FF.net really needs a genre of "fluff".
Tou-chan = Daddy
Happily Ever After
X-parrot
"Tell me a story, Tou-chan!"
"Hmm, so what one should I tell tonight? An important day needs an important story. Maybe how witches make their magic? Or how the bugs fought the beasts--"
"The Emperor and the Snake!"
"Don't you already know that one?"
"But it's my favorite, Tou-chan. Please?"
"All right...since it was a special day. Once upon a time..."
"Hee."
"Eh?"
"I love your stories, Tou-chan. They all start like that."
"So once upon a time, there was an Emperor, who lived in a great and terrible Castle."
"Was it as tall as a tree?"
"It was taller than a tree--it was as tall as a mountain, though it wasn't made of stone, and people lived inside it instead of on top of it. Lots of people, good people and bad people, stupid people and smart people, young children and old wise ones. They all lived together in the Castle, and because all castles have kings, one of them was the Emperor. When he walked, thunder boomed, and he could make light. Even though he wasn't the smartest or the bravest or the most beautiful, people called him the Emperor."
"Was he a good Emperor?"
"I don't know. He tried to be. He tried to help people, but it was a very big castle, and there were so many people in it that he couldn't help them all. And sometimes he would hurt people, if he thought they were bad, and sometimes they really weren't bad, so he shouldn't have hurt them. But even when that happened, they still called him the Emperor. Even the people who were afraid of him called him the Emperor, as well as the ones who loved him--and sometimes they were the same people.
"So the Emperor ruled the Castle, until one day, when his four friends came to see him, bringing terrible news.
"First his friend the dolphin, who was very wise, spoke to the Emperor, and said that he had heard a story whispered in the darkest dungeons, that the stones down at the very bottom, in the Castle's foundation, were beginning to crumble."
"But you said the Castle wasn't made of stone!"
"Most of it wasn't. Just the dungeon. --Then the Emperor's friend the weaver-spider, who was very graceful, said that he had heard a story murmured in the marketplaces, that the Castle's walls, at the edges of peoples' homes, were beginning to crack. And then his friend the lion, who was very brave, said that he had heard a story echoing in the heights, that the roof of the Castle, above everyone's heads, was beginning to cave in."
"Tou-chan, how come when Papa tells this story, the lion is a dog?"
"...It doesn't matter. --The Emperor's three friends all told him this, that the Castle is beginning to fall, and no one knows why. But his fourth friend, the man who knew the sun, said nothing.
"So the Emperor went to find out why the Castle was falling, and how to stop it. He descended first to the dungeons, and made a bright light, so that he saw the crumbling stones, and all the people trapped there among them. He showed the people to the stairs, but though they all gladly climbed out, none of them knew why the Castle was falling.
"Next he walked to the market squares, and when everyone heard the thunder of his footsteps, they moved off the street and bowed to him. Behind them he saw the cracks in the walls, but none of the bowing people knew why the Castle was falling.
"Then he climbed to the highest tower he could, and looked out over the Castle and saw the split roofs, which let rain leak onto everyone below. The rain poured down on the Emperor, and he greeted the storm clouds. They answered with great bolts of lightning, but they could not tell him why the Castle was falling, nor how to stop it.
"The Emperor was about to return down the stairs, and tell all the people he did not know what to do. But before he put his foot on the first step, he heard someone coming up to meet him, there on top of the tower where few dared climb. He thought it might be an enemy, but instead it was his fourth friend, the man who knew the sun, and everything under it.
"'So you've found out why the Castle is falling,' said the man who knew the sun.
"The emperor began to say no, that he didn't know, but his friend stopped him. 'You saw it,' he said, and he sounded sad. 'In the dungeons, when the stone crumbled as your light touched it. In the city, when your thunder cracked the walls. And here, when the storm pounds at the roof to meet you.'
"And the Emperor realized it was true. That the reason the Castle had begun to fall was because of his power. Because he lived within it.
"The Emperor asked his friend, 'How do I stop it? How do I keep it from falling?'
"But the man who knew the sun told him, 'I don't know, when whatever you light will crumble, and wherever you walk will crack, and however far you go the storms will follow. But without your light the Castle will be dark, and if you don't walk then you cannot help the people in the Castle, and the storms will still come. I don't know what you can do.' And the Emperor looked at the man who knew the sun, and saw his friend was crying as he turned away.
"At last the Emperor climbed down from the tower, and sat alone for a while, trying to think of what he could do. And everywhere he looked, there was light, and every time he moved, there was thunder, and he knew the Castle was falling around him, and all of them.
"Presently his friend the lion, who was very brave, came to him and said that his comrades told him the Castle was falling. But the lion used his strength to hold up the walls, and told them not to be afraid, because the Emperor was there.
"And the Emperor could not tell him that he knew why the Castle was falling.
"Later his friend the weaver-spider, who was very graceful, came to him and said that people told him the Castle was falling. But the spider wove his threads to span the broken gaps, and told them it was still beautiful, because the Emperor was there.
"And the Emperor could not tell him that he knew why the Castle was falling.
"Then his friend the dolphin, who was very wise, came to him and said that the very bricks of the Castle told him they were falling. But the dolphin brought his water to fill the empty places, and told them to believe it would still stand, because the Emperor was there.
"And the Emperor could not tell him that he knew why the Castle was falling.
"And the man who knew the sun came to him, but said nothing.
"The Emperor closed his eyes, so there would be no light, and he held his breath, so there would be no thunder. But he could feel the Castle around him, still falling. People came to him to beg for light, and for help, because he was their Emperor, and his friends came to ask him to save the Castle, and he didn't know what to do, until finally he shouted at them all to go away. And when he shouted, the Castle shook, and everyone fled, the people and his friends, even the man who knew the sun.
"But when the Emperor looked up, he saw he was not alone--"
"Because the Snake was there!"
"Yes. He looked up, and saw there was a Snake with him, a beautiful long serpent with shining scales and blue eyes so bright they didn't need the Emperor's light to see. The snake looked at him with those eyes, and told him, 'Everyone ran, because they thought the Castle was falling down on their heads.'
"'It is,' the Emperor said. He could hear the walls cracking as he spoke. But the Snake only watched him, until finally the Emperor said, 'Go, before it falls on you, too.'
"'Why is it falling?' the Snake asked, not as if he were afraid, but just curious.
"And the Emperor told him, 'Because of me,' and he told him what the man who knew the sun had said, and how he knew of no way to stop it, for even when he did not look or breathe, the storms still blew, and the people still came to him, because he was their Emperor. And so the Castle would fall, because of him.
"Then he looked at the Snake's sharp fangs with their poison, and the Emperor realized there was a way that even the man who knew the sun had not seen. He leapt up, suddenly, with a loud cry, and the Snake, startled, lashed out as snakes do, and bit him.
"The Emperor thought it would be over, now that the venom was in him, and he sat on the ground. But the Snake took his hand and helped him stand, saying, 'My venom won't kill you. I won't allow it.'
"'Then the Castle will fall,' the Emperor began, but the Snake stopped him.
"'Not if you leave it,' he said. 'You can leave it. This Castle is big, but the world outside it is even greater. You won't be able to shake it down, no matter how loud your footsteps or how brightly you shine. And storms blow in the sky anyway, whether you're there or not. You won't be the Emperor out there, though.'
"I don't care if I'm Emperor,' the Emperor said. 'But I don't know how to leave.'
"But the Snake told him, 'I'll come with you, and show you the way.'
"And so the Emperor left the Castle, and it didn't fall after all. Eventually they fixed everything that had broken, the dolphin and the lion and the weaver-spider, and the man who knew the sun, and everyone else, until it was better than before, when the Emperor had been there. And the Snake stayed with the man who used to be the Emperor, and showed him all sorts of wonderful things in the world...and they lived..."
"That's not the end!"
"I thought you were asleep."
"I'm not sleepy!"
"Shh...why don't you close your eyes again, and--"
"But it's not the end, Tou-chan!"
"It's one of the ends. It's a good one for tonight, isn't it? And you know the others already."
"When Papa tells the story it's different. When Papa tells it the Snake is mean and angry, but when he bites the Emperor, the Emperor doesn't get mad back, but he takes him to a warm place, where people don't hate snakes..."
"Would you like me to get Papa, to tell you that end?"
"No, I like how you tell it, too, Tou-chan. But I want to hear the real end."
"But you have to sleep now."
"But the end's my favorite part, when they go back. Please?"
"Only if you close your eyes and lie down again."
"Like this?"
"Yes. And here's your good night kiss. --Now, the Snake and the Emperor--who isn't an Emperor anymore--they had many adventures, and you know lots of them. They even went back to the Castle sometimes, though the Emperor didn't like it there as much. It didn't fall, but it wasn't his home anymore. But some of his friends still lived there, and one day his friend the dolphin asked him to return.
"There was one tower in the Castle, the very tallest tower, that no one had ever climbed, not even the Emperor. It was forbidden, because there was supposed to be something there, a terrible monster locked up that was so powerful it could tear down the Castle--no peeking! Keep your eyes closed. That way you can picture the story better, right?
"But now, the Emperor's friend told him, the Castle was shaking, and they were afraid that the monster was trying to break free. And if it did, it might destroy the Castle, but even if it didn't, its roaring still might bring the Castle down.
"The Emperor knew that the monster must be stronger than him. But his friends said they would help him. And he asked the Snake, who said, 'I left with you; I'll come back with you, like I have before.' The Emperor knew that the Snake was stronger than even the worst monster, so he wasn't afraid. While his friends used their strength to keep the Castle standing, the Emperor and the Snake climbed the stairs of the tower, all the long winding way up, until they reached the door at the top.
"They could feel the Castle tremble around them, as if something were grabbing onto it and throwing it back and forth, until it was about to tumble down like a stack of toy blocks. But behind the door they couldn't hear anything like the roaring of a monster. So, very carefully, the Snake opened the door...
"And behind it, they found...no monster at all, just a very little princess, with black hair and beautiful dark eyes, alone in a tall, wide room. Whenever she took a step, even though she just wore slippers on her feet, the Castle shook as if she were stamping around in boots as big as skyscrapers. The Emperor looked at her, and saw she was like him, and that in the Castle she would grow up to be Empress, or destroy the Castle, or both. And he knew that she would be as sad as he had been, if she did. And the Snake looked at her, and said--"
"He said, 'Damn it, you'd think one Raitei would have been enough for those bastards.'"
"That's not quite how I remember it."
"Well, something along those lines. O-hime-chan asleep yet?"
"Looks like, finally...she had a big day."
"Mmm."
"Yeah, she really is cute."
"It's 'cause she's got your eyes--I mean, I don't remember saying anything like that. Though when she's asleep she's less of a monster, at least. Good night, little princess. --And stop smiling at me like that."
"She must be sound asleep. Usually she wakes up when you kiss her good night."
"First day of school's bound to tire any kid out. Even her. And you went on for long enough. Don't think I'd heard that whole story before."
"I haven't heard you tell all of it, either."
"You tell it better anyway. Even if you mess some things up. Shh, don't slam the door, you'll wake her! ...Though since she is finally asleep--you ready for bed, Tou-chan?"
"Hmm. I don't know. Will you tell me a bedtime story, Papa?"
"A bedtime story? Lemme see. --And better get those off, you can't sleep in blue jeans. Okay. Here--here's how it starts. Once upon a time..."
"I think I've heard that somewhere bef--aa--oh!"
"Should I go on?"
"S...sure. Only..."
"Mm?"
"I don't think this story is--ah!--is going to help me get to sleep--"
"...You wanna hear it or not?"
"Yes, Ban-chan!"
"Good...because even when you know it already, the ending's the best part..."
owari