🥀 ─ MISTRESS OF MELANCHOLY. . .PART ONE
˚ ༘ * LADY ZEN'IN PRESENTS. . .
CROWN PRINCE YUUJI stumbles upon his father, KING RYOMEN SUKUNA'S, most favored concubine; he finds that there is more to her, underneath all that melancholy, than first appears.
ryomen sukuna x concubine!fem!reader, prince yuuji & concubine!fem!reader kidnapping, threats of violence, trueform!sukuna, mentions of child abuse, hunting, and slaughter
tag(s) mistress of melancholy 🥀
RYOMEN SUKUNA, the King of Curses and Poisons, ruled over the lands of his empire with an iron fist. There were not many in his domain that did not fear him or worship him as a god. From his temple, appropriately named the Malevolent Shrine, he dwelled with an army of servants to tend to his comfort, guards to protect his home, and concubines to keep his bed warm.
The king did not leave his sanctuary unless there was an uprising or unrest in his lands, which did not happen often. Many of the lords had extended invitations to the king, but they all declined or never even received an answer. He only held hearings for the peasants every year or so, and since they were expected to keep their heads bowed the entire time, they did not catch a glimpse of the king — unless they wanted to be beheaded.
As such, not many had ever laid eyes on the king outside the others who lived in his temple, and those who did often did not live long to tell the tale.
The appearance of the king was a mystery to many, reported to have four arms, two faces, and a mouth on his stomach amongst many other oddities. Some said he became more curse than human with all those he had slaughtered, maimed, and tortured — accounting for his monstrous appearance. Many thought, as no one dared say aloud, that it was because of how cruel he was that the king was not able to conceive a child, despite the many women he had warming his bed every night, many of whom wanted to give him a child — whether for the wealth, status, or power that came with it.
Only one had been able to do so in all the years that Sukuna had ruled, thus his only son and heir, Prince Yuuji, was also a mystery to the peasants of the land he would one day inherit; though, his birth somewhat put any thoughts of the king’s impotence to rest.
The young crown prince was the spitting image of his father without the almost grotesque additions. With hair the color of blush, pair skin, and light brown eyes (only different in color to his father’s which were red), there was no doubt of who had fathered the child.
While doubts of the king’s virility were put to rest with the birth of the prince, new rumors began to emerge because of how similar to his father he looked. There were faint whispers that Sukuna had him born from cursed energy, and not from a woman for that was another secret of the temple: who the young prince’s mother was. Not very many people knew, not even Prince Yuuji himself.
The absence of a mother made the young prince curious in his young years as to who it was who gave birth to him. There were so many concubines that occupied the castle that he thought it would be anyone of them — or his mother could even be dead for all he knew. It was not as if he could simply ask his father, the king was not so open about such things — or anything.
Perhaps it was the lack of mother in his life that caused the young princling to rebel from the maids who tended to him, seeking to give them a bit of a fright by running off to hide in various places in the temple — the kitchens, the bath–houses, the gardens. . .
Often, it took his maids hours to find him, and it only served to make the prince more curious to see how long he could be amiss. Oblivious to the punishments his maids received when the king found out, Prince Yuuji escaped from his maids once more and into the gardens of the temple on a sunny afternoon during his fifth year of life. Little did the prince know, he was not allowed in the gardens that he happened upon for there was a secret there.
It was there that he saw her for the first — a woman of great beauty wrapped in a silk kimono the color of red wine with the saddest face the prince had ever seen. She almost looked as regal as a queen would with her straight posture and intricate hairstyle.
She was sitting by a koi pond with a parasol above her head, held by a servant of the temple — or so the prince guessed from how she was dressed. The lady’s eyes were focused on the book that sat delicately in her lap, and so it was not surprising that she did not notice the presence of the young prince. He was very light on his feet, even more so when he was sneaking away from his maids.
He watched her for a long while as she gazed down at the text, seemingly so lost in the pages, looking as though she was far away from the temple. He would have mistaken her for a statue with how still she was; it was only the gentle rise and fall of her chest as she breathed and the way her delicate fingers would turn the page every so often that indicated she was a real person.
The prince was certain she was a concubine of his father’s from the way she was dressed — as no servant would be able to dress in such a way without punishment even if they had enough coin to do so — which they would not.
While the prince was uncertain how many lovers his father had, he had seen many of them, and this one was not familiar to him. He recalled faintly the mention of the king’s most favored concubine who had all the luxuries she could ever want. The others were jealous of her and her ability to enrapture the king as such, she was often a topic they discussed — or so Prince Yuuji heard from the gossip his maids did not bother keeping from his little ears.
Even as he got lost in thought, the prince made sure that his presence was undetected. He knew his father would be most wroth to hear he had interfered with his favorite concubine.
Perhaps, the woman would never have known that the young prince had stumbled upon her domain within the temple if it were not for the unexpected, rather loud arrival of his maid. She clumsily stumbled out of the temple’s interior with a shrill cry as she spotted him within the lush flowers he hid in; so relieved to have found her charge, she called, “Prince Yuuji!”
There was no one in the gardens who did not hear the maid, and the little prince could only watch as the sad lady’s eyes snapped to the screaming woman, and then darted around before landing on him. For a moment, the melancholy vanished from her face and was replaced with recognition then horror in a flash.
Alas, both emotions were gone as quickly as they came and the lady looked away. She bowed her head and stood up, leaving the gardens with a flutter of her long–sleeves. She was followed quickly by the woman who was holding that parasol above her head; for some reason, she seemed familiar to the prince though he was not certain from where he recognized her.
As the sad lady made her escape, the prince also tried to run off. His endeavors were fruitless as he was taken into the arms of his maid who began to scold him for running away once again. He missed that there were almost tears in the maid’s eyes and the fear that was etched into her expression as he tried to squirm out of her grasp.
Prince Yuuji did not hear a word, cutting her off and asking, “Yuki, who was that lady?”
“Lady Itadori?” Yuki asked in reply; she seemed surprised and nervous, which did not get past her charge, “She. . .She is one of the king’s concubines. . .His favorite if the gifts and luxuries she is showered with can be any indication. Those gardens are her own private gardens, no one is allowed in them.”
“If she is my father’s favorite concubine, why is she so sad?” Prince Yuuji wondered as he peaked over his maid’s shoulder, catching a glimpse of the sad woman’s back before she disappeared into a different part of the temple. He just missed the way she had glanced back as well.
“That is not my story to tell,” Yuki replied resolutely as her grip on the crown prince tightened, “And it is none of your concern. Do you know what the king would do if he found out you were asking such questions?”
The prince barely knew his father, even if he could see how frightening he was, so he shrugged. His little eyes looked forward as they entered the temple, coming across Uraume as they did so. The person looked relieved to see the prince in the arms of his maid, saying, “Good, you found him. If it had been any longer, we would have had to inform the king.”
Before the maid could reply, another voice came from down one of the corridors, “Informed me of what?”
“My king,” Uraume immediately bowed in submission, the maids following their lead; only Prince Yuuji did not, not that he could as he was still in the arms of Yuki, “The little prince had run off again, nothing unusual. He was found before any damage would be done.”
“Is that so?” Sukuna questioned as his four red eyes fell on his son; he didn’t look convinced if the way his eyes narrowed was any indication, “Because I was just visiting Lady Itadori when I found her returning to her chambers, quite spooked. She said the prince had been in her private gardens.”
Uraume’s fist clenched as they said, “I apologize for Lady Itadori’s distress, but I was not with Yuki when she found the prince, so I cannot say what was the cause of her fright.”
Yuki placed the prince on the ground and kneeled so far that her head was touching the floor as she said, “I apologize, my king. Prince Yuuji had run off to the gardens, Lady Itadori’s gardens to be exact. I do not know how he got there, but Lady Itadori saw him and — ”
“Enough,” the king replied with a raise of his upper left hand; his lower pair of arms were crossed over his chest, “I did not ask for your pitiful excuses. Lady Itadori has already told me what happened, she even begged me to spare your life, that you meant no harm. Who am I to deny my flower’s wishes?”
The maid wept as she thanked the king, saying, “Lady Itadori is most gracious, as is Your Grace — ”
“Next time,” Sukuna hummed, cutting the woman off, “I will not be so merciful. Lose my son again, and you will pay with your life. What else are you here for but to watch over him?”
“Yes, my king,” the maid said, trembling visibly with fear, “I understand.”
“Good,” the king looked bored as he said it; he turned his eyes to the prince once more, “What makes you think that you could just enter parts of the temple you are not permitted into, boy?”
The crown prince felt fear creep up his throat as he said, “I apologize, Father. I did not know the gardens were restricted, I will not enter them again.”
Sukuna was silent for a moment before he gave a nod and said, “You will begin your training tomorrow. No more of this coddling, you will become a warrior.”
“Yes, Father,” the boy muttered, bowing his head in submission and saying what his maids taught him, “As you say.”
Sukuna looked to Uraume and spoke, “Make certain the prince is returned to his chambers; I think a night with no supper will make him understand.”
“Yes, my king,” Uraume said obediently, “Consider it done.”
The King of Curses left without another word, leaving a seed of fear planted in his son’s heart. He finally understood why his maids were so afraid of his father’s wrath.
Lady Itadori was well–aware of what was whispered about her throughout the corridors of the king’s temple; she knew well that she was called his favorite concubine and his saddest. One of the maids told her that she was called the “Sad Lady of the Temple” and “The Mistress of Melancholy” by the other servants.
While they were rumors, they were also true, just as real as the jealousy that the other concubine’s harbored for her — yet never acted upon. No one ever went against the king’s word which was law. One of his many rulings was that no one was allowed to enter her gardens, along with the rest of her private dwellings that he had given her six years prior, without permission — save himself.
Thus, it was an understatement to say that she was beyond surprised when she saw a young maid run into the gardens unannounced and yelling for the crown prince. It was only as she realized he was there that she started to look around — his eyes peeking out through a patch of pink flowers that complemented his hair.
She felt a sense of horror as she spotted tufts of pink sticking out from one of the flower beds before a pair of brown eyes poked out of the petals, looking directly at her. She couldn’t hold the young prince’s gaze and bowed her head, almost as if in submission or defeat.
She faintly heard her faithful servant — Junko — who had been holding a parasol above her head, calling for her, but she didn’t listen. She did the only thing she could think of.
She fled.
Junko followed after her as she slid open the shoji door on the opposite side of the garden from where the prince was, casting only a singular glance back at the boy before she stepped inside; he was clearly being scolded by his maid as he tried to escape from her grasp.
Junko followed briskly, making sure to carefully close the door behind her lady as she did so.
Yet the lady she served seemed to only want to get back to her chambers as quickly as possible. She moved down the hall as quickly as her tight, restricting kimono would allow her, using muscle memory to lead her towards her chamber — which proved to be one of her mistakes.
She collided with a solid mass blocking her path; she stumbled back in surprise, almost falling if it were not for a pair of hands wrapping around her waist to steady her.
She knew those hands — and the owner of them — all too well from the black designs tattooed into the tanned flesh and the familiar sound of a body falling to the floor as Junko bowed in submission — prostrating herself.
For a moment, Lady Itadori did not know what to say as she gazed up into the king’s red eyes. If she were anyone else, she would be dead for certain, but she was offered the chance to correct her mistake — which she did by bowing her head in submission and saying, “My king.”
The hands wrapped around her waist remained as another hand tucked a fallen strand of hair behind her ear while the other tapped her chin, forcing her to look up. She was once again met with the sharp gaze of Ryomen Sukuna as he said, “My flower, what are you in such a rush for?”
Before she could mask her emotions, apologize for her disarray, or assure her king that everything was alright, she let out a sob. Even Sukuna seemed to be taken aback as the lady let her head fall into his chest, and she said, “I saw him. I saw the prince.”
“The prince?” Sukuna hummed, seemingly unperturbed; if she did not know him better, she would have assumed he truly was, “How did you see the prince?”
“He–He was in the gardens, my gardens,” she muttered in reply, lifting a hand to wipe a tear from her cheek quickly, “He must have escaped from his maids — ” Lady Itadori suddenly stopped and said, “I apologize, my king. I do not mean to trouble you with — ”
“Quiet now,” the king ordered gruffly; she saw a flash of something behind his eyes, “I am going to go deal with those pesky maids who can’t even watch over a child. You will return to your chambers and wait for me there.”
The woman seemed to understand exactly how Sukuna was going to punish the women in charge of caring for the prince.
Not being able to bear the thought, she rested her hands on the king’s broad chest and looked up at him, saying, “Please, my king. Do not harm them, I couldn’t bear to know I was the cause of — ”
She was hushed once more as the king rested his hand over the back of her head and said, “Do not worry your pretty little head, my flower. I shall not be too harsh with them.”
It was only then that the lady relaxed and sighed, “I will return to my chambers now, Your Grace.”
The king released his concubine after a long pause and nodded; the woman did not look back as they parted ways. She immediately made her way towards her chambers, sliding open the door and barely making it to her bed before she collapsed, sobbing into the sleeve of her kimono.
Junko called her name with worry. Her real name, her first name, given to her by her father and mother, as she came to her side and embraced her. It almost felt odd, it had been many years since anyone called her that in such a worried, loving tone.Allowing herself the comfort, the lady sobbed into her maid’s shoulder, barely hearing the gentle hushes whispered in her ear as she cried, “I want to go home! I want to go home now!”
Uraume remained with the little prince for the rest of the day, ensuring that he did not escape. It was by direct orders from the king that the cook watched over Prince Yuuji or else they would have occupied themselves with preparing a meal that would surely please the king after the events of earlier.
Alas, Uraume had been informed that the king was spending the rest of his day with Lady Itadori in her private section of the temple — the south wing. They had heard from the servants that the lady was crying before Sukuna arrived, but it ceased soon after. The cook could only imagine what the king was doing to console his mistress.
Along with thinking of the king, Uraume was preoccupied with the intent stare that the prince had been giving them since they announced they would be taking care of the prince for the rest of the day. It was only when the prince was being settled into bed that the monk said, “I will allow you to ask me one question about whatever is on your mind. I will answer truthfully.”
The prince was silent for a moment before he said, “Why is Lady Itadori so sad?”
“She misses her home,” Uraume replied simply, “She is homesick, my prince.”
“Homesick?” Prince Yuuji perked up, “Where is her home?”
Uraume looked at him for a moment and then said, “I answered your question, my prince. Now you must stop with your curiosities, and keep what you have learned to yourself. You will have a long day tomorrow. You do not want to disappoint your father, do you?”
The little prince shook his head and said, “No, I do not.”
“Good,” Uraume said, “I will cook you something good for when you break your fast tomorrow, if that pleases you.”
“It does,” the prince allowed, “Good night, Uraume.”
“Good night,” the monk said, “My prince.”
Prince Yuuji dreamt of pink flowers and a sad face that night.
Prince Yuuji understood that he should take his father’s threat seriously, and that the king was not one to be messed with or disobeyed. Yet, the crown prince could not help but be intrigued by the well—dressed lady he had seen on his last escape attempt. He had never seen such a sad woman before nor such a beautiful one. He felt the need to see her again — especially after learning the reason for her sadness.
So, at the age of five years old, he made a plan that he thought was quite wise for someone his age. He would not run away from his maids during the day, instead he would seek out the sad woman at night when his maids were asleep and the only people awake were the guards. He would just have to make certain that the guards did not see him.
It took a whole fortnight for the little prince to find the courage to carry out his little plan. In that time, he had started to be trained by his father who had a brutal way of molding his son into being a warrior as skilled as he was. It was for that reason that the prince ached all over as he sat up in bed on the night he planned to sneak away.
The moon was high in the sky, casting a faint glow into the room, just enough light to allow the prince to see that his maids were all sound asleep. He smiled triumphantly as he carefully pushed off the blankets he was tucked into and carefully slid onto the floor. The padding of his feet were muffled by the tatami mat on the floor.
Prince Yuuji had only spared his maids one look before he carefully slid open the door and made his escape. He decided that he would start in the gardens he had found the sad lady in, exploring the rooms around it in hopes that he would find the one that belonged to the lady.
It was night time, and the only light was cast by the moon from where it remained high in the sky. The prince was able to make out the little pathways between the flower beds that were filled with little stones that hurt his feet to walk over. He beared through the pain with a determined look on his face as he momentarily delayed his plans.
He moved towards the koi pond where he could make out some of the beautifully colored fish and pretty lily pads that were bright green and pink; the edges of the water were surrounded by stones that were smooth and large, offering his bare feet some relief.
The prince remained there for some time, admiring the scene; he was tempted to take a seat on the wooden bench where Lady Itadori had once sat. It was beautifully painted red with gold lines that looked almost like the tattoos his father bore.
He did not dwell on the fact for long as he was reminded that he needed to complete his mission before sunrise which was only a couple of hours away. He returned to the stone path, recalling the door that the lady went through after she fled the gardens.
He faintly heard the smacking of heavy feet on the ground — guards patrolling. He waited for them to grow distant, knowing that they often patrolled a whole hallway or section of the temple so he would have a short amount of time where he could enter without being seen.
Prince Yuuji recalled that his father said he happened upon the lady while he was on his way to her chambers. He took the chance that they were somewhere near the gardens as he slid the door open. He entered and closed it once more. Once he had, he looked both ways to make sure that there were no guards.
As he was scanning the area, he saw an ornately painted door with blooming roses painted all over it. He could only assume that it was the sad lady’s room, and took a chance on it. He moved quickly towards it before getting on his knees to slide the door open.
He didn’t bother to look inside before entering and closing the door behind him — knowing that the guards would have caught him if he waited too long.
Prince Yuuji turned his head once he was certain the door was closed only to find the sad lady sitting by an opening on the other side of the door which looked out at the mountain the temple was located on. This time, the lady was aware of the prince’s presence from the moment he entered the chamber, and she quickly gasped, dropping the book that was in her hands.
“Sad lady?” Prince Yuuji questioned gently, “I didn’t mean to frighten you.”
“Prince Yuuji. . .” the woman muttered in response, placing a hand over her breast, “What are you doing here? So late?”
“I wanted to see you,” the prince said with a shrug.
“You should not be here, my prince,” Lady Itadori replied; she seemed nervous, almost shaking but she tried to do a better job of masking than their last encounter, “If the king caught you, he would not be pleased.”
“He will not catch me,” the prince said confidently, “Not even my maids know I am here.”
“That is why you should return now,” the woman replied, placing her hands over the book in her lap, “So that no one ever knows you were here.”
“Please, Lady Itadori,” the crown prince begged, bowing forward, “Please don’t send me away.”
There was a look that glossed over the lady’s face that the prince could not quite decipher before she sighed and nodded, “Alright, just this once, but you must tell me what truly brought you here. Not just that you wanted to see me.”
“I wanted to say I’m sorry,” the prince replied eagerly, “I saw you a while ago, and I wanted to say I’m sorry, for scaring you that day.”
“It’s alright, my prince,” the woman replied lightly, “All is forgiven.”
The prince smiled in return and asked, “May I ask you a question?”
The lady hesitated for a moment before ultimately nodding and saying, “Yes. Is there something you need?”
“Why are you so sad?” Prince Yuuji blurted out suddenly, “I think that you are my father’s favorite concubine, and everyone else wants to be that, yet you are so sad. Ur–Someone told me it was because you are homesick. . .that you miss home.”
Instead of seeming surprised at the boy’s words, the lady only smiled softly and agreed with a nod, “Whoever told you that is correct. I am sad because I miss my home, my prince.”
“Your home?” Prince Yuuji echoed, curiously moving forward, “Where is your home?”
“I used to live in a small village far from here,” she hummed; she allowed her eyes to drift towards the mountains once more, “Until the king took me.”
“Took you?” Prince Yuuji questioned; his eyebrows furrowed in confusion, “Why did he take you?”
“Because he could, my prince,” the concubine replied, setting her book to the side, “The king takes what he pleases.”
“Would you tell me about your home, Lady Itadori?” Prince Yuuji asked eagerly, “I have never been outside the temple. What is it like?”
“Well, I have only truly seen my home and this temple,” the woman replied, almost seeming to be trying to find a way out of the conversation, “So that is all I can really tell you about. It might bore you.”
“I wish to hear about it,” Prince Yuuji said seriously, his little eyebrows furrowing together, “Wherever it was, it seems to have been nice. . .since you were so fond of it.”
“It was nice,” the lady agreed, “I lived outside of a village near the forest. My mother’s family had long since abandoned living in the village and moved into the forest. One of my ancestors built a beautiful house near a meadow of flowers and a hot spring. No one really knew about it except for my family. The house had been added onto for years, and it was grand. It was painted with a rare color that my ancestors made by grinding up a special flower that grew in the meadow. It was a gold color.”
The prince found it fascinating, moving to sit next to the woman as he said, “Was it more beautiful than the temple?”
“Yes,” Lady Itadori admitted, “Far more beautiful. My chambers were covered in flowers that grew naturally along the house. All I ever smelt was the sweet scent of flowers or the freshwater of the hot spring. Before my mother died, my father and I would go to the gardens every morning and pick out flowers for my mother when she woke up. She was always delighted, no matter how ugly our bouquets were.”
She looked sad as she was reminded of the death of her mother, so the prince asked her, “How did your mother and father meet?”
Some of the lady’s melancholy dissipated as she replied, “My father had been one of the few to stumble upon the meadow and fell in love with my mother; they had me. I lived there until I was six and ten — when the king found me.”
“I am sorry you miss your home, my lady,” the prince said sadly; he then piped up, “I will visit you for now on! So that you can tell me about your home and not be lonely.”
Lady Itadori’s eyes widened, and she looked as though she were going to protest, until she looked in the eyes of the boy before her. He looked so excited, so eager and so she conceded with a nod, “Alright.”
author's note thanks for reading! you can find this story/series on ao3 here.
