Jorogumo
The Binding Bride Jorogumo - Sojobo
Physical Description
Body Features
Unable to physically age, her human form is that of a beautiful, Japanese woman in her late twenties. She has pale, fair-colored skin making it appear like she’s almost constructed entirely out of porcelain, raven black hair, and a voluptuous figure, with curvy hips and a large bust. She is of above-average height for a Japanese lady and has a heart-shaped face with highly attractive features. Her eyes are an alluring amber color like crystalized venom topped by close, smokey, narrow eyebrows and a small beauty mark on the left side of her face under her eye. Her canine teeth are hollow on the inside. From which she administers her dangerously potent venom.
In her true form, she retains her human upper body but spread out from underneath her waist are eight long, jointed, spider legs. With a pair of pedipalp-like limbs located where a human's legs should be that both terminate at a sharp point. Each spider leg is candy-striped with black and gold bands, like the legs of a golden orb-web spider, and armed with a pair of hooked claws. These legs work very differently from standard human legs. Operating on a system similar to hydraulics. Her body squeezes blood from her veins into them to extend them and then uses muscles to pull them back. From behind her sprouts a glossy, black abdomen as big around as her human body and twice as long, covered in the same armored carapace as the legs. A series of spinnerets are located at the end of the abdomen as well as hidden in her fingertips. From which she produces the silk for her webs.
Her closest servants tell rumors of a third form. One that few mortals see. The mere sight of which can drive men to madness.
Physical quirks
Special abilities
Her potent neurotoxic venom allows her to savor each moment of her victim’s excruciatingly painful deaths before she devours them. The digestive enzymes she secretes during feeding turn her victim's entire body, bones and all, into a nutrient-rich jelly that she slurps up. Making locating the body of her victim impossible. Her body is immune to all toxins and diseases. Jorogumo's haunting beauty belies her considerable skill in close combat. Capable of delivering bone-snapping kicks and grabs with her powerful spider legs.
She is naturally skilled in dark and ancient magic. Able to conjure powerful illusions and shapeshift at will to attack her opponents psychologically. She can create fire blasts and psychokinetic shockwaves to attack. Her yokai abilities make her nearly invulnerable to most forms of physical and magical harm (though she can still feel it). Immortal and eternally youthful, she is unable to die of senescence. She can leach the life force from her victims. The most common method for her to drain someone's life force is through sex, on top of consuming their flesh after they expire. She has a limited form of telepathy which allows her to read someone's current thoughts and has limited powers of precognition. Though she refrains from using this power as she feels that; "life would be too boring if I knew everything that's going to happen, darling." Perhaps the most terrifying of her powers is her ability to steal the souls of her victims. With a habit of keeping the souls of victims that she found particularly memorable as souvenirs, her collection spans back centuries. She can summon these souls to manifest as apparitions of their human forms, but more commonly summons them in the form of small, floating balls of ghostly fire known as hitodama. The hitodama do not serve many purposes to Jorogumo outside of being used as convenient light sources when walking through dark halls. Through more of this dark magic, she has power over those who swear an oath to her. Once cast, her oath spell is binding for a lifetime and the instant the oath is broken, the offender will immediately drop dead. Best not to make a girl a promise if you can’t keep it.
As the queen of spiders, she can manipulate an army of spiders. These children of Jorogumo range from regular spiders to giant spiders capable of spewing torrents of sticky fire like flamethrowers. The most horrific of which are the yatsukahagi -the result of Jorogumo's experimentations involving breeding with human victims, yokai magic, and alchemy. These animalistic brutes are a combination of human and spider with humanoid builds, hard armored exoskeletons, eyes that see in the ultraviolet spectrum, shoot webs made from toxic silk, and spit balls of flammable venom like napalm. They follow their mother's commands with drone-like purpose. When needed, these different breeds of monstrous spider can be created rapidly and in high numbers. Maturing into combat-ready adults in only a few days. Through mental links, Jorogumo can inhabit the consciousness of spiders across vast distances which allows her to hear and see through them to function as spy devices.
As a spider yokai, she can, of course, spin webs made of incredibly strong silk. The silk is so strong, that Jorogumo can use it to catch and transport prey far larger than herself. If this silk is woven together, it creates a fabric as strong as Kevlar. It is near impossible to escape her webs.
Apparel & Accessories
Jorogumo has an affinity for fine clothing. Her typical clothing consists simply of a long black sleeveless dress; however, this dress is incredibly long, in that it completely conceals her feet, while the sleeves end in eight small trailing pieces of fabric like the legs of a spider. She wears arm bracelets on each arm, made by a dwarf master craftsman she personally commissioned. Both are made of gold. One has the image of a butterfly with platinum wings outlined with obsidian with inlaid ruby eyespots. The other is embroidered with the image of a spider. With eight ruby eyes and striped legs made of gold and ivory. Her earrings are made of fossilized amber with insects trapped inside, matching her eyes. She owns a few articles of jewelry for special occasions that incorporate small bone fragments from vampires that fell victim to her in their designs, alongside silver and gold in a net design as a subtle way to flaunt her superiority over the species.
She also has a large collection of kimonos that she wove herself. Her favorite is a kimono that oirans, or Japanese courtesans, used to wear as she was once one herself. The opening is directly in the front, the main purpose of which was for her clients to have "easier access". The kimono is wine-red; the skirt and wide sleeves have intricate spider web patterns and designs, while the obi has butterfly patterns. She wears little makeup save for faint red eyeshadow and dark red lipstick.
Mental characteristics
Personal history
Shrouded in mystery, little is definitively known about her past. With what is known made only by subtle hints. When asked directly she'll either give a vaguely coy response, dodge the question, or give completely different details each time she's asked. Not just because she has something to hide, but because she likes messing with others.
Employment
Publicly, Jorogumo owns Kashikobuchi, a tailoring business for the wealthy of the Trench's Upper Levels. While in secret, she seeks to rebuild her criminal empire, known as the Kwaiden. Within Kwaiden's network, she poses as a lowly information broker, while in reality, she is the one really pulling the strings for the entire operation behind the curtain.
Accomplishments & Achievements
Having been born into power and cast out of it twice, Jorogumo has pulled herself from nothing into her position of power by virtue of her own cunning and perseverance. Creating her own empire who's influence rivals that of her former family and clan, and possibly even surpasses it. As leader of one of the most influential crime syndicates among the supernatural, Jorogumo technically controlled the yokai criminal underworld. Now inside the Trench, she seeks to do the same. Building up her criminal empire from the shadows.
Failures & Embarrassments
Her road to success was a rocky one. The beginnings were comprised mostly of trial and error, as her aspiring enterprises collapsed several times before she was able to develop a stable method. Early into her life on her own, she was defeated several times by yokai hunters and assassins sent by her family and unrelated parties aspiring to her grandfather's legacy who viewed her as a potential threat. While she always managed to defeat or evade her assailants, there were several skilled enough to make sure she did come out unscathed. A chance encounter with her mother, the mountain witch, led to a clash that destroyed two whole villages and leveled a mountain. Despite her own formidable skill with dark magic, Jorogumo was no match for her mother and was forced to take the form of a small burrowing spider to escape, where she remained in hiding for nearly a decade. These encounters only deepened her feelings of resentment toward her parents and siblings.
With over a millennium of excellence in the art of seducing and trapping humans, there have been a handful of instances, here and there, where her would-be victim managed to escape her. Which spawned the human legends about her. Jorogumo sometimes likes to wistfully reminisce about these fortunate few as "the ones that got away."
Intellectual Characteristics
Jorogumo is an incredibly intelligent, sharp-witted, and cunning seductress able to manipulate anyone she meets. A calculating strategist and an incredible actor, she is an expert at using deceit and subterfuge to achieve her desires, as her words trap and kill just as well as her webs. Through clever and precise political machinations, she has orchestrated countless seemingly unrelated events that have increased her own power. Even when something she does not initially plan for occurs, she always looks for any advantage and light of the situation pragmatically to continue playing her long game. Among Jorogumo's most effective traits is her deeply manipulative nature, manipulating and deceiving many parties to further her agenda. She is such a skilled predator that she can continue her man-eating practice for years on end without being caught, even in a busy city. This skill at evasion and secrecy extends to her criminal business practices as she is able to influence her complex web of politics and businesses with total anonymity. Even the top-ranking yokai serving under her have no idea as to their boss's identity. Jorogumo has a habit of observing current and potential subordinates with great scrutiny in order to understand how they can best be effectively used. Assigning her subordinates to new positions to see how they react, provided she is sure they could be effective within the new role. Setting up the subordinates she sees the most potential in up for professional growth and development, often without their knowledge.
Adding yet another layer to her veil of mystery, she is a holder of a vast wealth of arcane and esoteric knowledge as her skill and innovations with ancient magic prove. Darker powers she may yet hide still.
Morality & Philosophy
Exceptionally sadistic, Jorogumo sees most sapient creatures as little more than food for her to feed upon. She has a somewhat predatory worldview and pities ordinary humans for their revulsion to their darker impulses. Sexually wanton, she enjoys seducing men only to devour them. Sometimes she stretches out these "flings" and creates layers or "complications" to them if she thinks it will become more entertaining for her. There are numerous instances of her seducing not just humans, but other species of yokai and other supernatural species as well, and pitting two of her lovers unknowingly against each other for her own amusement. Usually deciding to eat the winner after mating with him afterwards. She takes cruel satisfaction in feeling a human struggle against her in her webs, making empty threats, useless attempts at bargaining, and pleas for mercy. She finds their pitful cries lovely to hear. She considers each victim different and that means her game is never dull. This cold-heartedness also extends to those who serve her. Although she often rewards her subordinates and sets them up for success, she rarely, if ever, harbors any actual fondness for them. Jorogumo sees her allies as pawns that she can use for her grand plan and is more than willing to dispose of them once they no longer serve a purpose or start to become a dead weight. That being said, she finds killing randomly and mass murders to be distasteful and a waste.
Her business philosophy is discretion above all. After witnessing firsthand the collapse of her proud grandfather, Shuten Doji's, empire following his defeat in battle in 995 A.D., Jorogumo developed a philosophy for domination that put an end to old imperial ways—eschewing military conquest in favor of indirect control over larger organizations through commerce and subtle business ventures while remaining discreet. A process she's likened to a spider building a web. "Do you know what the most important thing a spider considers when building its web? It's not location, no, and it's just the type of silk either. Like many other things in life, it's all about size. Too small and it can't catch enough prey to sustain itself or its offspring. Too big and the web becomes harder to maintain... and attracts unwanted attention." This philosophy allowed her to create her criminal empire, the Kwaiden, in secrecy. Which became a powerful force in the Supernatural black market by manipulating other syndicates from the shadows. Yet despite her willingness to exploit the resources and people around her for her own gain, she will never do it to the point of decimation or total irresponsibility. She has a simple business concept that she ties into how she manages her appetite for human prey. That her profit is more secure if she has an infinite trickle of sustainable resources than a brief and ultimately devastating flood of unsustainable ones.
Although she revels in the heinous and cruel acts she commits, she is not, however, entirely heartless. She has a soft spot for children. Treating them with kindness and compassion. She likes to sneak candies to the bored children stuck at social gatherings of the Upper-Levels' elite when their parents aren't looking. She empathizes with single parents. Often avoiding actions that might be harmful to them. As a promoter of the arts, she is known for donating generous sums of money to artists whose work she enjoys. She is protective and caring of those extremely close to her, such as her son, maternal grandparents, butler, and her youngest sister.
Taboos
Personality Characteristics
Motivation
Likes & Dislikes
Has an aversion to peppermint.
Aside from her disturbing appetite for human flesh, she also has a fondness for eel meat. Though she detests the animal.
Virtues & Personality perks
Underneath her usual flirtatious and playful demeanor, she possesses a sharp wit and an even sharper mind. Because of her incredibly long life as an immortal, she is knowledgeable about a wide variety of topics. A skilled businesswoman and negotiator, she is meticulous in her work, bringing to it an elevated artistry. Preferring to operate from the shadows rather than out in the open, she has a seemingly endless amount of patience and is adept at suppressing her desires for the sake of achieving her long-term goals. Always looking for any advantage and light of the situation in a pragmatic manner. She hates to be wasteful, whether it be with food or resources. An excellent judge of character, she understands the unwritten rules of human society and knows what is in people's hearts.
Despite her sadistic nature, Jorogumo has some altruistic traits. An avid aesthete, she is a frequent patron of the arts. As a learned woman, she is skilled in many traditional art forms and is well-versed in classical literature. While normally of a light-hearted temperament, she can quickly discard her playful attitude and become very serious if the situation calls for it. She is compassionate towards children and single mothers and is a caring mother herself. Her son's capture and imprisonment in the Trench is the only reason the Organization even discovered her as she actively sought them out to locate and reunite with her son. She is also an incredible teacher, as displayed by how she molded her wild child of a son into a well-educated, though still crazed, individual.
Although her motives for doing so are less than pure, her preference for victims are womanizers, adulterers, and other disreputable characters. As strange as it is to say, her activities unintentionally make the Upper-Levels just a tiny bit safer.
Vices & Personality flaws
A man-eater in the truest sense of the word, Jorogumo has no qualms with stringing men along. Unapologetically cruel, sadistic, lustful, and promiscuous, it's no secret she takes immense pleasure in the horrible things she does to her victims and feels no remorse for those she murders. Although patient and pragmatic when dealing with her enemies, she would rather play with individuals trapped in her embrace. Enjoying making them squirm and suffer over extended periods and then killing them than just going in for the kill from the start. Like most immortals, she is frivolous when it comes to mortal lives. In her eyes, humans are no different than an insect, just something to feed on. Despite sharing a similar lifestyle, Jorogumo sees herself as superior to vampires. Playfully claiming that they are little more than leeches when compared to her. She has a mischievous streak and greatly enjoys provoking others, displaying an innate talent for saying the right thing at the right time to cause cracks in almost anyone's composure.
Highly manipulative, she won't hesitate to exploit a person's weaknesses to get what she wants, even towards her own subordinates. While she is a devoted mother to Roman, the same cannot be said for her "lesser children" like the yatsukahagi. The animalistic hybrid spawn from her couplings with her human victims. She views these single-minded spider-humanoids as easily replaceable tools for her to use. Keeping them only for the rare instance she deems direct physical force absolutely necessary. As she usually prefers to instead manipulate lesser crime organizations into doing her dirty work for her.
Personality Quirks
Social
Contacts & Relations
Social by nature and because of her business, Jorogumo has a wide array of both friends and business contacts. She has a large intelligence network and "pawns" used to gain the information she needs. In the ranks of the Kwaiden syndicate, Jorogumo poses as a middle-ranked broker in the network, with the syndicate's apparent leader being the oni, Ushi no Tou. However, just as the Kwaiden controls the criminal underworld with puppet strings, so too is its kumicho, Ushi no Tou, just an unaware puppet for the Kwaiden's true leader; Jorogumo herself. Jorogumo influences her subordinates through subtle political maneuvers and insinuations. Never revealing her true identity and power over the syndicate directly as she feels that publicly announcing herself as the Kwaiden's true leader would be disadvantageous. She is more than happy to let that buffoon oni take the bullet for her if the Kwaiden is ever brought to the light. As a precaution, she has a special spider she created and armed with a potent magical venom that has infiltrated and lurks unseen in Ushi no Toro's private quarters. Ready to be deployed in case that short-horned fool decides to make a move against her.
Perhaps her second closest confidant is her loyal servant, the automaton Talos NOS-4-A2. Custom built for her as a gift from the Greek tinker god, Hephestus, Talos NOS-4-A2 is Jorogumo's personal butler. She finds Talos' dry tone and sarcastic wit endearing and has jokingly stated that Talos' long record of service to her is solely due to him being inedible.
In another rare case of a positive relationship, Jorogumo has a fondness for the Yoruba spider god, Anansi, and the Lakota spider god, Iktomi. Considering them both to be close friends.
Family Ties
Although one of the many daughters of the Sojobo yokai clan, Jorogumo ignores and considers herself apart from her family due to their rough history. The only two exceptions are her maternal grandfather and grandmother, the oni king, Shuten Doji, and his queen, Ibaraki-Doji, who welcomed her and her newborn son into their palace with open arms. Cruel as it might sound, Jorogumo feels that her grandfather's defeat was the "most important lesson he ever taught me." As it was what led her to develop her business philosophies. Unlike a lot of the post-splinter groups that arose from the remnants of Shuten Doji's empire, Jorogumo does not consider her organization, nor aspire to be, the successor to her grandfather's throne.
The other major exception is, of course, her beloved son, Yaseigumo Roman. While most find her son and his antics annoying and irksome, Jorogumo finds a great deal of amusement from them. Viewing them as innocent pranks. Comparable to how you might find a monkey performing ball tricks adorable. That is not to say Jorogumo views her own son as a pet as it is very clear she is a nurturing mother who loves him more than anything else. While all the monstrous breeds of spider yokai that serve Jorogumo are technically also her offspring, Roman is the only one that she recognizes as her legitimate biological child. Jorogumo is a very supportive mother with a keen interest in her son's life. As Jorogumo raised Roman alone, they are very close to each other. Her relationship with him is similar to that of a best friend as they readily exchange jokes and teases, while still maintaining the role of parental authority that has to be respected and abided by. Though, unlike all other beings under her power, Jorogumo does not see her son as a tool with which to exercise her agenda. Showing genuine affection and pride for her son, she allows him a great deal of independence, although she always worries about Roman and the dangers he faces. As both are the only ones the other completely trusts, they both freely confide in each other. Jorogumo is always happy to listen to her son's problems, and sometimes even tries to help him come up with a solution if the problem is dire enough. Aside from those instances, she often leaves it to Roman to fix the messes he creates himself. She may dote over her son, but she does not spoil him.
Religious Views
Social Aptitude
Jorogumo has an enigmatic air around her. She carries herself in a coquettish, but also surprisingly refined and aristocratic manner. With a laid-back and flirtatious way of speaking. Jorogumo is well-liked by the supernaturals who inhabit the Trench's wealthy Upper Levels and are unaware of her true nature. Publicly, she is seen as an excellent seamstress, a generous and frequent supporter of the arts, a friendly elder sister to kids, and a socialite at gatherings of the Upper-Levels elite. Her sophisticated charm, wit, and skill in conversation, not to mention her seductive beauty, make her popular company. But underneath, she is a ruthless and patient predator. Confident, she is well aware of the effect her feminine charms have on men and won't hesitate to use them to get what she wants. When Jorogumo sees a man that catches her fancy, she pulls them into her amorous embrace with her charms, promises of love, or other favors.
It is this predatory mindset that also makes her an effective businesswoman. Her pragmatic nature and charismatic speech allow her to effectively manipulate and deal with beings who may not find the human form attractive. Her words can trap and kill just as well as her webs. She uses a large intelligence network and "pawns" to gain the information she needs, and will only use people whose weaknesses she knows or intends to prey upon.
Mannerisms
Hobbies & Pets
Relationships
History
At the time of his birth, it was common for Japanese noblewomen to delegate the raising of their children to servants or outright kill an unwanted baby at birth. Jorogumo defied convention and actively raised her son with love by herself. Jorogumo wanted Roman to directly experience the world from a young age. When Roman was still a baby, Jorogumo often carried him with her when attending Shuten Doji's court. When the mood struck her, Jorogumo would take Roman with her hunting for human prey, holding him in a silken bundle and pretending to be a woman and child in distress. When a human male came to assist, she would kill him. Once Roman reached the yokai equivalent age of a toddler, Jorogumo would sometimes incapacitate her victim and bring them home. Teaching Roman how to use his venom and to administer the killing blow.
Shortly after the fall of Shuten Doji in 995 AD, Roman was severely wounded by the samurai, Minamoto no Raikou. The very same man who had just defeated the oni king. At the yokai equivalent age of six years old, Roman was only starting to develop his powers. While playing in the woods, he stumbled upon Raikou and his retainers. Though they were riding back to Kyoto with news of their victory, Raikou was recovering from a sudden case of malaria and was bedridden in a roadside home. Roman had no clue who these people were or that they were of great importance, he just saw an opportunity to cause some harmless mischief. Ever the precocious child, he decided to test his newfound ability to create illusions. Using his powers, he made himself appear as though he was a young human medicine boy and entered the room Raikou was infirmed in. Predictably, Raikou saw through the faulty illusion and slashed at the spider yokai with his sword. The blade cut deep into Roman’s stomach. Although severely wounded, Roman managed to escape before Raikou could fully rouse himself. Bleeding profusely and crying in pain, Roman dragged himself to the cave where he and his mother had been taking shelter following the Iron Fortress' fall. Jorogumo was shocked by the state of her child’s wounds. Not yet the powerful sorceress she is today, she was unable to heal her son’s wounds by herself. Distraught, she began weeping over her precious son. Noises coming from outside the cave soon alerted her that the samurai had arrived following the blood trail Roman left behind. Enraged, Jorogumo wanted to slaughter the samurai for daring to touch her child. But her maternal rage was tempered by fear for his life once she heard one of them invoke the name of Amaterasu, the sun goddess. Using her powerful illusion magic, Jorogumo turned Roman and herself invisible and made it appear to the samurai that the cave’s only occupant was a giant, wounded, spider-like monster. Once the samurai “slew” the false beast after a convincing battle, Jorogumo traveled with her son to the outskirts of Kyoto to find her recently widowed grandmother, the oni queen Ibaraki-Doji. Who was hiding with some of the oni and yokai who remained loyal to her. Together they used their magic to heal Roman's grievous wound, saving his life. After the wave of relief that her child would live dissipated, the normally patient and calculating Jorogumo became livid. With uncharacteristic bloodlust and fury, she called Raikou’s head. Not for killing her grandfather, Shuten-Doji, but because of his attempt to murder her only child. Ibaraki-Doji, having lost some of her own children alongside her husband in the Battle of the Iron Fortress, assured her favorite granddaughter that Raikou would soon die for his transgressions in good time. What was best for now, was that Jorogumo take her son and raise him in safety far away from the politics of the yokai. As the new power vacuum created by the oni's king's death would be dangerous for both her and her son.
With nothing but the clothes on her back and little Roman sleeping soundly atop her abdomen, Jorogumo's eight legs carried her far across Japan to Izu City. Taking up residence in the Joren Falls and becoming its goddess. What happened in the many centuries between then and the present, who can say? Sly Jorogumo can't be talked into revealing its entirety and it would be foolish to put trust in the words of the silver-tongued Roman. Perhaps it's best to let the spiders keep their secrets.
Nicknames & Petnames
Jorogumo often refers to her son as her "little tsuchigumo" (A name that translates to mean "earth spider" or "dirt spider") because she gave birth to him inside a cave while waiting out a thunderstorm. (Although she likes to cite a much different and more embarrassing story as the reason, much to Roman's chagrin.) While she uses the term as an affectionate and endearing nickname that Roman views as such, it historically has been used as an archaic insult in Japanese. If anyone other than Jorogumo calls him that, Roman will react violently.
Roman refers to Jorogumo exclusively as "Mama." Or "Mama-Sama" if he is trying to butter her up or knows he's about to be in big trouble. (This usually does not work out for him.)
Relationship Reasoning
As vile and horrible as they both are, their relationship as mother and son is oddly wholesome. Jorogumo and Roman are the only people in the world that the other completely trusts and speaks honestly with. As Jorogumo raised Roman alone, they are very close to each other. Their relationship is similar to that of best friends, while Jorogumo still maintains her role of parental authority as Roman's mother that he must respect and abide by. Though, unlike all other beings under her power, Jorogumo does not see her son as a tool with which to exercise her agenda. In fact, Jorogumo is a very supportive and nurturing mother with a keen interest in her son's life and allows him a great deal of independence. Like any good mother, she worries about his well-being constantly and pushes him to reach his full potential. She often asks Roman if there's anything weighing on his mind, and confides in him. She is always happy to listen to her son's problems, and sometimes even tries to help him come up with a solution if the problem is dire enough. Aside from those instances, she often leaves it to Roman to fix the messes he creates himself. She may dote over her son, but she does not spoil him.
Roman is a deeply loyal son who adores his mother. While he operates with a great deal of freedom when compared to Jorogumo's other minions, he still comes to her aid when called. Though this comes from genuine filial love rather than submissiveness. Roman is one of the few beings in the world who can completely read his mother's mood based on her body language and immediately knows when something is troubling her.
Commonalities & Shared Interests
"He definetly takes after his mother when she was his age." - Rokurokubi speaking on her nephew's behavior
Although in a different flavor, it is still quite obvious who Roman got his sadism and morbid sense of humor from. Both share similar fashion sense and tastes in food. They enjoy watching movies and playing games together. It was from Roman's love of foreign music from the 1980s that Jorogumo was introduced to the band ABBA. Which quickly became one of her favorite musical groups of all time. To the point where she buys tickets to their concerts every time a tour brings the band to Japan. She admitted to Roman that the band, along with some of his own favorite artists, are the only humans she would never eat even if given a prime opportunity.
Jorogumo and Roman consider each other fierce rivals at the game of go. With a score counter that tallies back at least four centuries. So far, it's a fairly even score.
Roman enjoys regaling his mother with (greatly exaggerated) tales of his recent misadventures. While mostly unreliable, Jorogumo does learn about what is happening in places beyond her reach and gives them her undivided attention. Plus, they're amusing to listen to and tell her a great deal about what is going on in her boy's life. Whether he outright states it or not. Call it mother's intuition. She's deduced that her son holds that Icarus girl and human boy he's been traveling with in higher regard than he's willing to admit.
When the situation arises in public, Jorogumo will often go along with whatever scheme or prank Roman has planned. She finds them amusing and loves seeing the end result. As with his wild stories, Roman just likes making his mom smile and laugh. When together, Jorogumo has a habit of affectionately scratching and running her fingers through Roman's hair or at the spot where his spider legs meet his back while she's thinking about something or speaking with someone else. Roman this enjoys greatly.
Roman's habit of forming gangs from local misfits and outcasts he's befriended, reminds Jorogumo of herself when she was just starting her enterprises on her own. She tolerates these friends of her son's entering her home and her shop so long as they are polite and respectful of her when she is busy. Then maybe, just maybe, she won't decide to have them for dinner. In typical mom fashion, she will carelessly (very much intentionally) reveal to Roman's fellow gang members and friends embarrassing stories about him when he was little. Like how he hated taking baths as a kid and ran around their home completely naked and covered in mud and that's why she calls him her tsuchigumo. Or how he got in so much trouble the one time for pelting his great uncle with rotten persimmons. Or the many afternoons she spent sitting on the terrace walkway of her house. Smiling as she watched little Roman and his childhood best friend dueling with stick swords and taking themselves a little too seriously. Their "duels" always devolved into bickering about who won that eventually turned into roughhousing in the dirt under the backdrop of the setting sun. Roman doesn't find these stories nearly as funny as his mother does but secretly enjoys the little nostalgia trip. (And he totally won those stick fights, by the way.)
Speaking of a little Roman, when he was still at that young age, Jorogumo used to tell him all about her own gangs and their adventures as bedtime stories. If in a particularly somber mood, Jorogumo will tell Roman, with a heavy heart, that he would've called many of those old colleagues, whom he had only known as a little baby, of her's as "Auntie" and "Uncle" if they were still living today.
Relationship Reasoning
Ushi no Tou believes that his and Jorogumo's relationship is one of a subordinate bringing information to her boss, with the occasional fling on the side to help increase her favor with him. But, Ushi no Tou couldn't be further from the truth. The reality unbeknownst to the oni is that Jorogumo is his true master. She is the one pulling the strings of the entire organization and his supposed position as Kwaiden's "leader" is merely there so that he will catch the bullet if Kwaiden is ever brought to the light. She loathes the fact that Ushi no Tou pretends to her grandfather's, Shuten Doji, title of "Oni King." If she ever finds a suitable replacement, this oni despot may be living on borrowed time.
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