Freedom; It means so many different things, to different people.
An example? Very well.
If, on a warm, sunny day, you decide take your dog out on a walk. Afterwards, as it is hot, you take a break in the park. Your dog ends up tied to a tree. He whines. He whimpers, he howls, he does not leave you alone. You let him off the leash, and all is quiet. You wonder what is wrong, but now, your dog simply lies in the shade of that same tree, quiet and calm.
Freedom is but a concept, but even to a dog, it is very important.
To be caged is like clipping a bird's wings. They have the equipment, they have the instinct, but they can no longer fly. They are caged, they cannot free themselves, and they have been stripped of their very birthright.
They should be able to fly. They should be up there, high in the azure sky, soaring like any bird does. But they cannot. For they have been caged, though they are free.
It is a horrible feeling, and I wish that I could not relate. But unfortunately, I can.
I am the Kyuubi, the nine-tailed demon fox of legends, possibly the strongest one in all of the continent, perhaps the world, and I have been caged by a mere mortal, into a boy I do not understand.
He smiles, but no one smiles back. He laughs alone, for no one will laugh with him. He is cursed with me but he acts blessed. Obnoxious and loud, not to mention rude, and enjoys playing pranks, yes. But he seems blessed. He has a smile for all, even if they do not want it. He believes strongly in righteousness, even with the amount of injustice he has seen in this world.
How do I say this?
Before, I thought I knew joy, knew contentment, knew…love.
It was the sight of blood on a carcass, the joy of knowing I have survived another day; the feeling of knowing that I am stronger than so many. Contentment, the feeling as I laze languidly on a warm patch of sun, unhurried, unbothered by the problems of normal life.
Love…I never really knew love, as a ruthless demon to survive
But then, the boy showed me the scrapings of the top of these feelings, what it means…sometimes.
Joy is the feeling of happiness, and often, it is the sound they call laughter.
Contentment, of going home after a long day from missions or training, and taking a nice, long, hot bath, and sinking until only your nose shows, and feeling comfort sinking into your bones, and relaxing. The smell of hot, delicious, miso ramen (I must admit I make up part of the boy's love for it) and the steam that hits your nose and warms you up
And love, the feeling that is so indescribable, but makes you feel so good, so warm and fuzzy inside. The feeling of knowing that you belong, that someone knows the true you, under those many layers that make up the everyday smile, the sunny devil-may-care grin that now seems so…fake.
I, the Kyuubi no Kitsune, thought that I truly learned humanity.
Humanity…joy…and the feeling of belonging.
And then, the boy found love, found he was accepted and I was again, blown away by the magnitude of these fragile, human emotions.
Joy in being accepted for who you are, not who you're parents were, or what you did, but for the person that you are inside.
Contentment in knowing that you have helped another live a fuller life, and that you can smile another day.
Love is the joy of waking to the smell of sandalwood and the musky male scent that belongs only to him. It is the contentment in laying cuddled up in bed, or just after a long day, and knowing that the Uchiha heir loves, loves, and can love, him, the demon fox carrier, the one hated by everyone…except him.
This feeling is so much more than I can describe, for it simply is just that: the indescribable feeling that leaves you completely breathless and absolutely at peace with the world, for you have found what you have been looking for, all your life, even if you do not know it. But even now, you cannot die happy, for now that you have finally found him, you cannot bear to leave.
Dear Inari, I'm going soft.