..." the lioness shivered.
The scientist added, "Yeah, well, some people with menstrual cycles got it tough."
Gen let out a sad sigh. "Poor (Y/N)-chan..."
When the three of them were nearing the foot of the observatory, Ryusui and Francois were already at the bottom. They were both looking up at the building, as if they were waiting for you.
"Oi, sailor! What's going on?" Senku called out to him.
The man spotted him and grinned. "Ah, Senku! Our dear (Y/N) called for Francois and is requesting some food! She requested for them to make some desserts! Mainly faux chocolate!"
"Don't just give her sweets. Her blood sugar may be lower than normal, but it'll cause inflammation," the scientist informed them both. "Less salt, too, if possible."
The blonde butler nodded. "Understood. What are the nutrients that she needs the most?"
"What she needs most is iron, zinc, and magnesium...though since she's in pain, Omega-3 would be good, too," said Senku as he placed his hand under his chin to think about your needs.
Francois nodded and bowed. "Understood. Then, I shall make beef bourguignon and baked fish fillet, as well as faux chocolate truffles for a dessert."
"Sounds good to me," the scientist grinned with satisfaction. He was grateful now that Francois was around to make meals that could help you in your time of need. Whatever he made, it wasn't enough to fulfill your desires or it was not nutritious.
"Sounds super delicious as well!" Ryusui exclaimed with a smirk.
Your boyfriend then went up the observatory to bring you the clean rags, as well as some fruits he picked up on the way.
"Slowpoke, I brought you some fruits for you to eat to help with your sweet tooth for the time being. Also got the rags to keep yourself clean," Senku informed you.
He placed the basket off to the side, then sat next to you, holding an orange up against the blanket you were under. From underneath it, you snatched it out of his hand like a rat, but quickly rolled it back. You muttered in a sad tone, "It's not peeled..."
"Right, right, I'll peel it for you." The boy as he took the fruit back to peel the skin away. He gave you the other ones, which you quickly took hold of.
"She looks like a hermit," said Gen, causing Kohaku to elbow him.
"Don't say that. You should know how delicate we are!" The lioness chided, causing the man to have sweat drop down his temples.
Unfortunately for her, you heard what he said. You popped your head out from underneath the blankets with an aggravated expression on your face. "If anyone is a hermit, it's you when you're alone with your prescious cola! You always leave work just to go drink!"
Senku, Ryusui, and Kohaku then turned to Gen, who was suddenly growing nervous with sweat dripping down his temples. Then, he had put his arms up in defense. "You have to understand, (Y/N)-chan! I'm only trying to rehydrate myself!"
"That's what water is for!" You chastised the man as you threw your own water bottle at him, only for the lioness to catch the bottle in her hands.
"Ah, look at what you did, mentalist. You provoked her," Senku chuckled as he handed you the newly-peeled orange. "Hey slowpoke, let's go to the hot springs when you're feeling better so you can clean up and feel relaxed."
Your eyes lit up almost immediately after hearing him speak to you. But wrapping yourself up in the blanket, you replied, "Tomorrow. I don't feel like it..."
-The Next Day-
"Isn't this nice?" Senku asked you as he was squatting over the edge of the water.
"Hehe, yeah..." you softly replied with bubbles coming out of your mouth. You soaked your entire body in the hot spring with only the top half of your head sticking out. You didn't wear anything but underwear so the water could help with any tenderness you felt.
"And you're happy that you can eat here, right?" He added.
Lifting your head up, you nodded, looking at all the food that Francois had made for you. They had laid it on a nice blanket so that you could eat whenever you wanted to get out of the water. The others had left before Senku did to do their tasks for the day to keep you relaxed.
He smiled, knowing you were relaxed. "Since you're feeling better, I'll get going now--"
"No!" You cried out and immediately stood up to grab his ankle.
"Oi, you're almost naked. I thought you didn't like showing off," the green-haired boy joked, then turned his head and saw your furrowed eyes and a large frown on your face. "W-Why do you look so angry...?"
"You are always off doing something related to science, so you need to take a break!" You scolded him.
Oh my god, Senku thought and sighed as he pinched the bridge of his nose.
The second day was always the worst. Pain was almost always at its highest on this day, while emotions fluctuated the most. He then felt himself get dragged backwards, and saw that you had wrapped your arms around his body, pressed against his back. The amount of decency and care you had was out the window, apparently.
"Plus, I want you to stay with me. You said before, we haven't had much time to spend together lately..." you mumbled against his back.
The boy looked down and sighed. He knew that, yet he still tried to leave. Senku the turned around and placed his hands on your shoulders tightly. "Alright. I'll stay with you."
Your eyes lit up and the frown turned upside-down. "Yay, thank you, love! Then, you feed me, okay--"
The boy then shoved you backwards into the water. With an evil smirk, he told you "Kukuku, you're still naked, you know. Stay there until you put some clothing on. You don't want anyone to see you, right?"
Your body shot up from the water, in which he saw your darkened face. "Yeah, but that doesn't mean you have to push me! Are you trying to get yourself killed?"
"But are you really gonna kill me? Nah, I'd live," he said smugly with a shrug. This scientist was really doing what he could to push your buttons. "Your irrational feelings for me is gonna keep me alive until this is over."
Suddenly, you crouched down into the water with an annoyed look on your face. You clutched your stomach and stayed put.
"Cramps?"
"Cramps."
"Jeez, this is gonna be a long week..."
-End of Short-Story #2-
A/N: Hey guys, I hope you enjoyed this short story too! Obviously, next week will be the introduction to the Treasure Island Arc. I have so much planned for that, so stay tuned!
Originally, I was going to have more short stories, but I'll probably do them on my own time.