Chain Link of Memories
Natsumi tends Danny...who finally wakes....to find his memory completely gone.
Hello, everyone! Hope I'm not being annoying, but here's another tale from yours truly, candlelight.
This segment is devoted to starr1095, for kind reviewing and advice. And, some of you anime lovers might recognize "The Most Foolish Traveler..."
"I find an old photograph
and see your smile.
As I feel your presence anew,
I am filled with warmth
and my heart remembers love.
I read an old card
sent many years ago
during a time of turmoil and confusion.
The soothing words written then
still caress my spirit
and bring me peace.
I remember who you used to be
the laughter we shared
and wonder what you have become.
Where are you now,
Where did you go,
When the body is left behind
and the spirit is released to fly?
Perhaps you are the morning bird
singing joyfully at sunrise,
or the butterfly that dances
so carelessly on the breeze
or the rainbow of colors
that brightens a stormy sky
or the fingers of afternoon mist
delicately reaching over the mountains
or the final few rays of the setting sun
lighting up the skies
edging the clouds with a magical glow.
I miss your being
but I feel your presence,
In whatever form you choose to take,
however you now choose to be.
Your spirit has become for me
a guardian angel on high
guiding, advising, and watching over me.
I remember you.
You are with me
and I am not afraid."
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Natsumi cleared her throat, and yawned in the dim morning light.
The boy still lay asleep on the bed.
But....how to revive him to ask him who he was? Natsumi frowned.
Well....Ikuo had always liked stories. Maybe she should try.....wasn't as if she had anything to lose.
Natsumi anxiously glanced at the limp child and awkwardly cleared her throat again.
Here was one....
"Once upon a time, there had been a wealthy, foolish traveler that had been continuing his journey in a small village.
Why was he foolish, you may ask? Because he had been tricked again and again by people's false, sapped up stories begging for help when all they wanted to do was cheat the poor man.
"I need money for seeds…"
"My sister is sick!"
"Please….some money for food…"
And, of course, the traveler's large heart responded immediately to the false cry, handing over his shoes, every article of his apparel, his money…..
Everything.
And he would always hand the items over, wiping away happy tears.
And he would always say the same thing, over and over again to the gift receivers…
"I wish you happiness."
In time, the traveler had become completely naked (uh…sorry for that word) and decided to travel on in the forest.
But that's when goblins and demons fell upon him, who wanted to eat the traveler's body.
"I need food…"
"My child is dying….."
"I haven't a thing to give as a gift…"
Of course, the traveler had been tricked, and he let the monsters eat a leg, an arm, his torso, his other limbs…
….until all that remained was his head-he'd just given away his eyes-sitting on the forest floor.
As the demon finished munching the traveler's eyes, he turned with a wicked smile of very sharp, cragged teeth.
"Thank you, traveler." He grunted. No one had been able to take away the traveler's ears.
"As return for your…generosity, I leave you this present." And, before leaving the clearing, he dropped a paper that the wind brushed up to the traveler before the demon turned and left.
Reader, do you know what the traveler's note "present" said in Kanji?
FOOL.
But of course, the traveler could not see with his ripped out eyes.
Nevertheless, tears of joy began to flood from his empty eye sockets.
"Arigatou, arigatou!" he kept saying over and over.
"This is the first present anyone has ever given me.
I'm so happy.
I'm so happy.
Arigatou.
Arigatou…."
The traveler was alone in that clearing, still crying joyous tears.
And then……
He died, smile on his face."
Natsumi stopped dead, horrorsticken.
How...could she tell such a sad tale to the poor lad?! As if he weren't suffering ENOUGH!
Completely disgusted with herself, Natsumi threw herself off her chairand paced the floor, grumbling to herself.
Twitch, twitch.
Natsumi stopped dead in her tracks, staring.
Danny's fingers moved the tiniest bit.
Twitch, twitch.
Twitch, Twitch.
The boy...had reacted.
Natsumi shook her head in amazement, and cautiously approached the boy.
"This is the tale of The Four Seasons," she said softly.
______________________________________________________________________________
Danny shook with cold, although his face was quite flushed. Natsumi covered him with another
blanket-he was going to have to sweat this one out to break the fever.
Natsumi shuddered as she carefully tied fresh bandages to the crimson, raw, angry looking wound
near his ribs.
Given the boy's condition, with blood loss, what might be a broken rib, and bruises and scratches
everywhere...it was a miracle he was still alive.
For the umpteenth time, she wondered who he was and where he'd come from. And how he'd survived such
a deadly fall.
Well...for whatever reason, she couldn't help but be grateful for the young boy's prescence. He kept her busy, and, well, for that, she
was happy.
What was his name...
Danny shook again, and so she hurried to fetch another quilt.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
It was twelve o clock when it happened.
Danny's eyelids parted at last to reveal a pair of hazy, cerulean eyes.
Natsumi was busy in the kitchen, and so, Danny was alone.
For a moment, he gazed at the little, unfamiliar ceiling above, made out of stone and wooden beams, vision unfocused.
Then, he began to roll so he could sit up.
"Ah!"
Danny gasped and clenched at his raw side, head and heart pounding.
An electric sharp sense of pain had filled his throbbing body. Danny closed his eyes and bit his lip to stop himself from making a noise.
Where....
Why.....
What....
But there was a question that overflooded his mind: Who?
At that moment, Natsumi trotted past, stopping dead once again. Her worn face suddenly lit up with delight.
"You're awake!"
Danny turned to her, puzzlement carved on every inch of his face.
"Wha.....What happened?"
Natsumi's face softened.
"I found you hurt...in the woods," she said gently. "I brought you back to my home, young man, which is where we are now. Can you tell
me what happened to you?"
Danny's eyes filled with sorrowful confusion.
"Can't you tell me?"
Natsumi blinked, very much taken aback. Was he suffering from a concussion?
"...Very well, then..."
"Um....may I ask your name?"
"Oh! Natsumi Aiko Minamoto."
"Ah....Can I ask another question?"
"Ask away my boy, ask away..."
"Who....am I?"