The Family
Shouyo stared at the staff in his hands.
The staff in his hands.
It looked very much like the one in his dreams. Shouyo was seconds away from panicking.
Was Natsu playing some sort of an elaborate prank on him? He shook his head. Natsu wouldn’t do this, as far as Hinata knew no one in their family had any sort of affinity to magic other than his grandmother, but that was clairvoyance, not whatever this was!
Neither would anyone he knew be able to replicate the staff so well. It was the exact same staff from his dream… no nightmare.
And that cat guy, Kenma. Was he fine then? If Kenma was captured and that too by his possible enemies. Shouyo shuddered at the thought of what they would do to the wizard. He felt a shiver crawl up his spine, fear for the safety of someone he had never met. Someone who could be very well a fragment of his imagination. Someone who didn’t even exist.
Hinata Shouyo decided this was a nightmare.
He only hoped that if this was real. Kenma would be okay. He wished that no harm fell on the wizard.
But a part of him knew, knew that this was just wishful thinking.
The boy began to feel something. Shouyo felt slight burns in his hands and chest. Not enough to be deemed has painful but enough to know something was happening to him. Shouyo lit the lamp in the room and checked himself in the mirror that hung on the wall.
He did not expect what he saw.
Hinata noticed golden incarnate designs going up against his right hand halfway up to his elbow. He checked the burning feeling on his chest only to find an effigy of sorts, a symbol.
A sun.
As if to mock his entire existence. Granny had often called him sunshine and the nickname had stuck until the day she stopped talking.
Looking more carefully at his appearance he noticed his red hair had become if possible redder? Like closer to a shade of orange, like those tangerines he often saw growing in other farms. His normally brown eyes were glowing like the sun.
What was happening to him?
He wasn’t sure whether he was asleep or not.
He was panicking. Shouyo couldn’t stress his family over this trivial matter. Granny or Natsu shouldn’t know. He would not risk either of them getting involved in whatever the hell this was. He checked his parent’s old room where the two slept.
Both were fast asleep and had no idea what was transpiring outside with Shouyo and he was glad about that. Shouyo knew he sometimes came across has a loud and rash kid.he sighed in relief when he saw both of them were fast asleep.
One thing less to worry about.
Hinata had always been an empathetic kid. More like even if he was the one being selfish, he often helped others with it. Aran was suffering from PTSD of sorts according to Kita and when Hinata had approached him to teach him how to fight. Aran was able to come to some sort of peace with himself. Or that was what KIta-san explained when Hinata asked why was that they conversed with him but not with the rest of the villagers.
Now what to do about this?.
Atsumu watched as the cat wizard lay half-dead on the dungeon floor barely breathing. Burns decorated his pale torso and bruises covered every other place. Atsumu was pretty proud of his art. But no matter what Atsumu did, the wizard would not tell Atsumu where he had to send the staff.
Atsumu would have to just force it out of the wizard.
He was impressed though. The wizard was tough for someone who looked so frail.
Thin, barely crossing the 170 cm mark, the tired look on his face but those sharp cat-like golden eyes would haunt the one to cross it.it had been a while since someone had crossed Atsumu and was able to stand up to his flames for this long. The cat was the keeper of the staff and it showed in his resilient stand.
This was amusing. The fox was relishing this feeling of breaking a strong enemy.
Atsumu yanked the cat back by his hair making him look right into his eyes. Kenma’s cat-like golden eyes met Atsumu’s fox ones. “Haven’t you realised that you can’t break me, fox?” Kenma spat. He grinned “If you can still run that mouth, I don’t think I have gone hard enough on you”
“He hasn’t said anything up yet?”
Atsumu looked up to see his lazy companion standing at the cell’s door with judgemental looks. Atsumu snorted “Bold words from someone who was supposed to work with me” the other raised an eyebrow “You can’t handle this on your own?”
“I dont have the patience you do”
Atsumu chuckled.
Atsumu’s grip on Kenma’s hair tightened feeling oddly satisfied when he heard a whimper leave the cat “He is a little stubborn” Kenma hadn’t made a lot of noise during their little session so every time he managed to break the kitten , he felt quite satisfied.
“ Kitty here thinks he can take on the big bad fox”
The other fox just sighed “I don’t like this, can’t we just kill him? He isn’t exactly useful if he doesn’t know anything and if he does. Why is he being so stubborn?” the brunette was tired, they had already spent the better half of this month chasing down the kitty cat and now it wasn’t even being fruitful.
Atsumu only shrugged “The boss man said not to kill the kitty” he then grinned darky at the cat in his hands “But he said I could play with has much has I wanted too”
“Well don’t accidentally kill him”
“I’m not that careless Sunarin ”
“You and I know about your ‘sadistic’ tendencies”
The foxes froze as a bright golden light filled the dungeon, Sunarin and Atsumu watched in horror has the cat’s eyes burned bright golden before the light died out.
Atsumu’s hold left Kenma has he got up to his feet. There was this awful sensation as if he was burned.
Kenma’s eyes let the two standing, his eyes meeting both of them one at a time. Has if to mock them of their efforts. He gave the pair a very cat-like grin “I supposed being stubborn paid off”
Atsumu shared a look with his companion before they promptly walked out of the cell, slamming the door on the way out.
Has they approached the surface, Atsumu swore “Shit”.
Suna nodded in agreement “Yeah” he looked ahead already dreading what was going to happen to them.
“Shit”
Hinata stood in front of his neighbour’s door.
He had no idea what he was exactly doing there. He knew he needed help with whatever this was that he was going through, but what plagued his mind was that he wasn’t sure that he should involve his friends.
They were sleeping peacefully in their warm home and Hinata was going to ruin that.
After all, if Hinata was right, both Kita-san and Aran-san lived in Yukigaoka to escape their past. He did not want to drag them back to what they ran from, the men in his dream were foxes, and everyone knew that foxes belonged to the Inarizaki state.
The last thing Hinata wanted was his kind neighbours to hate him.
Sadly, he couldn’t exactly go to the village elders. Those old crows were too superstitious for their good and chances are they would misunderstand the whole dream of his, make a bigger deal out of this and end up isolating his whole family.
He couldn’t do that to Natsu.
Hinata was sure that the village elders would speculate that a demon was possessing him. Hinata has never shown any sign of using magic for the past twenty years of his life. It would look suspicious if he turned up having signs now, and these marks on him would only seal his fate as possessed by a demon.
Hinata Shouyo knew he wasn’t possessed by a demon.
He had read about demon possessions but it was nothing he had gone through.
He could be lucky and this would be a bad dream. Unfortunately, the staff in his had stared at him mockingly. Hinata was half in mind to burn it.
Hinata knew for a fact that neither Kita-san nor Aran-san would shun him over this . He was confident of that. Plus he would finally figure out whether his theory of the two older men was right or not. Hinata would afford to be less curious.
He thought fondly about how nice the older men were to Hinata even though his grandmother often showcased her disinterest in them. They never spoke ill of anyone even though they were shunned by most of the village.
Hinata was pretty sure that the only reason the elders of the village haven’t kicked them out is that Kita’s farm produced one of the best harvests in the village. The rice was one of the most famous product and the village couldn’t afford to lose such a high-quality product.
Hinata often stared at Kita-san has he worked. The older wasn’t that much taller than him, just a couple of centimetres taller than him but still carried himself with such poise and strength that Hinata couldn’t help but admire him.
Kita-san’s silver hair was cropped short with his tips a considerable darker shade, Hinta had often wondered whether it was natural or some sort of a magic dye? And it did not help that Kita-san was well built and knew how to use the scythe better than anyone in the whole village.
Aran-kun was much built than anyone Hinata has ever seen. The tall male had black almost shaved hair and a stubble growing out. He often looked out for Hinata and he couldn’t be grateful enough.
And on the bright side, his two evasive neighbours knew a lot about the outside world.
He could ask them whether they knew the Atsumu dude and the guy with sharp green eyes. Hinata shuddered at the thought of the pair of foxes. That pair was bound to give Hinata nightmares to last a lifetime.
Suddenly he wasn’t sure whether he wanted to ask them about it.
Also, he had noticed the slang Atsumu spoke in. it was the same way both Kita-san and Aran-san spoke in, only a tad bit meaner.
Taking a deep breath. Hinata knocked on the door, loudly. Sure, he felt guilty for waking them at this time of the night. Kita-san was one of the most meticulous and organised people Hinata has ever met. But he had to do this. These two were the only ones who could help him. Granny and Natsu were sleeping peacefully in his home.
Kita-san and Aran-san were sleeping peacefully in their warm home and Hinata was going to ruin that.
Hinata would anything to keep Natsu safe.
He was selfish like that.
Aran wasn’t asleep.
It must have been years of night watches he had done or it was something else, he had a gut feeling that something wasn’t right. Well, Aran didn’t care. He was a kitsune and that too one of the older ones during this time, he could go a couple of days without sleeping and still manage to function perfectly fine.
Aran was restless. He knew something was wrong. He had this feeling that something big was coming. He just wished he knew.
Suddenly he held a loud knock at their door. He jumped up seething the dagger under his pillow. Years of training had honed his reaction time and he knew better to trust his surroundings.
Even though his reaction time had curbed he was still faster than most humans. And the only human who had ever come even close to his physical abilities was Shouyo-kun and that terrified Aran. He couldn’t imagine how good the kid would have been with structured training like him and Shinsuke.
Aran looked over to the futon next to him. Shinsuke was fast asleep. Aran sighed, Shinsuke was terrifying when he was awake but the man slept like the dead. Aran was sure that Shinsuke hadn’t even heard the loud knocking that was there only a couple of minutes.
Shinsuke followed a strict time table and even his body’s clock stuck to that.
Aran slowly got up, dagger still in hand. It wouldn’t hurt to be extra cautious. In the last six years, they had been here, not once anything like this had happened. Aran took in a deep breathe, letting his magic flow back into him. Kita had told him to revert into a human as much as possible to avoid suspicions. So the pair often lock their magic in the back of their souls.
Aran’s senses were on overdrive. It had been a while before he felt like this. This sensation of being powerful. He could see even at the absence of light, his sharp nose picking up the telltale sign of a human’s blood outside their door. A thief? But what sort of a thief knock?
His sharp ears were picking up the heartbeat, beating very fast. Waves of anxiety rolling off the person standing outside.
Now Aran was genuinely confused. This was not a thief. Opening the door he never expected what he saw.
What was Shouyo-kun doing outside their house this time of the night?
Aran looked at the much smaller boy, freezing when he noticed it.
The golden eyes, the brighter hair and the marks. Aran for a second stared wordlessly at the younger boy before he came back to his senses.
Aran opened the door wide, waving the boy to come inside. The staff, the marks… it was too early. He would have to wake Shinsuke up, this was going to be a long night.
At least the peace was good as long as it lasted.
Hinata sat in a perfect seiza. Legs tucked in, hands proper on his knees and of course his eyes not meeting the sharp gaze of the Kita Shinsuke. How does someone still look sharp even though he’d been woken from a very deep sleep? Hinata felt guilty and still couldn’t help but awe how observant the man in front of him was.
Still, Hinata couldn’t look either of them in the eye. So much for the confidence, he had when he was coming over. He was super anxious now… what part of his brain thought this was a good idea?
Hinata could feel that he was being keenly observed. He felt if he looked up to meet that gaze he would surely be burned.
Kita and Aran were having a quiet conversation with their gazes occasionally falling on Hinata. Kita couldn’t help but look in awe, the golden marks on his skin, the faint golden glow in the younger boy’s eyes. The shine in his hair, Kita sighed… He had believed selfishly that they’d be able to enjoy the peace a for few more years.
Kita didn’t want to start another war.
War took lives, there were survivors. And there were the ones who regret all that they did, like him and ones who started it. He did not want to start it, got through it all over again. He was scared and tired at the same time.
He had lived through one and lost a lot. It was inevitable, the war took more from him than what he gave.
No one knows how much Kita Shinsuke cried that day. He was their leader, the one who was supposed to protect them all, the one who was to lead them all… he failed. He failed so bad. He failed his brothers, he failed his people. He was not a good leader.
But the sad part was that he knew this had to happen. The boy in front of him was physical proof. Kita hated nothing more than feeling that he still had hope. Why? Why did he hope after all that he and Aran had gone through?
He was used to this. Aran was used to this. Isn’t it sad that the two of them are used to this?
But Kita was diligent. He knew both Aran and him had a role in helping the sun . Kita knew revenge won’t bring back all that they had lost but it would definitely help them feel better.
After all, they were foxes.
“Shouyo”
Hinata looked up to meet Aran’s warm eyes. They weren’t judgemental or anything. They looked as if Aran was in pain but there was this shimmer of hope in them. Hinata did not know what it meant and he hoped it meant well.
“Do you know what’s happening to me?”
Kita nodded his head “I believe that you have what one would usually call the curse of the sun ”
“... the what?!”
“It’s magic Hinata-kun” Kita continued “The Sun Family of yours were known to be the very first descendants of the very first sun wizard” Kita sighed “Over the ages, the magic diluted and in a generation, only one of his descendants receive what is the first’s powers”
Hinata looked confused has Kita continued, Aran sighed Kita had a habit of droning on sometimes. “Shouyo-kun” he spoke “You have received the powers of the first mage who used the power of the sun”
“It’s one of the most powerful powers out there,” Kita stated “It’s one of the 5 main elements, most mages like us use subcategories of the main 5, like nature or thunder… as such”
“Like you?” Hinata almost missed the word, does that mean both Aran and Kita were mages too? That was so cool.
Kita smiled “Why do you think I am so good with plants and a scythe” a faint grew glow erupted from Kita’s palm, the small potted plant on the table bloomed all of a sudden, Hinata looked in wonder “I am a green mage and I protect the scythe of Earth which was supposed to be passed onto the holder of the curse of earth ”
“That’s so cool… Do you also have a superpower Aran-san?!.
Aran chuckled, only Hinata would think magic was a superpower. Aran let his disguise fade away. His fox ears were visible again, the nine large fluffy tails were present too. Hinata’s eyes widened and anyone could see the wonder in them.
A Kitsune.
How long had it been since either of them let themselves be free like this in front of someone that is not each other?
“Kita-san?”
Kita met Hinata’s eager orbs nodding at him to continue.
“Why do you call it a curse?” Hinata asked “I mean the elders at the village always spoke as if magic was the cure for everything” he fumbled with his fingers, subconsciously fidgetting with the staff next placed next to him “Everyone seems to worship people who could do any sort of magic”
Hinata never knew that someone’s eyes could hold so much sorrow. Kita looked at Hinata, the boy had asked a valid question. Why? Why did such powerful beings call their power’s a curse… Kita had the terrible fate of finding that out himself.
“Tell me Hinata-kun, why does your grandmother hide her powers?”
“Cause she doesn’t have any?”
Kita shook his head “Shouyo-kun. Magic is not a cure… it’s a curse”
Hinata couldn’t believe what he was hearing. He was taught that if you had magic everything was solved. Isn’t that why his mother did all that to him?
“So what should I do?” Hinata was frustrated, he hadn’t gotten any answers. The two of them were beating around the bush “Tell me please...”
“Shouyo” Aran spoke his voice strong “Tell me all that you went through since sundown yesterday”
Hinata frowned “You won’t believe me”
Kita smiled “Try us”
And Hinata narrated his short tale on what he think’s happened to him.
Here is the 2nd chapter... I hope you guys enjoyed it. If you want to beta read or yell with me about anything based on HQ come to my Twitter @EzraPearl01