March Submission
Month: March 2006
Theme: A mythical creature - Tengu
Genre: big-fish tale, Folktale
Length: 1020 words
Fandom: Original
Tengukakushi
I couldn't help it. My knees shook so hard, I could barely feel my feet. The cold wind blew through my hair, driving the strands into my mouth, into my eyes. The wind was why my eyes stung. The sharp whisk of split ends on my frozen cheeks were why my eyes watered. I wasn't afraid. I wasn't crying. I couldn't be. Even if I wanted to cry, I wouldn't be able to get the breath past this horrid little lump in my throat. I wasn't crying.
It's not that I could see much, anyway. The sun was down, now...or else the stormclouds were too thick to let a glimmer of light through. The rain was cold, and the wind blew the trees around so violently that I could barely see the sky. If I thought about it, though, it didn't matter that I couldn't see the city lights. It didn't matter if I couldn't find the path. It didn't matter if I could barely see the goddamn branches of the trees, for all the rain. This was a mountain, right? Just...head down. Yeah. Just make sure not to fall on your face, and you'll come across the path eventually. Mt. Takao isn't that big; if I could climb up the mountain, I could surely climb down.
I'm proud to say that I never actually fell over. The trees and brush scraped along my bare arms, and the mountain's great rocks were certainly not as smooth as on the beaten path, tearing at my clothes. Stumbling down the steep decline, I entered a large clearing in the trees. At last! Lights from the base of the mountain gleamed through the murky night, beckoning me forward.
I set off again, ignoring the rain. In fact, my feel fairly flew toward the distant lights. Home! When I would reach the base of the mountain, there would be the city, the bus, the train, the city...
Twigs snapped under my sneakers. The leaves were wet on the ground, but I felt like I barely touched them. Suddenly, the wet forest carpet was slipping from my feet, running with me, alongside me, carrying me down the mountain.
I jerked back. A hand clutched the back of my jacket. The hand pulled, and I had the ground beneath my feet again, motionless and safe. I released a shuddering breath, and...what? I was clinging to red. Bright red. Blood red? No...a red shirt. A red denim jacket. A boy's shirt and jacket.
"Oh God," I gasped, jumping away.
His hands were on me again. They grasped my shoulders, hard. I was frightened, now, but I couldn't bring myself to look away when he looked into my eyes. His dark eyes entirely captured mine when he leaned over me, and uttered...
"Don't. The ground is still dangerous, here. Don't you know you almost walked off a cliff?"
Words froze in my throat. He resettled his jacket, smoothing the creases left from my hands, adjusting the red feather collar. The
decorations were dripping in the downpour, tangled in with the ends of his long, dark hair. He smiled, though, and my fear melted away.
"So, what's your name? And why the hell are you walking off cliffs in the rain at night? You don't look like you got a deathwish."
"I...um...I'm sorry?"
"I'm Tabisuke. You look like you need help."
"Actually...I can't find the path. I just want to go home. I'm at your mercy..."
"Sarutahiko's love, girl; the entrance to the path is on the whole other side of the mountain!" He looked at my torn jeans, my torn hands, and probably the puppy eyes I was inadvertently projecting in his direction, and continued, "I suppose...I could take you on a shortcut."
He sighed, and wiped the mud from his hands on his red jeans. Beckoning for me to follow, he led me back into the trees, retrieving a long brass staff from the leafy soil.
"Shakujo?"
"Yeah," he replied, without looking back. "I stole it from a monk visiting the Yakuōin Yūkiji temple. Pick up the pace, now, okay?"
I think he was using sarcasm. It sounded like he was lying. But why would he have a monk's staff? The thought escaped my lips before I could react.
"But..."
"But what?" He was scowling, now, creasing his forehead in dreadful wrinkles.
"But I thought you were half." What? What? Why the hell did I say that?
"What? No. I'm Japanese."
"But your nose..." Shut up shut up shut up. You don't go around telling otherwise cute boys that they have a big nose!
He frowned again, and turned around so I couldn't see his face. "I don't know what you're talking about. Hurry up."
He rubbed his nose, though, as we walked away. At this angle, it was truly large. He was still cute, though, somehow. I rushed to keep up with the jingle of his staff. His feet were silent on the leaves.
The storm began to calm. The rain slowed, then trickled to a stop, and the air grew warmer. Birds laughed in the trees above - a low, grating noise - and I noticed that we'd come across a path again. This was a different one, though; paved with thick cobbles, rather than the park's dirt path of before. How odd. The sun shone down through the leaves, making this the most pleasant part of the park, yet.
I couldn't believe I'd missed this part of the walk before...but those stupid birds were really noisy, distracting me from the scenery. The sun shone through their wings too, though, leaving me feeling light-headed and even a bit dizzy. Did you know that crows' wings look chocolate-brown in the light? Even when each wing was as long as you were tall? Some of these crows were strange colours, though, in reds and greens, but most had lovely long black hair. Their hair glowed a rich chocolate in the sunlight, too, just like Tabisuke's hair. Everything was lovely in the sunlight...
Wait. Sunlight? Wasn't it raining?
Wasn't it night?
Kakushi: n. Mysterious disappearance; kidnapping. See also kamikakushi.
Theme: A mythical creature - Tengu
Genre: big-fish tale, Folktale
Length: 1020 words
Fandom: Original
Tengukakushi
I couldn't help it. My knees shook so hard, I could barely feel my feet. The cold wind blew through my hair, driving the strands into my mouth, into my eyes. The wind was why my eyes stung. The sharp whisk of split ends on my frozen cheeks were why my eyes watered. I wasn't afraid. I wasn't crying. I couldn't be. Even if I wanted to cry, I wouldn't be able to get the breath past this horrid little lump in my throat. I wasn't crying.
It's not that I could see much, anyway. The sun was down, now...or else the stormclouds were too thick to let a glimmer of light through. The rain was cold, and the wind blew the trees around so violently that I could barely see the sky. If I thought about it, though, it didn't matter that I couldn't see the city lights. It didn't matter if I couldn't find the path. It didn't matter if I could barely see the goddamn branches of the trees, for all the rain. This was a mountain, right? Just...head down. Yeah. Just make sure not to fall on your face, and you'll come across the path eventually. Mt. Takao isn't that big; if I could climb up the mountain, I could surely climb down.
I'm proud to say that I never actually fell over. The trees and brush scraped along my bare arms, and the mountain's great rocks were certainly not as smooth as on the beaten path, tearing at my clothes. Stumbling down the steep decline, I entered a large clearing in the trees. At last! Lights from the base of the mountain gleamed through the murky night, beckoning me forward.
I set off again, ignoring the rain. In fact, my feel fairly flew toward the distant lights. Home! When I would reach the base of the mountain, there would be the city, the bus, the train, the city...
Twigs snapped under my sneakers. The leaves were wet on the ground, but I felt like I barely touched them. Suddenly, the wet forest carpet was slipping from my feet, running with me, alongside me, carrying me down the mountain.
I jerked back. A hand clutched the back of my jacket. The hand pulled, and I had the ground beneath my feet again, motionless and safe. I released a shuddering breath, and...what? I was clinging to red. Bright red. Blood red? No...a red shirt. A red denim jacket. A boy's shirt and jacket.
"Oh God," I gasped, jumping away.
His hands were on me again. They grasped my shoulders, hard. I was frightened, now, but I couldn't bring myself to look away when he looked into my eyes. His dark eyes entirely captured mine when he leaned over me, and uttered...
"Don't. The ground is still dangerous, here. Don't you know you almost walked off a cliff?"
Words froze in my throat. He resettled his jacket, smoothing the creases left from my hands, adjusting the red feather collar. The
decorations were dripping in the downpour, tangled in with the ends of his long, dark hair. He smiled, though, and my fear melted away.
"So, what's your name? And why the hell are you walking off cliffs in the rain at night? You don't look like you got a deathwish."
"I...um...I'm sorry?"
"I'm Tabisuke. You look like you need help."
"Actually...I can't find the path. I just want to go home. I'm at your mercy..."
"Sarutahiko's love, girl; the entrance to the path is on the whole other side of the mountain!" He looked at my torn jeans, my torn hands, and probably the puppy eyes I was inadvertently projecting in his direction, and continued, "I suppose...I could take you on a shortcut."
He sighed, and wiped the mud from his hands on his red jeans. Beckoning for me to follow, he led me back into the trees, retrieving a long brass staff from the leafy soil.
"Shakujo?"
"Yeah," he replied, without looking back. "I stole it from a monk visiting the Yakuōin Yūkiji temple. Pick up the pace, now, okay?"
I think he was using sarcasm. It sounded like he was lying. But why would he have a monk's staff? The thought escaped my lips before I could react.
"But..."
"But what?" He was scowling, now, creasing his forehead in dreadful wrinkles.
"But I thought you were half." What? What? Why the hell did I say that?
"What? No. I'm Japanese."
"But your nose..." Shut up shut up shut up. You don't go around telling otherwise cute boys that they have a big nose!
He frowned again, and turned around so I couldn't see his face. "I don't know what you're talking about. Hurry up."
He rubbed his nose, though, as we walked away. At this angle, it was truly large. He was still cute, though, somehow. I rushed to keep up with the jingle of his staff. His feet were silent on the leaves.
The storm began to calm. The rain slowed, then trickled to a stop, and the air grew warmer. Birds laughed in the trees above - a low, grating noise - and I noticed that we'd come across a path again. This was a different one, though; paved with thick cobbles, rather than the park's dirt path of before. How odd. The sun shone down through the leaves, making this the most pleasant part of the park, yet.
I couldn't believe I'd missed this part of the walk before...but those stupid birds were really noisy, distracting me from the scenery. The sun shone through their wings too, though, leaving me feeling light-headed and even a bit dizzy. Did you know that crows' wings look chocolate-brown in the light? Even when each wing was as long as you were tall? Some of these crows were strange colours, though, in reds and greens, but most had lovely long black hair. Their hair glowed a rich chocolate in the sunlight, too, just like Tabisuke's hair. Everything was lovely in the sunlight...
Wait. Sunlight? Wasn't it raining?
Wasn't it night?
Kakushi: n. Mysterious disappearance; kidnapping. See also kamikakushi.