it crawled beneath his eyelids ✖ 静香 烝 (eigengrau) wrote in otsukimi, @ 2015-03-27 07:48:00 |
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WHO Saki & Susumu
WHERE In the City
WHEN March 27th, Afternoon
RATING PG
SUMMARY spotting stars— a wish on the flowers of a drooping sakura.
STATUS Complete
"It doesn't look that bad," he says, tucking his keys into his pocket. He's missed their weight, hanging heavy against the fabric over his thigh. He's missed drawing. He's missed living. Missed spring.
There's a part of him that still fears that it isn't over, that he'll realize he's been sleeping all along, that he'll go back to those complicated days of waiting and worrying... Or that he'll wake to find that he is alone somewhere and dying. The normalcy gradually returning to his life feels surreal compared to the past few months. He has somehow become used to being afraid, to wondering which moment will be his last, to worrying about the best course of action, and whether there will be a future at all.
He has almost forgotten cherry blossoms and sunlight, the smell of fish stock and the bickering of crows. He has forgotten the way that the early spring sun can burn through his layers one moment and leave him shivering the next. But here they are, alive and well, on a fine day in late March, walking through Kyoto as though they were never confined to a small plot of land hidden in the mountains for weeks and weeks.
They have two more weeks until their second year begins. Two weeks to rest, to try to make sense of everything that's happened to them... No, he supposes it's not only two weeks. They have months, maybe years, to figure that out. He reminds himself it's better not to rush it.
One day, sooner or later, the nightmares will fade, too.
The city is almost the same as before. There is still more mundanity here, and with the Calamity gone, the youkai have retreated to their usual haunts, but here and there, a few small spirits mill about amongst the human population. One girl, riding a bike tandem with her friend, nearly spills them both, veering out of the way of something small, puffy thing that seems to move by bouncing in small arcs from place to place. They could kill it. His classmates have proven that.
But. It's innocuous, isn't it? And perhaps, after all, there is no need to hate the ones that mean them no harm. Perhaps it is okay to let go of Youki, to let go of Asami, to even release Kuroame-nushi. From here, they will have to learn how to live with these creatures, to pick their battles wisely. After all, even if one dislikes ants, it would be impossible to kill every ant in the world, and... in the end, maybe it would not be right, either.
Still, it is a little strange to see even harmless youkai wandering among humans. More so to witness average human beings seeing them. It's the start of something, and in a way, even if he did not agree to it, he feels complicit in this change. His soul, after all, was its catalyst.
He turns away. The girls are laughing now, taking photos of the little hopping thing, cooing over how cute it is. He wants to say that they should not take it lightly, but... Maybe it's okay. This time.
He turns and sees it at the other end of the cross street. "Ho, there's that park." He slows, pointing to the end of the street to his right. "We became friends there, didn't we? Maybe we should have a beer for old times..." He tucks both hands into his pockets, snorting softly. "Though I will never agree with its flavor."