(A/n: Here's the final part, and I should thank you too ActionGal07 for your nice review! I'm really glad you're enjoying these stories, as well as the people who've faved and followed and/or stopped by to check them out^^ Now please enjoy)
Chapter 27: Brighter Days Ahead (Pt. 2- Final)
Once morning came, Stan was awakened by weird noises. But he paid it no mind, as he always did when the villagers snickered at him outside his rundown home whenever they'd passed by. Ridiculing him for his misfortune. It's like they were leeches, disgusting parasites that nourished off of his misery. No wonder they belittled him every single day...
The tittering diminished after awhile, but before Stan could relax and drift back to sleep, voices speaking in hush followed. Then came gentle, thudding footsteps.
"Umm excuse me?"
Stan's eyes flew open. He only got a glimpse of a face hovering over him before he shot upward, the scream he was about to release cut short when they bumped heads. They both yelped, Stan hunching over on a flat mattress with his head landing on a pillow, his palms held over his forehead...wait, a mattress and a pillow? He went still then laid on his back, staring up at a wooden ceiling. Light diffusing through a box shaped cover was in his peripheral. This place was definitely not his hut...
"Oh my goodness, are you okay?!"
Lowering his arms, Stan whirled his head towards the panicked female voice, eyes widening at a flock of bushy yellow tails surrounding someone near an opened doorway exposing the greenery outside. In that instant a dozen questions popped up in Stan's mind, but the first thing he needed to do was apologize. He sat back up.
"I-I'm sorry!" A bunch of yellow eyes swiveled his way the moment he spoke, all of them belonging to women with differing shades and styles of blonde hair. They were all wearing white long sleeved dresses that had various patterns and different colored big ribbons around their waists. Their attire was strange, but they looked far more durable and cleaner than his own clothes. The silence that fell over the room was...indescribable. Stan for sure felt uneasy under their gaze, but something about their expression didn't depict that they were angry at him for what he did, yet the woman's forehead was bruised.
"Awww~" They suddenly chorused, then they scurried over towards him.
Now it was his turn to panic. "W-wha-"
The six humanized foxes enclosed him from all sides. "He's so sweet," one of them cooed. She had short dirty blonde hair and one tail.
"Indeed. There's no way I can be mad at such a dirty cutie," the woman he'd collided heads with said, having long frizzy locks and two tails. The rest of the compliments got drowned out as they all started talking over the other.
Stan didn't know what was going on, just who were these animal people? More importantly, where was he?!
"Since you don't wanna go home, I'll bring you to mines."
Stan's eyes widened as the events from yesterday came crashing down. Not much happened aside from him running away from home, staying out in the woods until sundown, then meeting...Kenny. Now he knew where he was, he's at Kenny's place. He did mention that his kin all shared one house together. Now it's not so surprising that he'd slept peacefully last night. As soon as he'd made himself comfortable on the futon and his head made contact with the soft rectangular pillow, sleep claimed him instantly. But he hoped he didn't occupy someone's room, he'd feel bad otherwise.
He then wondered where Kenny was. Before he could ask the women, he's abruptly pulled up on his feet then ushered out of the room, the hyperactive group agreeing with one another that he needed to be freshened up and fed.
Meanwhile, the aforementioned spirit was being scolded by the leader of the fox clan. The two were inside a shrine, it wasn't expansive so there wasn't much decorations. However they were extravagant. Red and gold ornaments hung from the ceiling, three paintings of nature were on each side of the walls, two rows of three dark red pillars had white streamers coiled around them, and lastly were a pair of golden fox statues situated on both sides of a black and gold throne. Which occupied the qualified spirit but in half of it's form.
In the distance squealing could be heard, but the atmosphere within the shrine was quite heavy. The person sat in the ceremonial chair was a young man with stunning features, he had lustrous silver-blonde hair that reached all the way down to his back and his eyes that were narrowed into slits were a misty blue. He wore a black kimono embellished with dual-toned orange and yellow flower patterns and an amber colored obi. A pair of platinum earrings with glittery flaxen tassels adorned his ears, as well as a large white haori that's slung over his shoulders. Proof of his position. He's the only one among the remaining foxes that didn't have yellow eyes or one to six tails. He had ten tails, which played a significant role in attaining his current stature, always sticking out behind him like peacock feathers.
"You dare sneak a human into our territory? Have you lost your mind?" The man said with fierce disappointment in his well-modulated voice, his arms crossed within the sleeves of his robe on top of his lap.
It was quiet for awhile before the ladies had interrupted it so hearing him speak so sternly made Kenny flinch. He too was in half-fox and half-human form, his appearance was that of a teenager. His kimono - though simple compared to his leader's - was orange, white, brown, and green; the obi being white and the floral vine patterns being both brown and green. He's sat on his knees with his hands clenched on top of them, his head had already been angled downward, looking at his nervous reflection through the polished wooden floorboards.
"I apologize Lord Rion, but please allow me to explain."
Rion eyed him for some moments. With Kenny being the youngest of their clan he saw him more like a son, the rest were mostly women so they were like daughters to him. The other male foxes had been killed off, leaving Rion and Kenny as the last ones. Some women had suffered the same grueling fate, and one of them just so happened to be Kenny's mother. He may had lost both of his parents, but he still received the love and care they used to shower him from everyone else. To think that their kind got hunted down for inane and selfish reasons, that's why Rion held a deep hatred towards mortals and it would not ever dissipate for as long as he lived.
But he'll hear Kenny out, although whatever he says won't change his mind. That human he brought would be kicked out.
"Go on."
Kenny nodded his thanks but wasn't confident enough to raise his head. Until he was commanded to do so. Stiffly, he looked up into pale blue eyes, their intensity had diminished some. "That boy, is being abused at his home village. Yesterday he was planning to throw his life away to the Yin monsters, and I couldn't let him do that. He's far too young to die in such a cruel way, but he'd rather die than put up with the villagers' hostility any longer. Thus I brought him here."
It became silent again. Kenny continued to stare into his father figure's eyes, a calm anger clouding over them. "Does his village's guardian know about such malevolence?"
"I didn't ask, but I don't think they do. Since he wanted end his life, it seems it's been going on for some time."
Rion's lips hardened into a line. "What did the child do to receive this much resentment?"
Kenny copied his expression. "I believe...it has something to do with his eyes. They're not normal, not normal for a human."
This made Rion very curious. "Describe them."
Kenny nodded as he recalled the blue orbs' exact details. "When I saw them, it was like looking into a starry night sky or gazing across an ocean with the stars reflecting clearly off it's surface."
Rion furrowed his eyebrows. "How peculiar," he mused, then he fell silent for a moment. "Bring him to me. I would like to see them for myself."
A sense of relief washed over Kenny, Stan wasn't going to be thrown out so quickly like he'd thought he would. He obliged with a nod of his head and got up, leaving the shrine. Rion watched him go, his four golden tails swaying happily as he walked. His heart was struck with guilt.
/
"No way, it fits him perfectly!" Then excited shrills followed. One of the women didn't partake in the fangirling, she was just smiling, having a mature air around her.
Stan stared at himself through a big mirror, his mind addled. Everything that happened that led up to this point went by in a blur. First he was escorted to a bathroom, stripped out of his shabby clothes and into the bathtub. Despite telling them that he could wash himself, two of the girls were far more insistent than he was so he had no choice but to concede. While they cleaned him up thoroughly, three women left to do some chores. After that, they'd dried him off, tended to both his and their companion's forehead injury by wiping some kind of cream on them (His other injuries had been taken care of overnight while he was asleep), brought him into this very room, and put these clothes along with some accessories on him. The room was identical to the one he had slept in, although it lacked an outside view.
Turned out these dresses were called kimonos and the big ribbon was called an obi. The kimono was surprisingly comfy, however, not only did wearing it make him feel like a girl, it also made him look like one. Majority of the robe was white while the bottom along with the obi was a faded pink. He had a red rose hair comb tucked in his hair, since he'd never gotten it cut the tips went passed his shoulders. He honestly couldn't believe this was him right now, he looked so different it was scary.
"Oh, I know what else he would look great in!"
For some reason, dread settled within Stan's stomach. "U-umm-" But the crinkly haired blonde rushed off towards an opened wardrobe closet, rummaging around inside it.
"Something wrong?" Asked a middle-aged woman, a bow made of silky black string tied her dark blonde locks into a high ponytail and she had a single tail. She was sat on the floor by a small round table that was placed in the center of the room.
Stan didn't know how to answer her, and it showed on his face. Would it be rude if he told them that he didn't want to try on anything else? They were generous enough to bathe as well as clothed him so surely it would be very impolite of him not to accept their generosity any further. Plus they seemed very jubilant to do all of this for him.
"He's probably hungry," a young lady assumed, her strawberry-blonde hair was pinned into a bun and she had two tails. "We did say that we would feed him once we put him in some clothes." She smiled at the boy sympathetically. "Don't worry, after this we'll have you eat something." Her eyes narrowed as she cocked her head back. "If Bebe would hurry up!"
The female half-fox pulled open one of the bottom drawers. "Don't rush me Momo! I just need to find an appropriate hair accessory to go with these." She gestured toward the folded up clothes beside her on the floor.
"Just let him put those on while you continue searching for one."
"Fine," Bebe huffed. Momo went to retrieve them.
In the blink of an eye, Stan was out of his current attire and into new ones. Eventually the hair comb was changed. Left in a daze once more, Stan surveyed himself in the mirror. The kimono was dark blue, the obi was white, and tiny yellow stars were scattered all around the robe, it's sleeves were draped passed his hands and the lower hem covered his bare feet. A silver crescent moon hair clip was fastened behind his head.
"I knew this outfit would compliment those alluring eyes of his!" Bebe beamed giddily, her two tails swaying feverishly. Momo and the other woman, who had chin-length sandy blonde hair and three tails, marveled the child's beauty wordlessly.
"Night themed, excellent choice," the oldest spirit of the group praised, making Bebe all the more proud. "But it looks a little too big on him."
"No worries Nora, I can easily fix that." Determined, Bebe headed back over to the closet, opening the drawer that apparently contained accessories. Pulling out a long white string, Bebe approached Stan and told him to face her as she got down on her knees. She put the string in her mouth, and stretched it out some. "Raise your arm." Confused, Stan did as told. She tucked his sleeve up then looped the sash behind his neck, reaching over to his other arm. She nudged her head signaling him to lift his limb, and he did. She tucked that sleeve up as well with the string, winding the remaining half back behind his neck again. Telling him to lower his arms, she tied a knot. Promptly noticing it's extra length, she smacked her lips. "Ari can you get me the scissors?"
Nodding, the sandy haired blonde went to get them for her, which happened to be in the drawer that was already open. Seeing the sharp item being handed over to Bebe made Stan's blood run cold, he took some steps back. Bebe along with the other three frowned confusedly at him, his body noticeably trembling. While Momo and Ari asked him what was wrong, Bebe followed his line of sight. Which was directed at the cutting tool in her hand. "Makes sense he would react this way after all he's been through, poor child." Last night, Kenny had told them about Stan's predicament. The thought of humans - villagers of the very home Stan lived in - hurting such an adorable child angered her all over again. They're the true definition of monsters. Bebe closed her eyes, suppressing her emotions. "Never mind, I don't need these." Ari took the scissors back, returning them where they once were.
Bebe enveloped the distraught boy into a hug, taking him aback. Instantly the daunting memories of him being lashed and pricked by pointy objects faded from his mind. She caressed his head. "It's okay, there's nothing to be afraid of. No one will harm you here." At some point tears were trailing down Stan's cheeks, he was no longer dismayed. Bebe's words consoled him.
After a few minutes, the long haired half-fox pulled away, drying Stan's face with her sleeve. Sniffling, he blinked his eyes open. The tears in the bewitching pair somehow made them glisten even more. Bebe squealed, "You're just so freakin' cute!" She embraced him again, nuzzling her cheek against Stan's, unable to contain herself. Momo and Ari shook their heads while Nora giggled at the interaction.
Suddenly, the door slid open. "The heck are you all doing?" Every pair of eyes snapped toward the doorway, the room now void of sound. Until the newcomer spoke again. "Wow..."
Something about the golden haired male seemed awfully familiar to Stan, especially his luminous yellow eyes and four tails.
"Care to be his big sister Kenny?" Bebe grinned, still hugging the noirette.
Stan appeared shocked as the aforenamed teenager answered. "I'll have to pass. Lord Rion wants to see the kid."
The four women frowned apprehensively. Bebe reluctantly separated from Stan, standing up. "I hope he's not going to send him home."
"You know very well that he despises humans, children are no exception," Nora stated rather harshly, causing them all to grimace at the truth in her statement.
"But with eyes like those, is he even considered a human?" Ari wondered.
"Human or not, I'll try my best to convince Lord Rion to let him stay for awhile," Kenny promised. But deep down, he felt that persuading their leader wouldn't go so smoothly.
"Good luck, but don't hesitate to call us for backup," Momo offered with a wink and a thumps up.
Kenny smiled at her. "Sure thing. C'mon Stan."
"Oh wait!" Momo called out hastily. "Stan before you move," the boy turned to face her. "Pull your kimono up like this." She demonstrated the procedure on her own kimono, lifting the bottom hem up passed her ankles. "And continue to hold it until you stop walking."
Eying her a moment, Stan copied what she just did. "No not that high." Bebe bent down to lower his hands a little. "Here is good enough."
Stan ambled over to Kenny, feeling a bit weird but light at the same time. Stopping next to the blonde, Stan turned to the women with a smile. "Thank you all for everything."
Blushing, their eyes gleamed with tears. Momo and Ari had to hold Bebe back from glomping the boy again. "You're welcome sweety," Nora said, her features calm even while on the verge of crying. "We're hoping for your return."
"Yes please come back!" Bebe bawled.
Kenny shook his head at her overdramatic behavior as he closed the shoji. Stan followed him down the corridor, their bare feet walking along the wooden floorboards. "Had fun dressing up like a girl?"
Stan's attention was to his left, which displayed a ravishing scenery. Immediately upon a glance, his eyes were drawn to a tree, but not just any ordinary tree. This one had pink petals and another color Stan couldn't quite detect, the light from the sun reflected off of them so brightly that it nearly blinded him. So he focused elsewhere, not registering his feet slowing to a stop. The exquisite tree was rooted to a patch of grass, staying afloat in the very center of a large pond. Off on both sides were mini waterfalls, likely the sources of all the water. Copious amounts of leaves were gilding along the water's surface, creating vague ripples. A clutter of them were bunched up on the grass and in the water, and that's when he noticed the tree leaves' secondary color. They were gold.
"Pretty right?"
"Very," Stan uttered hypnotically.
Kenny was viewing the tall plant beside him, a wistful frown on his face. On the other side of the teen, he felt a presence of not just one, but two apparitions. They too, were gazing at the cherry blossom tree garnished with vibrant yellow leaves, looking equally forlorn though they were smiling.
The second Kenny turned his body to face away from the tree, they vanished. He felt empty, like he always did whenever he got even a glimpse of the tree. "Let's go."
Stan finally broke free from the trance the tree had ensnared him in, rubbing his eyes for they felt watery after not blinking for a minute. Resuming their stroll, Stan noticed the damper in Kenny's mood, but didn't question him. Instead, he felt compelled to comfort him another way. Timidly as he looked down at the floor, Stan raised a hand, inching it towards the blonde's own. Feeling something tap the side of his pinky, Kenny looked at his hand. With a small smile, he grabbed Stan's petite hand and held it gently, perking up a little.
Once they're outside, they eventually came across a flight of steps made of stone that led up to another building. A torii towered over the base of the stairs. Stan gaped at it's monstrous height until they ascended the steps, still holding hands. After stepping off the last step, Stan felt a throbbing ache on the soles of his feet, but bit back any sounds that would give away his discomfort. His feet felt sore, but he was used to this. With time the pain will ebb. As they approached a pair of black doors, upon a closer look the red building appeared nowhere near as big as the house the fox spirits lived in, though it was embellished with lavish decor.
Kenny pushed a door open with his free hand, ushering Stan to enter first with his other. Feeling extremely nervous, Stan gripped his kimono tightly as he walked in, spotting a seated figure further down inside. Right away he knew that the person was Lord Rion based from the powerful aura he exerted, even from this distance.
"Sorry, it took me awhile to get him," Kenny said sheepishly as they neared the man.
Rion dismissed his apology with the wave of his hand. "It's fine. I'd already assumed that they were up to something thanks to their shrills earlier."
The distance shortened, Kenny got down on his knees. Stan anxiously did the same, sitting close to him. He lowered his head when Rion looked solely at him.
"Hmm, so this is the child you had so brazenly snuck in." Kenny winced at his words. Rion rose from his throne, sauntering down the three ligneous steps for a meticulous inspection of the noirette's eyes. Stan heard his footsteps approaching him, and he tensed.
"It's okay Stan, he's not going to hurt you." Stan was still scared despite Kenny's reassurance. Suddenly, cold fingers carefully raised his chin, and he squeezed his eyes shut.
"Open your eyes."
The order was stern yet softly spoken. Slowly, Stan opened his eyes, gazing straight into pale blue ones. A strange feeling washed over him, and he froze.
"Both of Kenny's descriptions of these eyes were depicted accurately. How intriguing."
"Have you noticed something?" Kenny asked, very curious for his leader's answer.
Rion was silent for some additional moments, then he stood up straight, letting go of Stan's chin. The boy found himself released from whatever spell the eyes had cast on him, feeling a bit dizzy as a result. "He is indeed not entirely human." His response was confounding, had Stan heard him correctly or was he still disoriented? "Simply put, he's half-human, half-spirit. He's special in many aspects."
Kenny had already suspected that much after locking eyes with Stan yesterday. "If so, then why have the humans been tormenting him? They should've been treasuring him, worshipping him even."
"It's because they considered him taboo," Rion explained staring at the stiff child. "The rule was made blatantly known that mortals and spirits were forbidden to be involved in a romantic relationship with each other, seeing as how an offspring just like this boy here was brought into this world many centuries ago. At first, giving birth to such a unique breed was viewed as a blessing. That child - who's gender has remained anonymous - was born within a rural village, almost immediately after it's birth good fortune came with it. The villagers were baffled by the sudden change, but welcomed it wholeheartedly. As well as the child whom they were initially skeptical of. In the span of several months, their small village flourished considerably and gained a reputation of being known as the first village to ever produce a human-spirit child, which they'd granted the role of being their rightful ruler. A few years later, misfortune struck their opulent village - starting with the halfling's parents." Rion paused, observing the boys' engrossed faces, then he walked back to his throne. Once seated, he continued. "While their child basked in the limelight, the mother and father would always be out of the picture. They would be mentioned and lauded, however words weren't a remedy for their 'curse'. Their anguish went unnoticed for over a month until one day, they fell gravely ill. Medicine, doctors, spirits with tremendous healing, nothing appeased their sickness and soon other people fell victim to it. Confused and horrified, the citizens hoped and prayed that the child would do something about the unknown disease. But all the child was focused on was it's parents, neglecting everyone else's existence but theirs. One by one, people started dying while the child's parents continued to live. It was then on that the villagers noticed that the child was sharing it's vitality with it's parents, and that angered them. So that night, they all banded together to kill the family by setting fire to their home. The child had the power to stop it, but chose not to. Over the years the child discovered the humans' true nature, and long since apprehended that it had been affected by their greediness and selfishness. Death was a suitable punishment for not just the family, but for every single person within that village. When the flames consumed them to ashes, the disease didn't die along with them like the villagers anticipated. The following week, the village became completely desolate. No other lands dared to conceive children of half race, thus set the law banning interracial intimacy."
The moment silence engulfed and stretched out within the shrine, Kenny realized Rion was finished talking. He blinked his vibrant yellow eyes twice, utterly speechless unlike his brain, which started thinking up a lot of questions. He'd once heard bits and pieces about the very tale he'd just been told back when he was a cub, but this was the first time he'd heard the halfling child's origin story to it's fullest. Just how did Lord Rion know this much about it and where had he gotten the information from? Even though he was still befuddled and now greatly curious, there was one thing Kenny knew for sure and that filled him with immense sympathy. "S-so that means, Stan's parents were..."
"Either killed or banished from their home before any signs of luck manifested," Rion concluded.
His posture tensing, Kenny looked over at Stan. The only expression the boy wore was pure shock, he was most certainly feeling many more emotions but was unable to show them all at once. Kenny directed his attention back to the silver half-fox, choosing one out of the plenty queries he had to ask him.
"If that's the case, then..how come they let him stay?"
Rion's stoic face hardened a little. "I cannot provide an answer to that for I am also curious. The boy still could've brought about good fortune that would've subsequently turned vile to their village, his parents played no part in their fate." He then wondered to himself how come the young noirette didn't bestow them with bad luck, did it not occur naturally like he'd presumed happened with the other child? He brushed it off to think about another time. "They were better off giving him the same treatments as his parents instead of needlessly torturing him, bunch of foolish brutes." He shook his head, detesting the humans even more.
Kenny nipped his bottom lip. "That's just..." He pressed harder on the fleshy protrusion, drawing a short line of blood. He so badly wanted to curse the humans, to let out the building anger within in the form of vulgar sentences. But he restrained himself from doing so, it would be highly immoral amidst Lord Rion's presence, especially in his personal residence.
"I understand your frustrations Kenny, but we shouldn't concern ourselves with his problems. Now that he's aware of his true disposition, escort him back home." Rion's hazy blue eyes turned icy, as did the air around the three. "There he can exact revenge on those scummy mortals by granting them never-ending despair until the day it kills them off."
Kenny widened his eyes, unsettled by the man's ominous scowl, an expectant gleam in his eyes. "L-Lord Rion, there's no way Stan would do something like that. He's..." He wanted to say that he was too nice or he wasn't the type to hold any grudges, but-
"You don't know him well enough to assume that," Rion stated. Kenny hid his shame by dropping his gaze to the floor. "He may be a child, but even he can have his patience pushed over the limit."
"Can we at least figure out his powers first before sending him home? Please?"
Rion pondered his suggestion, his face going neutral causing the surrounding atmosphere to become less tense. After holding direct eye contact with Stan, Rion considered only one possibility: The boy possessed the ability to control and manipulate the night sky. As far as he knew, there were no longer any spirits with that kind of prowess. They were scarce in the beginning before the spirits were assigned as villages guardians, this was long before they all coexisted. Stan's father was the last living stellar spirit, which was probably why he wanted a child. For whatever purpose. As soon as they were wiped out, the rest of the spirits vowed for peace with one another, to never lose a kindred ever again.
Rion closed his eyes, he had an answer. "Very well, he can stay until then. That way he'll be familiarized with his abilities. Once that day comes, you are to take him home, understood?"
Raising his head, Kenny nodded, concealing his reluctancy. "Yes..."
A sudden growl startled both males, and they looked towards the source it originated from. The low rumble from within his stomach brought Stan back to his senses, the feeling of being looked at made him aware of his disturbance and he blushed heavily. "S-sorry..."
Rion got up and advanced forward. "Let's eat something. This matter can be discussed with the others over a meal." He walked passed the boys.
"Okay." Kenny reached for Stan's hand, and pulled him up on his feet. An acute pain shot up his legs, and he buckled back down to the floor with a yelp. Worried, Kenny crouched in front of him, the grimace on his face indicated that he's in pain. "Where are you hurt at?"
"M-my feet," Stan groaned, tears in his eyes.
Releasing his hand, Kenny picked the little noirette up, holding him close like he was his child. Kenny began walking out, Rion waiting for them outside behind the doorway. "Sorry that we don't have any shoes or socks. Since we're originally foxes, we're used to being barefooted."
Stan just hummed as he leaned his head against the blonde's shoulder, feeling comfortable - secure even compared to riding on his back yesterday evening. His body may be at ease right now, but his mind wasn't. He wasn't blind to the fact that he appeared unnatural than the average human, but to think that he's half-human and half-spirit, that his human mother had an intimate relationship with his non-human father knowing the consequences...Or could it had been that they didn't know? Well it's not like he could ask them himself, they've been gone from his life for so long to the point he doubted he had parents at all.
But now he understood the villagers' hate towards him. Did he forgive them? No. Not once did they explain to him their reasons for antagonizing him. Should he forgive them? He honestly didn't know, not at this very moment at least. Their animosity was justifiable, but also cruel.
A warm, soft palm began to caress his head. "I'll take care of your feet once we're done eating. Will you be able to endure it until then?"
Stan smiled at the tenderness in both Kenny's touch and voice, a tear smearing down his cheek. "Yeah."
For the past couple of days, Rion helped Stan acknowledge his real nature. Since Stan was already well informed about himself, Rion went straight to teaching him how to access his supernatural powers. It wasn't easy, it required a lot of focus and energy. He was still in the prime of his youth so he wasn't fully accustomed to exerting himself that much, it was far different than when he'd always have to stave himself from hunger and dehydration. But he didn't give up, rather he couldn't. Rion, who was the leader of what's left of his clan, took time out of his presumably strenuous schedule to train him, he couldn't let his goodwill nor his time go to waste.
Whenever the boy felt stumped from his ample attempts, Kenny would be right there to give him further guidance, something Stan greatly appreciated. Little by little he was grating on Rion's nerves, but he would always mask his annoyance with a strained smile. It made him increasingly fearful of the adult half-fox.
Nora, Bebe, Momo, Ari, and ten other women were there as background support, providing snacks, words of encouragement to Stan and Rion (to his alleviate his tolerance), and would also let them know when to take a break or to continue the next day.
One week later, no progress was made.
Rion was confused and slightly troubled by this, surely he didn't perceive Stan's identity inaccurately did he? He certainly felt an akin connection from his eyes...and that's when a thought struck him, filling him with mortification.
During the meantime, Stan and Kenny were in the blonde's bedroom. It was like all the others Stan had been in, plain but relaxing. It wasn't being shown but Kenny didn't mind the slow progression of Stan's training. When he noticed something was bothering Stan, he questioned him about it. The noirette was hesitant for a moment, but then he told him what Wendy had admonished him about the fatal aftereffects her forest could've had on him back when he'd stayed with her for a week and didn't want to leave, feeling the same way right now. Kenny's reply relieved him of his worries. Turned out unlike at the Halcyon Forest, the energy here wasn't deadly to humans, and shouldn't be to half-humans either. Stan found that really weird, the Halcyon Forest was a very peaceful place so how could it eventually become lethal? Kenny didn't know either.
A light knock on the thin papered door called for their attention, a voice then told them that Lord Rion requested for their presence outside. Kenny thanked the woman and they headed out of the house. Once out, Rion waited until they were right in front of him to speak.
"So far Stan has only been training every morning until every evening, which led him nowhere. I apologize for the futile methods."
The shame he was expressing showed that he was sincere. "I-it's okay," Stan said, abashed though he's smiling faintly. No one's ever given him a genuine apology before. "I'm just thankful that you, Kenny, and everyone else are willing to help me." The teen petted his head benignly in response.
Rion seemed pleased to be forgiven. Now he's ready to apprise them of his new strategy. "Right now is the perfect time to change that. The sun will soon disappear below the horizon so we'll commence his training as soon as the sky darkens."
It didn't long for Kenny to comprehend his leader's reason for switching things up, he was notified about Stan's rare ability earlier on. However the boy himself was clueless. "Umm, can I ask why I'm gonna train tonight all of a sudden?"
Anticipating an aggravated retort, Stan braced himself for it. Unexpectedly Rion smiled at him, as if he wanted him to question him. "I'd rather you experience it for yourself instead of me telling you." His cryptic response only increased the boy's bemusement, but he didn't dare inquire him again, trusting his intuition.
The three males watched as the evening sky leisurely became a deep shade of blue, subtle hints of stars showing themselves along the way. Soon after, fireflies singly started flickering into view, then a choir of crickets began to sing a dulcet melody that normally lulled anyone to sleep. Looking at the noticeable shifts in the sky accompanied by the chirping felt nostalgic, usually Stan only ever witnessed this transition by himself. The first time he'd viewed the sundown with someone else was at Wendy's forest and with the female spirit herself, eating good edible food all the while felt like an added bonus. Now this marked the second time, just standing here with Kenny and Rion rendered his mind, body, and soul into a palliative state. Stan willed himself not to succumb to the night's enchantment.
Once it's completely dark, Rion immediately noticed something missing. "The sky is incomplete. Stan, for your training tonight I want you to complete it by conjuring up a moon."
Stan frowned at him, resurfacing confusion overtaking drowsiness. "I don't get what you mean."
"He wants you to put a moon up there," Kenny elaborated, his fixation still upwards.
The boy blinked, flummoxed by the order. "H-how will I do that?!"
"Close your eyes." Stan looked to Kenny, who had his gaze lingering up at the sky for a second longer before locking eyes with him. His gentle smile - backed by the star littered firmament - urged Stan to comply. "Now picture the moon. Picture it as vividly as you can."
Stan faced forward, erasing the afterimage of Kenny's figure from his mind to concentrate. In his mind's eye, he envisioned the bright, silver orbit. He'd seen it plenty times enough whenever it graced the night sky, sometimes it appeared big, other times small. But no matter it's size, it's glamour remained unchanged.
"Okay, what-" He went rigid as a frigid gust of wind chilled him, both inside and outside of his body.
"Don't lose focus," Rion hurriedly advised. A haze of dark blue, white, and yellow swirled around the noirette's short frame. "Maintain your imagery of the moon, and open your eyes."
Stan wanted to trust him, but he didn't know what was happening. Why did it suddenly become so cold? And..why was his mental image of the moon getting intense?
"It's okay. Just relax, look towards the sky, and open your eyes."
Once again, Kenny's words calmed him. However the radiance of the moon alarmed him all over again, forcing him to spilt his eyelids apart in a panic.
Kenny and Rion observed the scene above. A group of stars shrunk back, seemingly creating some space. Shortly after, traces of white lines forming into a circle emerged right in the center of the created space, then the outlines highlighted to the point of causing the two males to shield their eyes. Once the glow dimmed, they looked back up, astounded at the newly constructed moon. It's milky white rays beaming down to the earth.
"H-he did it..." Kenny murmured in awe. Proud of Stan's success, he looked in the boy's direction just in time to see him slumping forward. His smile dropped. The tri-colored fumes faded away the moment Kenny reached for and caught Stan, turning him over eased his apprehension.
"Pulling off such an amazing feat in one try should naturally tire someone out," Rion said as he approached them. As did several fireflies, the crickets seemed to be closer to them as well. Kenny cradled the child in his arms, three fireflies hovered up to Stan's face. It's like they were examining him while the rest watched and waited to know of their findings. "Come, let's head back in so you can put him to bed."
As they returned inside the house, Kenny swore to himself that he would do everything he could to persuade his leader to let Stan stay. Even if he had to propose a number of outrageous ideas, as long as they helped fulfill his wish.
*13 Years Later*
The day was like any other, the sky was a translucent blue and the sun was lambent as ever. Only a few birds were chirping here and there. Two teenagers were stood on a lusciously green pathway, up ahead was a closed wooden gateway. One of the boys was in a orange kimono and the other was in a dark blue one that was made to fit his taller stature, a pair of getas on their feet. Diminutive stars swimming in pools of blue gave the doors made of timber an inexpressible stare. A mild wind blew, rustling the tress, but none of their leaves fell.
Kenny looked over at the teen beside him, frowning. "Are you sure you wanna do this Stan?"
The 19 year old's ebony hair was swaying all around his face, revealing earrings shaped as full moons. At first his hair was long but now it was shortened to medium-length, Bebe and Nora took turns cutting and styling it. Stan had aged into a handsome young man, and it was thanks to Kenny. And the female foxes too, but they were mainly transfixed on his appearance. If Kenny hadn't begged Rion every single day to let him stay at their abode to the point where he yielded, Stan honestly wouldn't know where he'd be right now. It was a horrifying thought that plagued his mind constantly.
Tucking the black strands behind his ear, Stan looked to Kenny forcing a smile on his lips. "Yeah. I've had years to think about this, and I've made my decision. I'm going through with this till the end." Glancing down, he took Kenny's hand into his own, holding it firmly. "You'll stick with me, right?" He looked up into yellow eyes.
Kenny held his gaze. He could never get tired of admiring the teen's eyes, they're just too mesmerizing. "Of course!" With their hands still clasped, they resumed forward, Stan visibly tensing. "But I feel bad that Lord Rion couldn't come along. He did push you into doing this after all."
Stan cracked a grin at the reminder, his muscles gradually loosening. "Yeah, was scary how insistent he was." After he'd gotten the hang of his ability, Rion had suggested that he sought revenge. This was four years ago, when Stan was 15 years old. Initially, he was averse to incline, but like he'd just mentioned Rion was persistent. Very persistent. The fox spirits were a tenacious bunch.
Now a mere five steps away from the gates, Stan's camouflaged pupils shined a foggy white, bringing forth a calm whirlwind of midnight blue, white, and yellow that encircled both him and Kenny. Daylight was consumed by the night in one fell swoop, the full moon appeared like a gaping hole while the numerous stars preserved their purity.
Stan never thought a day would come where he'd feel fortunate that his previous home was never protected by a spirit, the people within the village were in for a rude welcoming.
"The humans abhor you because you are special, you possess something extraordinary. Once your abilities come to fruition, you'll have brighter days ahead of you."
(A/n: I should've made this into a three-shot, but I legit did not think I would make it this long lol But I hope you enjoyed and the next chapter will be up ?)