“It has been some time since I’ve read a story — I have been preoccupied with finding more information about those Infinity Stones…
But now that you’ve reminded me, perhaps I should continue work on the children’s story I’ve been writing. It’s about a poor little wizard boy with Great FLAMING EYEBROWS who must defeat a dangerous foe from his past. Once finished I think it will be a hit.”
Aku watched as the turquoise flames spread along his arm. They brought him no pain, of course, but the heat they produced felt like any other flame. A mortal might find it pretty excruciating.
“Interesting, yes. Does it cause damage or does it simply cause pain?”
“Mhhhhh…” he growled, eyebrows flickering. Aku would not be hiding his daughters but he would be keeping a close watch over them.
“Why should I know who this Annie May is? You explain.”
Aku didn’t like being demonstrated on even if being aflame clearly had no negative effect on him. It was just the principle of the matter. Regardless, he was curious enough to let it be.
“Very well,” he agreed. “Show me.”
Before Cinder entered the room, Aku had caught the scent and was sitting up very straight. Someone had shabu shabu. Aku want. Seconds later, in walked Cinder with the food.
He leaned toward her with big, staring eyes.
“…You’re gonna share that, right?”
To be truthful, Aku had forgotten all about Father’s Day, having only been one for such a short time and never knowing a father of his own. But as Ashi presented him with the drawing—the very first she had made—Aku was struck with an overwhelming sense of fatherly pride.
“EXCELLENT. Yes, child, it pleases me greatly!” Of all the things she could have drawn like ladybugs and stars and fireflies, Ashi had chosen to depict her love for her father. Aku bent low and placed a kiss atop her head, ruffling her hair a bit. “Now then, let us find a place to display it for all to see.”
“If it is as dead as you say, then why are you people bringing it to my attention?! The Almighty Aku does not care about smart phones and apps that imitate the names of plants.”
“What?!” Aku awoke from his nap with a start. “WHO DARES PLACE THEIR LIPS UPON THE MIGHTY—?!”
Oh, it was her. The yokai blinked his eyes groggily, disarmed by the sudden compliment. It wasn’t as if she was wrong about being irresistibly handsome.
“You had better learn to help yourself if you wish to keep your lips in tact.” He grumped, fighting off a yawn.
Aku was intrigued. Though he could set whatever he wanted on fire with just a glance, a self-igniting substance that worked in his absence could prove useful.
“I have not heard of this ability. Would you mind giving a demonstration?”
The Shogun of Sorrow 