Lady Hope
Who am I? Where am I? What am I?
The questions sprang up from the long forgotten depths of her mind, like springs which were pushed too hard and finally pushed back, when the pressure was too much to bear.
Who am I? Where am I? What am I?
She repeated these questions like a mantra. Whether they were said out loud or suppressed in the surreal, broken world that was her mind, she didn't know. It seemed as if she didn't know anything anymore, or perhaps, she knew too much.
Who am I? Where am I? What am I?
These were the questions that everyone seemed to know, except for her.
"The ones who say they know, don't know.
The ones who do, say nothing."
These were the words her mother used to recite from the works of the great philosopher, Lao Zhu. Her mother had always spoken so little, yet said so much. Now she couldn't say anything anymore.
The dead can't speak.
At least, that's what she thought until he came along.
To him, Hinata Hyuga was the broken girl who saw too much and was loved too little. The one who happiness through away, and who misery mothered. She had seen too much death, and not enough life. She may have been only eight, but she had the mind of a soldier who didn't know how to fight.
It had all started the year before, when her mother died. At first, she had not believed her family, when they had told her of her passing. Not because she was in denial, but because she could see her mother, through the window, sitting on the garden bench. She became frustrated when they told her that the bench was vacant. She finally understood, when she saw her grandmother, who died of influenza two years previous, playing with her little sister.
There was a very subtle difference between the dead and the living, through Hinata's eyes. The dead shone as if they were lit candles in a low lit room. The living were simply dull.
Her father wasn't worried about his daughter's behaviour, not even when she started to predict their deaths correctly. He was convinced she would grow out of it. Even if she didn't, he would never send her to a psychologist. Having a chronically depressed heiress would bring shame on the family – something he would avoid at all costs. It wouldn't have done her any good anyway. She was already passed the point of no return. The only thing to do now was wait, and so she did. She waited. She walked the streets at night , every night, waiting for time to relieve her of the suspense, and perhaps even her tragic life.
Who am I? Where am I? What am I?
She contemplated these words as she walked down the lonely streets that night. She was awakened from her solemn trance, by a low growl which came from behind her.
An alligator-like creature with red scales stabbed his long, black claws into the ground, dragging his body towards her. She just stood, more out of curiosity than out of fear. The creature started to weaz and gasp for air. Hinata, alarmed by his tormented struggle, ran to help him.
As she approached him, , he curled up into a ball, shielding himself from her, or rather, shield her from him. As the creature rocked itself to and fro, she could barely make out his crying whispers,
"I'm a monster…I'm a monster…"
Hinata had the urge to embrace him and comfort him with soft word. She touched his face with her naked hand, and all of his memorise flooded into her conscience.
His name was Nato. He had had a fight with his parent over his girlfriend, whom they disapproved of, and ran away. That night he was attacked and bitten by a creature, similar to the one he has become. I took him three weeks for him to completely transform into what he was now. Every day which passed was pure agony. Not only because of the physical changes, but also because of the mental torture of not knowing what is happening to you and spending countless, sleepless nights wondering whether or not you will ever see your loved ones again. All Nato wanted now was for it all to be over. To end his suffering, and the only way to do that was through –
"Death," he whispered, "Please…I just want to die."
A switched seemed to click in hinata's soul. Something began to blossom and grow inside of her and was restless to be released. It climbed its way up her throat, toward the darkness of the night, where it belonged. Hinata watched as what can only be describe as vines of dull light escaped her mouth and entwined themselves around Nato's body. The light seeped through his skin and into his body. He looked at her.
"Thank you." He whispered with a peaceful smile, as his body slowly turned to dust. Hinata could not feel his presence anymore, and assumed he had passed on. Instead, she felt another, stronger presence.
He was behind her, hidden in the darkness. His cloak, which bore many scars like the man it cocooned, swayed in the wind. Her attention was immediately drawn to the giant scythe upon his back, which shone like the dead, she so often sees.
That was their first meeting, but certainly not their last.
They had roamed the streets, talking as if they've known each other for decades. She had asked him about Nato, and he had told her that he had become a demon. He went on to explain that you can become a demon through transfer of demon blood, like Nato had, by having a demon parent and therefore being born that way, by sinning to the extreme, giving yourself up to the darkness, or in Hinata's case, through enlightenment.
"But how can I be a demon?" she asked him, "I was born human and I haven't died yet."
"Who said you're not dead?"
"But I don't remember dying. I would have remembered, wouldn't I?"
"There are two ways to die, young one. The first is physical death – when your soul leaves your body. The second is when your persona dies and you become a different person – you are reborn. This is the death that demons such as yourself go through."
"And the Gods like yourself?"
He smiled. She caught on fast that he was the Death God.
"Yes, and for Gods like me. But remember, young one. What you are is not a demon – it is part of what you are, and what you will become."
From that moment on, Hinata was raised by the Death God , who gave her more love and comfort than she could have ever wished for. He trained her and fathered her in secret, so she could look after her little sister, and make sure her clan were happy and safe. When she finished her training, at the mere age of thirteen, he proudly presented her with her own scythe, which was similar to his own.
She would roam the streets at night, and for every demon she crossed paths with, she posed the question,
"Hell, Heaven, or Earth?"
If they chose Hell, she would send them there with a single swoop of her scythe, to live in harmony with more of their kind.
If they chose Heaven, she would exorcise them painlessly with her dull light, now commonly known as the Healing Light.
She was known as a saviour amongst the demons – her people - and a beacon of hope.
She was known as Hina – Lady Hope, the Goddess of the moon, because through her ways of life, she taught them that just like when there is a shining moon in the midst of the dark night, when there is death, there is also life.