A/N: So, it's been a year since I ended my first story-length Vocaloid fanfic, and I was missing the mystery genre, so here's my second attempt at a mystery story. Again, I have yet to plan much, so let's hope this turns out to be alright, shall we? Supposing this first chapter works. T^T
(Side note: I refuse to include any romance. I refuse to include any romance. I refuse—okay, fine, a little maybe, somewhere, someplace, BUT I REFUSE TO MAKE ROMANCE A MAIN—*smack* Shut up, me.)
I hope you'll enjoy the story! It just happened to be a snow day today for me, so maybe that says something, since this story is set in the dead of winter. XD
Ten years was a long time to be lost.
It wasn't like he had a calendar tucked in his pocket or a watch to count the seconds that accumulated into minutes, into hours and days, growing and growing like the snow that accumulated around him, but somehow, he knew. Ten years had been lost in this cursed forest. Ten years of constant wandering, an impossible mission to find an exit out, to find a way back home.
How it was possible to be lost for ten years, logic and science had no answer. He hadn't eaten once, hadn't stopped moving, hadn't seen anything but a dusty white cover over his head and tall trees that trapped him under their branches. His skin had slowly turned a bluish-white hue that he was starting to consider as normal. He was numb to the cold, undisturbed by the harsh winds that snuck through the trees and leapt out at him. Winter was the only season that existed in this boundless forest, a field of crisp, white snow burying all signs of life save for the lanky trees that rose out of the white blanket and towered over him.
He knew he never should've gone into the forest. It didn't matter if he hadn't believed in the legend before; he most certainly believed in it now. The cursed forest that trapped all who ventured, kept them spinning around and around looking for an exit that didn't exist, most definitely was an evil case of magic, whether that made any sense or not. The woods looked the same in every direction, the trees always planted close together, barren and sickly. He had to squeeze between them just to get past, onwards towards nowhere in particular, his figure thin and frail as his skin clutched bone, all lifelike flesh long since vanished.
Even then, he'd never given up the hope that someday he might find a way back home. He might've laughed at the legend for its obvious fictional aspects before, but he'd never forgotten the final advice left in that worn storybook in the library, the final page frayed and its inked words fading: Never give up hope.
Hope would get him out alive. He had to believe it would, had to believe that his home wasn't just an impossible goal but an attainable reality. He would see it again and return to his friends and family. It didn't matter that someone had tricked him into going into the woods; he could discover who the culprit was after he got back and finally confessed to the person he loved.
That was right. It was mostly his fault that he'd gotten into this predicament. If he had been able to confess his feelings even though he knew she loved another, then he would have been able to put aside his feelings and move on without being so concerned about her all the time. Then he might not have ventured into the forest in search of his love.
At that thought, his fingers unconsciously burrowed into his coat pocket, curling around the old, crumbling note. He knew the words by heart, the only piece of writing he had to read throughout these ten years.
"I have something to tell you. Can you meet me by the woods?"
Even if it'd been signed by the person he loved, he ought to have realized the handwriting was nothing like hers. Even more, she never spoke so politely to him. Whoever had given the note had probably known that he would fall for the trick, too blinded by love and trusting of written words.
He randomly made a left turn. Like always, the woods were trying to confuse him, but he wasn't going to give up. If the woods didn't want him to go home, then he'd force it to accommodate to his random turns. There could only be so many ways the forest appeared, be it the distance between trees or the pattern of speckled snow on the bark or the thickness of snow in a certain area. One day, he hoped, the woods would give up and let him reach the edge of the forest, back outside to reality.
Just as he took another step forward, a small tinkling noise entered his ears. He stopped, surprised, glancing around for the source of the noise. Ten years and this had to be the first thing he'd heard besides his own breathing and the sound of crunching snow under his feet.
The sound grew louder as he spotted some orbs of lights floating towards him. Somehow he wasn't too shocked by their appearance. Wandering around for ten years in a frozen forest was already the strangest thing he could imagine, and what forest wasn't complete with some strange lights floating around?
"It's the end," a singsong voice echoed, bouncing around in his head. "You've won. You've won."
Won? What had he won?
It hit him. He'd beaten the forest in its stupid maze game. At the end of ten, long years, it was finally giving up and letting him go home.
"Yes," came the voices again. "We can't keep you here anymore. You have overcome the toughest challenges in this forest. You are truly worth all the powers we've bestowed upon you to keep you alive."
"Why?" a voice croaked, a throaty, raspy voice that might have been his own. He couldn't quite recall the sound of his voice anymore, having not used it once in years. "Why did you keep me alive?"
"We are creatures who prey on the hope of humans. Those with hope, we keep alive until there is no hope left to devour, but you have proved tougher than our wildest expectations," the tinkling voices rang out in his head, soft as a whisper. "We are not so heartless to let you wander for an eternity, so we will offer you a choice."
Almost immediately, the trees before him parted, shrinking away as a glowing light erupted to life in the distance, softly blinking as if asking him to go towards it. His breath must have caught in his dry throat, for suddenly he was finding it hard to breathe in the cool air that only caused his excitement to expand in his lungs.
"Is … is that the way home?"
"Yes," was the reply, a welcome response in his ears. "You can leave the forest now."
Before he could take a staggering step forward, the voices held him back, the spots of light dancing around him as they chattered excitedly, "Or you can stay here."
"Stay?"
"Yes, stay here, where you'll live forever. Stay here where the world is silent, where the evils of nature can't harm you. You can be our king, blessed with all of our wonderful powers."
"Powers?" went his cracked voice, or what he supposed was his voice, as he took his first step forwards toward the light at the end of the path, the road home.
"Powers beyond your wildest dreams," the voices sung, tinkling as the lights floated about like the snow that had once again begun to fall. "You've proven to be more than worthy to be our king. You have such hopefulness inside, a perfect fit for this forest of despair. We'll give you all the things you want in this world, so stay with us. We'll make sure you don't have to experience the horrors of the real world waiting for you."
He simply shook his head, still heading for the light that lay just ahead, glowing brighter and brighter as he approached it.
"I want to go home," that foreign voice echoed in the hollow woods, stiff and cold. He could almost see the sound waves emerge from his mouth, wavering before they froze and collapsed onto the ground, struggling to be stay alive and be heard. "I don't need any strange powers."
"But it's dangerous where you come from," came the voices, now dwindling into hushed, urgent whispers that surrounded him a thick mist. He shrugged them off and moved on, his journey continuing. The light was still there, beckoning him forward. Its existence meant there was still hope, hope to run away from this cursed forest's clutches, hope to return to the place he'd yearned to see for ten years. "The place you left behind is bound to give in to tragedy. We're offering you a choice to escape with your sanity."
"Sanity?" This time, the voice came out rasped, scraping his dry throat like a dagger, sharp and cutting. "I've given up ten years in this forest, and you claim that staying here will retain my sanity?"
There was a hesitant silence as the fog temporarily parted, as if these spirits, or whatever they were, had actually felt a pang of guilt. He pushed forward, shaking off the first tinges of annoyance in years. He hadn't meant to get angry. He simply wanted to go home and see the people he cared for again. He had had enough of this mindless wandering that was more than enough to drive anyone insane.
The light at the end of the path was getting closer now. He could feel its blinding glow brushing against his cheeks, pulling him out of the depths of the frozen woods.
The bundles of lights were now leaping around his head almost frantically now. "Last chance," they were chanting in a frenzy, loud and piercing in his ears like crystals of ice, struggling to take him back and only bouncing off his body instead, a broken record that could no longer transmit its beautiful voice. "Last chance to save yourself. We want you to be happy, hopeful human, so please, stay here. Stay with us."
He just shook his head once more, letting his dark blue locks fall over his tired eyes. "Thank you for your offer, but I'm going home," he responded, taking the final step into the light. Oxygen filled him as if for the first time in years, the light enveloping him, spreading a warmth he'd forgotten throughout his body. He pushed forward, slow and steady, loath to leave the arms of such hospitality, but he had people he wanted to see, a life he wanted to live, so he continued onwards, seeking for a familiar sign.
Out of the corner of his eye, he thought he saw a flitting figure, a tiny dot of shadowy darkness that flickered and sparkled around his head. "We gave you a chance," the voices chattered again, now fuzzy and out of focus, like voices sounded when speaking into a fan. "Your powers are yours to keep, but be warned. You'll find yourself regretting wanting to go back."
He took one more step forward and suddenly, for the first time in ten years, he was outside on an earth that was no longer littered by trees. Another step and the cursed woods were behind him. His heartbeat pounding in his ears, his feet stepped forward gingerly as if treading on air.
Was this real?
The sunlight was reaching out and caressing his cheeks, the firm earth underneath him no longer blanketed by snow, clear blue skies above his head and twisted dirt paths underneath his feet that trailed through stalks of tall, dry grass, leading to the familiar signpost that was still there stooped over like an old man waiting for his return. This must have been what euphoria felt like, this uplifting feeling that made him feel so light-headed and emotional, his heartbeat pounding in his ears. His spirits rose as he stumbled over towards that guiding figure, that post of wood that would direct him back home, back into the arms of the people he'd grown up with, to his family and friends. He was almost there, a trembling arm outstretched, pulling his body forward to that pillar of reality. If he could just touch it, feel the familiar texture of weathered wood underneath his fingertips…
And just like that, as his bony finger brushed against the rough, splintered sign that bore the name of his village, his ten years of struggle evaporated like frost on his skin, melting with the sharp light that cut across his vision.
Suddenly, he stumbled backwards as a sharp pain pierced his index finger, a splinter sticking out from his pallid skin. There was a signpost in front of him, a pointed sign nailed to a wooden post that directed him towards a village called Shimori.
The light was blinding as he lifted his head to spot a few trails of smoke drifting off into the dazzling blue skies above. He took a second to stand there and feel the wind caress his cheeks, his hair rippling and brushing against his skin, soft and yet chilly to the touch.
It was strange business indeed, he thought to himself as he studied his surroundings, blinking rapidly to let his weak eyes adjust to the light. For some reason, the intersection he was at felt strangely familiar. The light shining above him was so gentle, so welcoming, and yet for some reason, as he stood there with his eyes close, it felt chilling, a shivering feeling trickling down his spine, a lingering sense that something had gone terribly wrong as he tried to sort through the remaining memories in his mind. The more he tried to clear his mind though, the more he seemed to be forgetting until all that was left was an image of a young boy. Blond with a pair of brilliantly blue eyes. A boy named Len, seemingly tied together with the words 'friend', 'fun', and 'love'.
His brows furrowed, wondering what the significance of this boy he seemed to have taken a liking to had. Finding no answer, he settled for listening to the wind whistle a mellow tune that kicked at the dirt out of frustration.
Turning his head back up to the misty gray skies above him, the man sighed. Somehow, he, Kaito Shion, had ended up in this strange place before being abandoned into an oblivion that left him hopelessly lost, without a clue as to who he was or what he had been doing in such an abandoned place in the first place. The only source he could follow was to find the boy named Len, but for some reason, there was a sinking feeling in his heart, as if he already knew there was something sinister waiting for him, should he follow his clue.
After all, all that time, he could've sworn he'd heard the woods behind him cackling in the wind as if to say, "Good luck, human. You're on your own now."
