Hello-hello-hello!~ I'm baaack and I am pleased to inform you all that I have completed this before the summer! (as contrary to previous predictions) (oh yesshhh) So, as the process of fan fiction- writing naturally occurs, this story is up and ready to go!

I hope this makes up for all the crappy previews (?) I posted on my author page... And all the waiting... And all the over- exuberant reviews to other fan fictions...

Alright! So, without further ado, the prologue of 'What The Eye Can't See' :) Please read and tell me what you think in the reviews section! All comments and suggestions will be welcomed with open arms.

Happy reading!~

Prologue

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"Sometimes the heart sees what is invisible to the eye." – H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

...

I took a sip of tea and smiled to myself, inhaling the cool morning breeze of spring.

It was at times like this, when the sun casts its first rays and the world slowly awakens to a new day, when my state of mind is at its finest. When I feel like absolutely nothing could go wrong in this plagued world.

Of course, I didn't live this long not to know that the world doesn't work that way. But peace is still good while it lasts.

Creak.

I swiveled around to meet my beloved little brother's gentle brown orbs as his miniscule fingers meekly pushed the front door aside, his clogs creating a gentle clacking noise as he edged meekly to where I was seated at the edge of the porch.

"Good morning Japan", I beamed as he took a seat beside me, "my, my, aren't you up earlier than usual today?"

"Good morning China- nii", he replied, hugging my arm.

We sat in silence, gazing as the bamboo grove gradually began to shine with a golden luminescence with the rising sun, until I felt Japan's hand tugging at my sleeves.

"China- nii?"

"Yes Japan?" I looked down- only to find myself baffled at how fast Japan's face had changed.

By now his puny figure was positively squirming in his robes; he was smiling from ear to ear, and the excitement in his eyes were undeniable (which was awfully strange, considering that it never really showed much).

"China- nii, I think it's time!" He grinned, and for a moment I found the boy's flushing face did not quite match his still- tranquil tone, "I think it's time! China- nii, I'd like to show you something!"

"You want to show me something?" I repeated, growing all the more confused as Japan's eagerness grew all the more apparent.

Japan stood up and nodded, "Come with me!" He insisted before charging into the bamboo grove.

Not wanting my brother to be wandering the groves alone at such early hours, I ran after him.

"So"- pant- "What do you want to"- pant- "Show me?- "

Japan looked back at me with concerned eyes, before retracing his steps to take my hand in his and patting it.

"I-It's okay Japan, China- nii's fine again", I assured him, stroking his hair before chuckling to myself, "oh dear… It seems your China- nii is getting a bit too old to be running around bamboo groves with you."

"Oh, do not be sad about such trivial things China- nii, because someday I will grow old just like China- nii, and then we can take turns looking after each other", Japan smiled, reaching to pat my head as well (though his height restricted him to only stroking the tip of my ponytail).

I uttered another chuckle and wrapped my brother in an embrace, "What a strange thing for a child to be saying", I laughed, before letting myself be led deeper into the grove by Japan, "So what are you planning on showing me Japan?"

"I can't tell you now because it's a surprise, and I'll spoil it if I do so"- before quickly adding- "oh- but do not worry China- nii, because it's the pleasant kind of surprise, I promise!"

"I expect no less from you", I beamed.

As Japan guided me further from the house, I noticed the bamboo that ascended to the heavens were beginning to grow thicker, their leaves clumping together to form a veil against the sunlight and darkening the grove. The deeper we went, the dimmer it became, until I could barely make out Japan's figure in the darkness.

"Um… Japan?" I began.

"Yes China- nii? We're almost there!"

"Oh… Well, are you sure?"

"Mm hm", the faint silhouette that was Japan's head nodded in reply, "why do you ask?"

"It's just that, well, everything is so dark", I voiced my concerns, "are you sure you can still see the way?"

"Of course I can!" The outline nodded again, "though I wouldn't call it 'seeing' per se."

"Oh… Um, alright then", I shrugged, "b-but are you sure you don't want to come back later, when it's a bit brighter?- "

"No, we can't do that! It'll be too late by then!"

Thus I had to spend the next couple of minutes in fear that I'd lose my brother in the dark (many times along the way did Japan complain that I was squeezing his hand too tightly). I was only too glad when the blackness gave way back to dawn's light, and the bamboo no longer grew as dense.

Finally, as we were nearing a clearing in the bamboo grove, Japan uttered another squeal and began shaking my arm furiously.

"We're here China- nii, we're here!" He cheered, tugging me towards the clearing, "come and see the surprise China- nii; it's about to bloom!"

It's… About to bloom?

Sure enough, situated in the middle of the clearing was a tree, its slender boughs reaching to the sky like elegant arms. Japan made me sit right underneath the pale, peach-coloured buds, before kneeling eagerly beside me.

"Japan? Is this the surprise you were talking about?" I inquired.

"It's coming very soon- ah, it's starting China- nii!

"… Look up."

I followed the direction of Japan's finger to find myself gazing at the rising sun, the golden ball peeping through the buds…

The buds.

They were slowly unfurling, each releasing a sweet fragrance into the air. Then another! And another there! Three more blooms there!

The tree was slowly coming to life, like a lantern glowing red after its candle had been lit, as one by one each bud unfolded their petals to the rising sun. The morning breeze came to herald the blossoming plant, causing a gauze of petals to shower upon our heads, the bigger ones indulging in a mysterious dance as they fluttered to the ground.

And Japan.

My sweet brother was completely mesmerized. His gentle brown orbs, the pair of eyes that never seemed to catch anything, absorbed every dancing petal; caught every ray of sunlight that was thrown on him. He looked…

Beautiful.

"Japan… Th-this is amazing!" I breathed.

"Isn't it?" He beamed, catching a blossom and stroking its petals lovingly, "I've been watching this tree for many days now."

"You mean this isn't the first time you came here?" I gasped.

"Yes- sometimes I even visit after dusk to be honest", Japan admitted sheepishly.

"A-a-after d-dusk?" I felt faint.

I recalled the denser, darker part of the grove we had to navigate through to get to the tree. If the grove was that dark in morning light, I couldn't begin to imagine what trudging through that place at night would be like!

"Oh! But not to worry China- nii! I got used to the darkness after a while", Japan blurted, as if reading my mind, "I-I just couldn't bear to leave my tree alone. The tree and I… We have a mutual understanding China- nii. I could even feel when it was going to blossom, can you believe that?"

"What I can't believe is you being able to find your way and see in the dark", I murmured.

Japan uttered a slight chuckle, "You know China- nii, one does not only require eyes to see."

At his remark, I gave him a quizzical stare. This only provoked more laughter from my little brother as he shifted his position to face me, taking my hand in his, "You can't see with just your eyes only China- nii", he reiterated, "there are all sorts of other means of seeing too! For instance, I can see you are amused when you laugh, and I can see you are worried about me when you squeeze my hand really tight!"- he giggled again- "I can see you are at peace when you play your erhu.

"And deep in my heart, I can see that you love me, because I feel it every time you hug me, or cook me dinner and kiss me goodnight, or put medicine on my knee whenever I scrape it and it hurts. Even if I grow up someday, and you don't need to hug me all the time and kiss me goodnight, and I can cook and apply medicine myself, in my heart I can still see you love me. I'm not sure why yet, but I know I can, because sometimes the heart sees what is invisible to the eye, or ear or mouth or hands."

Japan tossed the blossom from his palms into the air, where it hung suspended for a moment before wafting downwards again, nudging my chest before resting in my lap.

"And I know", Japan beamed, "that even if I grow up someday, you can still see that I love you too, because I do, and your heart knows that. See China- nii? Your eyes aren't your only means of seeing!"- before turning back to the tree- "But I would still be upset all the same if I couldn't see my tree bloom with my eyes."

At that moment, I caught my first glimpse of it. It was crimson and entwined around my little finger, slithering towards where Japan was kneeling, where it was tied around his little finger as well. It was only a faint glimpse, not more than a flicker. However, there was no mistaking what it was. At the time I didn't know, but that vision, that flicker of the future, would change my life forever.

It was the thread of destiny.

And that's it for now :) So what do you think will happen next?

So before I wrap this up for the day, I'll just say a few things; firstly, it has already been approximately 3 months since I first joined this community, and thus shortly- earned experience has taught me that updating your stories too fast just causes a major bummer for the reader. So for this story I'm going to try and contain my excitement from spewing multiple chapters at once, and update only on Thursdays and Saturdays starting from...

...

NOW! :D And that's pretty much it! See y'all on Thursday, and until then happy fan fiction-reading!

It's great to be back!

-Plumeria hi~