Kana Hayashi

*"Every spirit forgets itself eventually,*

*but I'm always on their horizon."*

"Death isn't a cycle, just a moment."

☽ Oracle

↠ Spirit Guide

This story beings in a small village, located just northwest of \_\_\_\_\_ and west of the \_\_\_\_\_ in a dense forest..but this wasn't just any normal village, this one was filled with life and mischief for a clan of Kitsune's had made their home here. During the day, the town seemed normal as human-like beings moved throughout the sunlight, gathering in small groups and gossiping while children ran through the streets.
One of these children being a young girl with vibrant blue eyes and flowing pink hair that whipped behind her in the wind as she ran from the other children, laughing wildly until she came to a sudden stop, tumbling back onto her bottom. Her wide eyes turned to look up at an old woman, the oracle of the village, whom smiled in return and reached down, patting the top of young child's head. "Careful where you wonder, young kit," She warned, although her tone was always friendly towards the children. Kana's look of shock was quickly replaced with glee as she nodded and stood once again, taking off back to her friends.

Once the sun began to set, the children hastily made their way back towards their homes to where they would get ready for the nightly festivities as the adults began to hang up the lanterns and light the blue flamed lanterns. "Kana!" Her mother hollered from the other room, finishing up the last ribbon on her kimono. "Hurry and get dressed, or we'll be late! You don't want to miss the mooncakes!" She called, chuckling under her breath. This warning caused the young child to attempt to try dress quicker, which just caused her own kimono to end up lopsided and tied in correctly. Kana swiftly began to head out of her, but not before stopping by the mirror and shaking her head; the illusion falling as two, equally pink ears perk up from laying against her hair and a pink tail swishing into view behind her.

Eventually Kana found her way to the living area where her mother and father waited for her, a soft sigh falling from her mothers lips as her eyes befell on the child. "You know this is not how to properly dress, my sweet girl," Her mother scolded, but in a loving tone as her father shook his head with a smile. "She's too excited, Myuki." Kana's mother moved to her side, quickly touching up Kana's attire and then pinching her cheek. Grasping her hand, and her father the other, all three headed out to the village streets.

At night, this village was one of a kind; lanterns lit the streets as several kitsune merchants has appeared to sell their newfound wares and delicious foods, music filled everywhere they went as some showed off their skills with instruments or some with magicks. In the center of the streets, a group of kitsune combined magick and their athletic abilities to put on a show, one that Kana loved to watch as she munched on her mooncake. The party went on as usual, everyone blissfully unaware what was to come.

See, everyone in this town was typically good at keeping themselves hidden from the hunters that lingered near this area of the world since kitsune fur was quite the coin to collectors - even more so if they happen to get a tail. But a new merchant to this area didn't realize that he forgot to lower the light of his lantern as he made his way through the dense forest, allowing these hunters to easily follow him through the night..right to the village. Once the moon hit it's peak, that's when they leaped from the bushes.

They had attacked right at the center gathering, where most had congregated for the midnight showing. Magical nets were thrown, knives, several being taken captive quickly as they were taken off guard. The few that were quick to realize what was happening tried to fight back, but they were too slow, some being wrestled to the ground and sedated while others were outright slaughtered.

Kana's father swiftly scooped her up into his arms, while grabbing her mothers hand, and pulling them back towards their house. Everything was moving too quickly for her mind to fully focus on what was happening as she stared behind her fathers back, watching them tie up members of her village and drag them away, watching as they fought for their lives...

They reached their home promptly, darting inside. They parted ways for a moment as her mother took to locking and barricading the door while her father took her into her room and placing her inside her closet. He placed a finger to his lips and ran back out towards the living room, her mother coming back in his place and slamming her bedroom door shut. "M-mommy.." Kana whimpered, her mind finally having a moment to process what was happening as her eyes filled with tears. "Shhhh," Her mother hushed, rushing to the young girls side and wrapping her arms around her while her tail shuts the closet door. "It's going to be okay, hear me?" Her mother said in a rush of breath, leaning back to look at Kana and brushing away some of her tears. "It's going to be okay." Kana's eyes moved to the sweat that was beading on her mothers forehead, the way her eyebrows crinkled as she not only tried to convince her daughter but herself as well. Kana's ears flicked in the direction of her door as the yelling of her father met them, but they were quickly covered by her mothers hands as she started to speak magic.

This continued for awhile, her mother seemingly creating a barrier around Kana's room while the yells of her father grew silent. Her mother's body has slugged forward against the child, but Kana tried to use her weight to keep her mother upright as she continued speaking the spell, figuring she was just becoming tired. A few more hours passed, until her mother's words became completely silent, her body weight falling completely onto the girl whom huffed in response at first. "Mommy.."
No response.

"M-Mommy!" Her tone started to become more urgent as worry took over, her hands falling onto her mother's shoulders as she tries to shake her awake. "Mommy!!" Tears began to fall down her face as she continued to try and shake her mother while also trying to wiggle free from under her. The closet door suddenly swung open, causing Kana to let out a small scream, but it was a friendly face that met her frightened eyes. The old oracle from before.

The woman reached out her hand, ushering the child to grasp it. "Hurry, young kit," Kana obeyed, being swiftly pulled to her feet with surprising strength from the old woman. She led Kana out of her house, to which her eyes searched for her father but was met with nothing...not even the furniture destroyed. Everything...looked as if nothing had happened. Kana's eyebrows knit together and she looked over her shoulder, seeing her mother and father standing together in their kitchen as they watch Kana leave, her mother raising a hand slowly and waving goodbye. "Mommy..papa.." Kana exclaimed, trying to go to them but the woman's hand held tighter onto hers, continuing to tug her out of the house.

The old woman took Kana through the village, and everything looked exactly the same as if before they were attacked, the party continuing and everyone happily dancing, performing and eating..had it all been a dream? Then why wasn't she allowed to be with her mother and father? Questions ran through her tiny mind as they continued to move through the streets, until they finally found themselves at the old woman's abode; which just happened to be a little shack on the edge of the village. Taking the young girl inside, the old woman placed her on a chair as she continued into the kitchen and eventually came back with a small cup of tea. "You won't understand now, young kit, but it is your destiny to learn from me now.." Kana sipped from the drink, not really sure what the woman meant from needing to learn from her. "For this whole village..for your parents.." Kana's eyes grew drowsy, the lids falling as she swayed back and forth in the chair, unable to hold herself upright until eventually passing out.

### *-Trick of the Eye: Art and Illusion-*

Days passed, seasons passed...years passed. The whole time, Kana grew under the strict eye of the older woman, whom Kana was told to call "Grandma Aiya". Aiya taught her the ability to feel the nature that surrounded them, become one with it and let it flow through her. She was taught the ability of several magick's that Aiya knew herself, although some also seemed to come from Kana naturally. She studied hard as Aiya's words continued to nag her in the back of her mind when she was little..and to find out exactly what happened that night.
People in the village didn't pay much attention to her, other than morning hello's as they passed and a wave here or two. Her mother and father would visit occasionally and bring her mooncakes, but Kana was never allowed to embrace them as Aiya told her to hide her more sensitive feelings and always be on her feet, even though the girl thought this was ridiculous with her own parents.

Although she was well to sticking to her training's, this doesn't mean she wouldn't sneak off every now and again to play with the nymph's within the woods and other magical creatures that lingered about, gossiping every now and again while also trying to see if they had any information about that night. As she returned from a night of sneaking out, she found that a line of people seemed to be forming around her grandmothers shack, this sight causing Kana to turn her calm walk into a full on sprint, panic taking over her heart.

The towns people moved out of the way as Kana rushed in, her mind paying little attention to them as she sought out her grandmother and finding her resting on her bed. Grandmother Aiya was looking worse for wear, her old skin appeared to have sunk even more and her chest rose and fell at a snails pace with the light breaths the frail woman took. Kana immediately reached for the old woman's hand, taking it into her own and placing it against her lips as fresh tears rolled down her porcelain cheeks.

"Don't..cry now, young kit," Grandma Aiya spoke, the words barely leaving her frail lips and if Kana hadn't been as close as she was, she most likely wouldn't have heard them. "It's time..for...the truth," She fell into a coughing fit after the words. Kana's ears flicked as she heard movement behind her, looking over her shoulder and seeing that the villagers had begun to cram themselves into the hut and reaching out towards the pair.

Kana quickly shook her head, grasping onto the hand she held even tighter. "No.." She spoke under her breath, her eyes returning back to her grandmother whom stood still now, staring directly at her with a blank stare. "No..." The tears came quicker, her heart beating more frantically as she quickly became overwhelmed, her ears flicking as she listened to the footsteps nearing even more. "NO!" She screamed out, letting go of her grandmothers hand and turning towards the closest civilian, pushing them roughly away from her and her grandmother in a frantic fit..her mother's eyes peered back at her before disappearing in a puff of smoke. The rest of the villagers followed, disappearing one by one into black smoke that evaporated into the air.

The walls around Kana seemed to shed like wet paint being washed away with water, the colorful scenery she was use to growing up changing into grey, black tones with specks of green plant growth. Revealing the truth of what she had been so destined to find out her whole life. Everything was destroyed; furniture smashed, family heirlooms covered in soot...a skeletal figure laying just where her grandmother once was.

Kana, once frozen in fear by what she was seeing, began to thaw as her mind finally came to terms with what she was seeing be revealed to her. She slowly pulled herself up from her crumbled position and stumbled out of the shack, showing an even worse fate. It was as if time had, not only frozen from that terrible day but new life had come to take over and begin anew. Several of the towns houses were destroyed, signs of them being burnt as well as being broken into very prominent. Her steps were met with one of the two, one being broken household items..the other being bones and skulls, so many littered throughout the streets that she had to practically dance to avoid stepping on them, taking the first option to step onto should she have to.

Her heart led her to her next destination, besides dodging the ground below her her feet seemed to take her exactly where she needed to be and ending up right outside what once was her house. The door no longer existed, the whole front seeming to have collapsed in on itself. She stepped between the fallen gravel and bricks, coming to find a pair of skeletons; one appearing as though they dragged themselves from the living room to meet another that had done the same but from her old bedroom. Kana instantly recognized them as her mother and father.

Some beauty had become of this though, everything that had been destroyed and even the remains of her former loved ones, had become taken over by the roots of plants that sprouted new growth - a sign of life continuing. She placed her hand on the flower that bloomed from each of her parents skulls, closing her eyes as she prayed to them silently. Opening her eyes once more, she could feel she wasn't alone.

Kana stood and turned, finding the spirit of her mentor and grandmother looming right beside her, looking down at the corpses with a sad smile on her lips. The old woman turned to look at Kana, her eyes looking sad but hopeful. "You're far too young," Her voice was like a whisper of what it once was, but Kana could hear her perfectly. "But your time has come." She floated forward and closer. "I grant you this gift, we will always be here to guide you." The spirit of Grandma Aiya placed her hands on either side of Kana's temples.

Once the cold spirits hands were placed against Kana's warmed skin, it was as if lightning had shook its way through every nerve in her body. Her body became drenched in sweat and she collapsed in on herself, her cries being the only noise that filled the void in the village as pain coursed through her body. The fur on her tail stood on end, the tail quivering as a second rapidly grew next to it. For a moment, Kana's hair drained of all color, becoming a blinding snow white as the power filled through her body.

Everything stopped as she felt two hands on her shoulders, her eyes slowly moving up as she caught her breath and shaky hands coming up to wipe at the sweat that dripped down her face. On either side of her stood the spirits of her parents, smiling encouraging smiles as they held tightly onto their trembling child. They remained like this for a moment until others had begun to gather around her destroyed home, some of their eyes begging and digging into the last remaining kitsune woman.

She knew what she had to do.

With hardened eyes, she pulled herself up from her coiled form and made her way to the front of her house. Her face showed no emotion over what she was about to do, besides her eyes beginning to fill with tears and streaming down her cheeks. Kana stopped at the crumpled and broken front door, reaching down and pulling off a piece of old wood. Continuing forward and stopping just when she was right outside what once was her house, she turned around to face it, her eyes falling on her parents who stayed inside. They held each other as they looked upon their daughter, expressions of sadness crossing their faces but something else...pride. Tears continued to fall down her cheeks but her body and expression remained stiff, unrevealing of her true emotions.

Kana's hand clenched the old piece of wood tightly while she snapped her fingers on her other, the tip of the piece of wood suddenly lit aflame. She stared at the spirits of her parents for a moment longer, taking in the image of them one last time. She had to be strong. With a shaky intake of breath she leaned down, placing the burning piece of wood against the old door frame and closed her eyes, feeling the heat of the flame grow hotter as it began to spread out and eat whatever was left of her old home.

Reopening her eyes, she saw her parents no longer stood in the burning mess. They had been freed. Kana took in the image for a second longer and then turned on her heels, heading to the next house and placing her hand against the nearest piece of wood, causing it to also set aflame and join in the cleansing. The young kitsune woman continued this until each other homes were burning to the ground for good, watching as each of the spirits vanished as they were finally released. Kana stayed here through the night, watching the fires grow to extreme lengths as she stood from afar and until they died out, the whole time sitting on the ground with her knees pulled to her chest and tears staining her cheeks.

Kana sat like that for a few days, not eating or drinking, simply taking in what she had seen and done while going over what she had to do now. Snow had begun to fall, lightly coating the ground and showing signs that it was going to be a few inches, but she remained there..she had no where to go. She laid back against the mix of white and green under her, ready to give into the starvation and cold that surrounded her..to be with her parents again..until

- takes in the spirits that linger around the village, including her parents and old lady. burns village down to release other spirits that want rest

- leave village, head north