-X770-
Day after day would go by since that dreaded night when he would be awaiting the decision made for his fate to be announced by one of the stone faced ladies. Day after day he would go on with a fumbling anxiety in his heart and finger tips that only rooted deeper with the longer he was made to wait as he tried to occupy himself with the usual but found it did nothing to calm his nerves.
How could it , when he knew what was to come?
And it didn't help with the fact that regarding what he had heard , it wasn't exactly something to have met his ears in the first place. There was a reason why the stone-faced ladies talked amongst themselves on that table when he was asleep and now he had found out the reason why. A reason which he didn't like but it made sense either way.
But all because of that , it made him even more anxious with his behaviour , wondering they had noticed how jumpy and fidgety he had gotten after that night , practically on edge when one of them would come through to his room ; in his mind expecting them to make the grand reveal finally , when they really would only be there to give him his food , take him for a wash or the like.
And he'd be left waiting again.
Thinking.
If it was not that time.
It would be the next.
If it was not this day,
It would be the next.
It most certainly would come.
The final decision they would make for him.
He couldn't have false hope again , not with what it landed him in. He refused to fall into that trap again , he refused to heighten his disappointment anymore than it was. With the gods , with the world , with everything. His life had been chosen to be bad , and that had become clear to him now , due to the sins of a devil he didn't even know , he had to suffer in his stead.
And that's why he remained in a harrowing patience for he didn't even know how long , just waiting for when one of them would confront him with the ill fate chosen for him , just waiting to find out what new pit of hell had been chosen for him to occupy.
Waiting for when one of them would tell him.
And that day did eventually come like he had believed.
However…
The decision which had been made in respect of him.
"Make sure you don't go anywhere too far."
Was something he could have never expected.
"And come back as soon as you're called , otherwise you won't like it."
The bluenet stood still as he felt his clothes being brushed down by the hands of the bandaged stoned faced lady. Feeling her pristine white gauze wrapped fingers tugging at different places of his clothes and adjusting the hooded cloak that was presently being worn , shielding his newly cut bangs and the shortened length of his hair along with the top of his face as he simply nodded in response to her words.
"There."
The young lady breathed before lifting her hands away from his being , wiping her hands together as she inspected the bluenet's new attire he donned. It wasn't anything special , just a button up long sleeve shirt , some plain dark trousers and the usual. The thing that was rather different though was he had footwear and socks for once , though it wasn't exactly perfect for his size (like a lot of his clothes were) , the thickness of his socks and the tightening of his laces made up for the imperfect fit.
His dark large eyes looked down at his new clothes , though they weren't exactly perfect as they did have some fraying and thinning here and there , the thing that mattered to him was that the garments were actually intact. With anything that could be a problem being stitched up well and doing what was needed to help keep him warm now with the lingering cold and that made him happy.
His clothes did feel foreign to him though , not just because they were new and of a better quality , but they seemed to have a different feel to them in general compared to what he was used to. Being actually presentable in a way and more like the clothes he would see other boys his age wear from observing them play outside.
"You should be good now."
The noirette ended with a huff before turning the bluenet away towards from her being as he was stopped simply facing the sight of her being bent down to fix his attire and adjust it to his needs , now turned to face the sight of something which he had always imagined and that he had been contained from for longer than he could remember.
The outside world.
His heart beat hard in his chest as he couldn't fathom the reality that had been chosen for him. That instead of being chosen to fulfil what horrors he had been overhearing ; being taken to some place called a brothel , being sold off , being made a test subject and such…That all of it had been proven false with what had been truly decided in his fate.
"Here."
A small tiffin that was wrapped in a coarse , chocolate coloured material , similar like the one which his hood was made out of , was handed to him from the side, to which he took with gratitude. In there was what she had told him to be his food , not a lot but enough to keep him going so he wouldn't bother anyone until it was time for him to be called back if anything.
"T-Thank you!"
He breathed , still dazed by the turn of events, that he was actually going to be allowed to go outside of the house , go outside without supervision from the stone-faced ladies , and most importantly , he would be able to go outside without having to comply with (most) of those weird conditions.
Taking a hold of the looped string that held the bagged contents , he held it tightly in the palm of his lightly bandaged right hand as he finally started to take his first steps properly into the outside world.
His heart beat vividly in his chest with each move he made and with the more that was revealed to his vision of the world he watched like a still image finally being opened up to him and surrounding his senses as he left the entrance of the stone walls.
A gust of wind blew against what was revealed of his face , cold and biting but he relished in the feel of it , as if it was like a welcoming kiss of the arriving spring season that was in settlement. His dark golden orbs were simply wide with delight and disbelief as he looked around to truly catch more than just a glimpse of the world that existed beyond his barred windows and that had always been just out of reach to him.
The world he always watched from the inside.
And what a beautiful world it was.
Filled with a variety of colours that he barely could witness in all their entirety with even the advent of the cold. With grass that spread out wide and covered the hills not too far in his sight , speckled with a white cast of dew as flowers were just starting to bud through with a burst of different muted hues and tones..
His feet started to carry him towards the scenery in front of him , eager to witness all that he had been missing out as he started to take a walk down the earthen path that was the distinction that lay between his stony and dull home , to the true magnificence that existed beyond and his eyes couldn't get enough of.
Eyes that trained onto the lining cluster of trees that decorated the hills that sloped down from where he was , only beginning to birth a new cycle of leaves. They weren't as much as a vibrant sight , but he found it a wonder to look at regardless. Hearing the birds singing their sweet songs from the bare branches they were perched on , his mind started to take through another mental journey whilst his physical body took it's own.
Feeling the brushing cold touch his skin whilst the heat of the shining light in the sky beamed through the pale blue hues , his ears pricked up on the sound of his footsteps of his weight treading against the feeling of earthen , soft , slightly wet ground , something incredibly different to what he was used to with the cold and stony floor of his home.
And just from that he once again couldn't help but question how this had become his reality.
That he was being allowed to walk around and see things , that he was able to look at the world he admired from , that he finally would have more to do than just looking at a dull stone wall.
It honestly did not feel real to him.
Not with all that happened up to this. Not with all he had been made to believe. Yet his fate truly had surprised him with what it had in store. Something he couldn't expect at all , and he couldn't help but wonder why that was the case.
Why everything turned so drastically after the worst had been made to build up. Why had his life changed for the better after he had lost hope and started to let go of his dream?
Why was all this?
' The gods!'
His mind went back to his avid attempts in the nights that he had been spent in learning to appease the gods who had promised to change the fates of those who called to them. Who had promised on that night of decree , that they would answer the prayers of the lost and hurt and give them something more in the coming future from their bounty.
And though after the horrid occurrence with his mother and all that followed up to that awaited night , he had started to believe that his prayers weren't worthy for the gods to listen to , that the hope that he had started out with was nothing but a mere thread which held no weight for him and just something he clutched to in desperation.
And with how everything started to get so bad after he attempted to pursue the attention of the gods , it made him wonder if he even held anything against their already devout and staunch believers , compared to him who simply turned to them out of wanting to exhaust his options , not even fully believing their powers or capabilities as everything said otherwise.
If anything he started to believe that what if his form of 'worship' was seen as nothing but a mockery towards them due to his inconsistencies and flaws , and that's why things were turning the way they did.
And he was in the midst of beginning to process that grim reality and what was to come with it.
But then…
As all hope seemed to be lost , and his heart depleted under the bounds of tension and grief and false hopes,
That's when it all changed.
That's when there was a difference in the atmosphere , when the stone-faced ladies started to keep to themselves more rather than berating him with each chance they got , when he wouldn't get punished out of nowhere and that they left him to his own peace. Even actually starting to get nicer and more tasteful food than the usual stale-ish bread or watery stews or plain porridge they would give him.
And from that it made him wonder.
Was…
Was he actually listened to?
His prayers , as inadequate as they were , as pathetic as they could have sounded…Did they actually get through to the gods and they did this for him?
Did they convince the stone faced ladies that what they were scheming about and made them do this instead? Did they tell the stone faced ladies to treat him nicer or something , and start giving him better food? Start giving him different and nicer clothes? Start giving him more to do?
All these things he knew that they were adverse to , now somehow they were doing and he couldn't understand why.
Or really how.
How could the gods accomplish something like this? Change what he knew and was coming to accept so drastically. Their powers must have been truly amazing for them to get something like this done without him catching win!
And maybe that's just how they worked.
They didn't like to draw attention to their mystical ways and he could respect that since they showed their true power.
Despite all his doubts and suspicions.
They still did this for him.
Like the fact they could change all 4 minds of those ladies. It was absolutely incredible and he couldn't be more thankful!
He understood now why the people were so eager to be heard by them.
Because look at the wish that they had granted for him! His first and foremost wish he remembered telling them about , and it was still difficult to process that it actually came true. Though it wasn't a perfect reality word for word that they granted him , it instilled hope that they were truly there for him , witnessing all that he had gone through and giving mercy to him despite having been the son of The Devil.
It was a very comforting feeling.
To know that his hope wouldn't be stripped away from him simply due to what everyone else despised him for. That the gods truly saw those that spoke to them as equals in that right and were willing to help those in need. And because of that he felt more willing to confide in them and his belief in their powers to help the people did increase quite a bit even though he was yet to witness the presence that others claimed to feel.
But he wasn't going to let that detail deter him in that connection , now that he had a reason to give his thanks. Because if they listened to one of his wishes , if they could make it become a reality when all hope seemed lost , then why wouldn't the rest also do so?
As long as he kept trying.
As long as he remained firm and sincere.
He did wonder though to himself , which one of them was the one to grant his wish? Or was it that all of them had contributed to it? Or even maybe if his other wishes had actually been granted alongside already and it was just taking time to take effect because of the way the gods worked?
As he had thought it would initially be a miraculous change , that once the special night of for the gods would be over , then and there it would all change. But it didn't seem to work like that and he realised now.
There was a process of patience involved.
His wish was becoming true through gradual means , through small changes , which he didn't think much of at first but now he couldn't ignore.
The change in his food becoming something more tasteful to his palette , the change that the ladies gave him more to do than just sitting in his room ; actually being given responsibility with errands (such as washing his own clothes , being in charge of his own cleanliness , sometimes even helping with other duties if they asked) , and just their attitude in general.
Of course they didn't turn into saints overnight , he did still feel the scorn and disgust that usually lingered around when with them , but it wasn't as prominent which was rather new to him. He didn't get punished as much anymore either , or if he did it wasn't as harsh (or at least it didn't feel that way) which was another difference he noticed in his treatment.
With all these changes coming together and so apparent , it was impossible to deny the fact that something had truly turned for the better.
And that his wish was slowly coming to fruition.
Because of this train of thought , he couldn't help but wonder what other changes were to come in preparations if his other prayers were to come true. If the gods had truly decided to answer all of them.
One thing he could recognise was that since he was allowed to go out now , he would hopefully be able to meet others around his age and finally engage with them like he always wanted.
Become friends and live the life a kid like him had been deprived of for so long.
And that wish would definitely come true if he were to come across them , even if they weren't exactly present now.
With how much he had observed their behaviour from inside , he had a fair idea of when they liked to play out and where they would usually do so , and thankfully it wasn't anywhere too far from where he was allowed , so it was just a matter of waiting for them to appear again and then taking the initiative to make companionship.
And with how warm and friendly they all seemed to each other , he hoped that they would accept him also as he wanted nothing more but to live the life that they did too alongside , even if it was for a fraction of time.
The thought of such a possibility warmed the little heart of the blue haired boy as he walked on with his sight simply observing the passing scenery he slowly took in as his thoughts kept speaking. A smile crept on his face from the idea of the reality that was coming to light , feeling his small features form in a way that felt so foreign to him but blissful nonetheless.
His dark golden orbs lit up with the small movements he noticed amongst the trees , captivated by the life he could see as the birds perched up on the branches and flew from the canopies whilst other animals would scurry along , ignorant of the sight that watched them as they went on with their lives as usual.
Even though it was nothing to the normal eye , which would have come across a scene like this so often that it lost any significance , for him , it all left him in awe and he couldn't help but want to lose himself in the moment more and appreciate the scenery which had been forbidden for him for so long.
"Hmmm?"
His ears pricked up at the sound of a close by song from one of the trees that lined the path he was walking. His head gently turned upwards as he finally located where the sound was coming from. From a branch that was rather high up a tree that was in the midst of budding back it's beauty , in a nest there was a bird.
Well actually a big bird surrounded by two smaller ones.
All of the same plumage and patterns , whitish bellies and markings across their faces , black stripes and spots around in the feathers and some grey to contrast , along with being rather round and small in size over all , even with the bigger bird in comparison. But from these similarities that he picked up , he could deduce that these birds were most like all of the same family as they all looked practically alike or very similar at least.
Stopping in his tracks , his sight started to focus on the actions of the birds , the big one in particular. Whatever song it had been singing had come to a cease before it's face nuzzled into one of the smaller birds necks and then the other one. What it was doing he wasn't really sure but what he saw next it did resonate with his understanding strangely.
The bigger bird opened up the wings it had tucked in , viewing it's underside of white plumage before the two smaller birds hobbled their way into the big bird closer , closing in on it from each side before plopping down with their bodies still and huddling into the big bird before the open wings came to a close and held the smaller birds in position. Allowing the smaller birds to be kept in contact with the bigger bird's heat as they did something alike to a hug.
Almost as if the big bird was their mother or father that was sheltering their young and embracing them in their arms.
Or in this case wings.
He continued to look on , watching as the bigger bird nestled itself in deeper to what he believed to be it's two children , a warming and beautiful sight indeed , however as he kept observing the innocence of nature , a strange pull formed in his own heart as he recalled what emptiness he felt with his own parent , and how much he lacked in connection with her in comparison to a family of birds.
When was the last time his own mother embraced him? He didn't even know , nor could he even recall if he wanted to.
All he knew was that it happened before , but that was it. All he knew was that once he was alike the world to her , always in her hold , always being brought into her warmth and support , always being the one she spoke with until it all just suddenly stopped.
And all he could ask was why?
A thickness developed in his throat as his large and brightened bronzed orbs muted in the interest they displayed as his sight slowly dragged down from the scene he was admiring and fell to looking at the earthen floor beneath.
It still hurt him regardless , even if he didn't want to put mind to it , it still somehow found a way of becoming present in his thoughts. But there was probably no mystery why that was.
Since someone so close to him , someone he held so dearly , had just thrown him away and for what reason?
That someone so close to him had become someone he didn't recognise anymore and had turned what he knew and loved into something he didn't know if he could do the same with.
With all the abuse he dealt with , with all the words she would say , with all the hurt she would give him…He tried to turn a blind eye to it with the lingering hope that one day she would become better , that one day she would say sorry for all she did and said and tell him she never meant it , and she would become his mother again , but that felt like another fragmented dream.
As any attempt to even try to reconcile the bond that had been broken all ended up horrifically. The worst outcomes had been in the recent months , making his hope bleak as he started to believe that maybe his mother had been taken over fully by the mad woman and she wouldn't give her back.
But the thought of that was too much to even start to consider…
As he wanted to believe that she wasn't lost for good.
Those eyes that he had seen…even on the brink of death , they had shown themselves to him to not give up , to not lose hope and believe that one day she would come back to him.
Like he always wanted.
And maybe…
With the prayer that he had made to the gods , that could eventually happen.
If he kept asking and trying , then maybe they would also grant that wish alongside side , regardless of the fact that she had been tainted by the devil or that she had done something bad.
Because the woman she once was , could not possibly have been a devil from the start.
It just couldn't be true.
She was so kind and comforting and tender , but the devil took that all away from her. The man he was coming to despise so vehemently with each coming day.
He was the reason she had become so bad. He was the reason she suffered and made him suffer alongside too.
He was the reason for everything.
And because of that ,
This thought stuck with him throughout to alleviate his burdens,
That it wasn't her fault.
It never was.
She was a victim of this all just as much as he was.
Or even more.
And that's why he refused to believe that the mad woman she was now was of her own doing.
The gods had to know that as well right?
Yes they had been hurting her for her mistakes , but she had to have been punished enough by now right? Because what could she have done that her life had to be condemned to such endless horrid suffering? What could anyone have done to be treated the way she had been and for such a prolonged measure too?
It was still something that was incredibly vague to him , simply just relayed in the hints that 'she fell in love with the devil' (which he didn't really understand was meant to mean in the first place) and such being told amongst the stone-faced ladies , but that still didn't clear up even half the questions that would ramble in his brain regarding this enigma.
And sadly he didn't think he would be getting to know any time soon either as all this stuff he was meant to be kept in the dark about.
A sigh left his lips , watching the small exhale materialise into a thick white fog in front of him as he tried to bring up his spirits once again with something more positive.
That…
Maybe things would finally change for her since he did ask about her to the gods. And to be honest , now that he was actually thinking about it , maybe it actually was in the process of doing so?
As things didn't change automatically for his mother , she still screamed and cried as usual , at first it was even more prominent than any time before but now it had started to become a lot less. Though he didn't know why that could have been the case , was it because of her own behaviour finally beginning to calm down , or to do with this powder-like substance he saw the stone-faced ladies holding in bottles and mixing into the drinks given to his mother.
Intuition told him it was possibly the latter , seeing that when he witnessed the stone-faced ladies giving her the drink , after hearing her become rowdy and near irrepressible , they would emerge from the room not long after with an empty cup , and not too long after the ruckus would cease completely and it would all become near dead silence until later in the night.
It did make him wonder though , what was that powder that they were giving her? And what did it have in it to make someone explosive as she was so subdued? Also where were the stone faced ladies getting such from to give her?
Was that from the gods doing as well or ?
That he probably wouldn't ever know , but the fact did remain that the dark haired woman was a lot quieter and erupted less. So maybe the gods were working on turning her back to normal for him?
The thought made his chest pound with hope , a rush of warmth came over him in the midst of the bristling cold as that sort of reality was something he dearly desired. A solemn smile lined his lips , yet with lingering sorrow hidden away in his eyes as another bitter thought hit him.
'They still come though… '
Those weird men didn't seem to have decreased in their visits , rather he noticed a sudden influx in their arrivals not too long after the festival had taken place , which was strange to him since there had barely been any coming up to it. But maybe that was a problem that would have been to be changed slower than the rest?
And maybe when that would finally happen it would finally start to cease or they might even stop coming altogether?
That could have been it.
Then again…With the way the gods worked , he shouldn't have tried to question and think about too much. He already got many irritated by his burning curiosity and need to know , and if the followers of the gods were quick to assume such a stance on him , then most likely the gods themselves would also start to get irritated by his behaviour too.
As they didn't want him to question.
They just wanted him to believe.
Something that was strangely rather difficult for him , but if it was required to change his life for the better , he would learn to do so.
He felt another brush of cool wind against his bare face , taking him out of the pool of thought as he opened his eyes to view the world around him again and revive that excitement he had deep inside him to quell those negative energies which tried to linger alongside.
As this wasn't the time to question the blessings he was given , but rather enjoy them now he had been granted what he wanted.
'What should I go and look at…'
'There's so much to see...'
'There's so much I have yet to know!'
The azure haired child thought to himself with brimming curiosity as there was literally a world waiting out there for him to go and explore. For him to go and discover the secrets of and learn about. For him to be able to entertain himself with and find as a new hope in the strange life he lived that would make him believe in a better tomorrow to come.
Now that he truly had the means of doing so.
With a moment of surveying his surroundings , the bluenet finally came to a close with his indecisiveness and allowed whatever his curious mind found exciting for observation to take lead and guide him to what should take his interest and what he would spend his time doing.
Time went by so quickly just looking at the outside world , he couldn't even tell where it went. Without even realising the once pale blue and crystal clear sky had mixed in with warmer tones of rouge as the sun which had been high above was more than a quarter down the sky now, declining slowly.
He simply sat on the slightly warmed grass of a hilltop that was not too far from where his house was , watching the coming sunset as he had his meal in hand , munching away at the sandwich made for him that was made with a firm bread he was used to and filled with some form of sliced meat , cheese , lettuce and other things he wasn't sure of the name of , but they tasted a lot better than what he had been eating before.
Bite after bite until he reached the end , he made sure the crumbs that fell onto him were swiftly brushed away from his clothes and didn't cause a mess as he wanted these new clothes to keep looking good , not just because he would be scolded if not but he wanted to be presentable too.
Especially if he was to meet new people and make friends , it probably wouldn't make a good first impression if he looked dirty or sloppy or such.
However…
He did realise that as the day went on , there was no sign of those kids he usually saw this day. Usually they would be playing out nearby , but this time he hadn't even seen much as a shadow other than his own. Maybe they were all busy with something? Or something came up and they couldn't come out today?
But that was okay as it wasn't like this would be his only day out anymore , and sooner or later he believed he would cross paths with them and make friends like he intended. And be a kind and earnest soul like the man he would always read about , and through such grow companionships.
Besides…
It's not like the day had dragged on with their absence in the first place. No , actually he enjoyed exploring the spanse of his surroundings so much that he had actually forgotten about eating for the most part or even the fact he was by himself throughout it all.
There were so many things that he discovered which he had no idea that existed outside the walls of his home.
Such as the stream that was located down the sloping hill his home was on top of ; filled with clear water and fresh looking that ran quietly to somewhere afar. All sorts of flora and fauna that decorated the sides , some that were in the midst of budding and some still retaining the vibrancy that should have been attained in the warmer seasons with other plants strangely.
There were also so many different plants and trees he started to note , the difference in the way one looked to another , sometimes seeing a bunch of identical ones in one cluster but then others in different places congregating with others of another kind which fascinated him to no end. Just through observing small details alone and really enjoying the moment , time had gone by quicker than he could witness and he couldn't believe it.
And that was only through seeing the very minimum the world had to offer , there was still so much more to go and discover if he'd only had the chance. Though of course the order was to not go anywhere far , which he assumed was most likely not to go anywhere too distanced from his home , with the exception of town (but that was only when he would be sent out on their approval).
It was rather limiting , but he had hopes that would change as he earned the trust of the stone-faced ladies more and asked the gods alongside. With what he did have available to him though , he truly did want to relish and uncover to the very root as this was a new world granted to him , just waiting to be discovered and to be sought.
'And I want to know it all.'
He thought enthusiastically , taking another bite from his sandwich and chewing the contents thoroughly as the beating sun warmed him through his clothes , dissolving what existed from the cold and embracing the scenery in an embrace of comforting heat.
His eyes were mesmerised by the sight of the cascading tones of the sunset , watching how the blue sky was littered with clouds of rusted hues and trying to suppress the beaming light of the sun that was falling down the horizon.
Though he was someone who was not a stranger at appreciating the beauty of the sky ; especially given how he would gaze at the blanket of the night without end , he found even with the less that there was to look at in this fusion of colours , there was an attraction to it he couldn't deny. An attraction that truly stood out to him now that he could see it in all it's magnitude.
That despite the coming darkness , the sun which was peering through it's fading scarlet tones , it still stood out so brightly and stole awe despite it's time of brilliance slowly coming to an end and all that tried to cover it.
As if the approaching darkness could not rob away it's light , and even with the darker tones of the night that would take over , the light that would come back and awaken the world with it's presence when dawn would inevitably come.
And he didn't know why but this particular sight seemed to hold alike to a sort of comfort for him.
A warmer breeze blew against him while he was in the midst of marvelling at all , before his ears pricked up at the sound he heard next.
Rustle
His eyebrows furrowed from the sudden noise , ripping him away from relishing the moment as the sound of something moving frantically came from behind him. He turned his attention away from the scenic view and listened closely to the movement which started to become more apparent.
Rustle
Rustle
'What is that?'
He thought to himself with worry , the sound of the thing moving seemed to get more hectic and almost distressed?
His eyes trained fully on the natural hedge that was outlining the cluster of trees shading him. Though it wasn't obvious at first , the more he looked around , he eventually saw something that was distinct amongst the large patch of intertwined greenery that didn't belong.
Curious , the boy decided to leave his current endeavours and went to investigate the disturbance. And with each step he took closer , the more sounds became apparent to him and the more he realised a struggle was currently underway.
Rustle
Rustle
Though it did take him a few looks around where it was exactly emanating from as the oddity did disappear and reappear from his vision with it's actions , soon he did find that the disturbance was being caused by something that was wedged in the underside of the bushes.
Rustle
His large eyes widened as he caught sight of a very small creature , not as small as the birds he had seen but it was still rather small in comparison to him. It was an animal with brownish grey striped fluffy fur , a bunch of white lines coming off near it's mouth and big lightish coloured eyes. It's pupils were dilated and it's pointy furry ears back flattened against it's head as it kept trying to pull a limb of it's own away from where it was entangled amongst the hedge.
'It's this thing…'
The bluenet was a little caught back by it's appearance , not because it was frightening or anything , rather it's appearance was a bit worrisome if he had to be honest. But this was the first time for him to see anything like it (well actually he had seen them in town but not so up close!) .
And from what he could tell the animal was in trouble and pain.
Miaow
Which didn't take him long to figure out exactly why.
Yowl
A gasp left his lips from catching the sight of red appearing from one of the back appendages of the creature. It's movements became more desperate and it's voice evidently more distressing to hear as it tried to wiggle itself away from the obstruction it was caught in , but simply couldn't.
'It needs help!'
With that thought in mind , he started to approach the troubled creature , taking note that his presence seemed to stress it out even more as his footsteps were registered and it's appearance showed even more fright and hastiness. With fur trying to puff out as what he could see being it's tail becoming rigid as it's features seemed to tense.
'Oh no…It's scared of me.'
'That's not going to do it any good with the way it is now.'
He didn't want the creature to hurt itself more than it was just because of him , and with the growing panic of the animal he could see more blood was starting to seep out of the injury being created as it struggled with urgency. The sight of something like this distressed him alongside the pain he could see and hear it emit , and he wanted to help it but how was he going to do that?
'I need it to be calm , otherwise it will hurt itself more.'
'How will I make it do that though?'
Maybe he needed to show a lack of hostility? As he was a lot bigger than it , the poor thing must have been horribly frightened , thinking he would crush it or something , which of course was not the case. But the creature didn't understand that , he would have to make it though.
"It's okay…"
He started slowly , keeping his hands held up in caution and approaching the animal with gentle steps so it didn't become overly panicked , his eyes watching the small thing's eyes register him with more caution as it tucked into itself out of response , trying to move further into the hedge much to his dismay.
'It's getting itself stuck even more…'
And with that another distressed yowl came from the small furry thing , making the bluenet even more worried for it's being and urgent to help it , but it needed to cooperate with him to some extent if that was the case. Swallowing thickly , he continued with his stance of showing no sign of anything for the thing to be afraid of him.
"I'm not here to hurt you…"
Even going as far as talking to it , but he didn't really know if the thing could understand it or what as he couldn't understand what it was trying to say , other than through the sharp and raising tones of it's voice that seemed like a call of distress.
"I'm here to help…"
"Just don't move too much…"
Whether it actually was working or not he didn't know , but he found that that the animal seemed to take a liking to his soft and assuring voice , it's eyes even having started to relax from the alarmed vertical slits it had , to something a bit more endearing , yet he took his time to still remain cautious.
"You'll hurt yourself more…"
Remaining non-invasive and gentle as possible , the bluenet eventually was able to crouch down to the small animal's level without causing too much of a problem for it , speaking to the creature to calm it's nerves as his eyes simultaneously started to inspect the problem now he was nearer.
'It's stuck pretty badly…'
He thought sorrowfully for the thing as he could see one paw was stuck in the midst of intertwining twigs and it's hind leg being jutted into by nearby thorns that caught it painfully. What he also noticed was long nails coming from the creature itself were also embedding it deeper , probably having been a desperate attempt to try and claw it's way out.
'I should remove the twigs first , as that is what's in front.'
With nimble fingers , the azure haired child took a hold of the surrounding leaves and twigs that were enclosing the poor thing and started to pull them away from where it captured the creature's paw , and slowly but surely it wriggled in response enough to loosen itself from the wooden grasp alongside it's release.
The creature made a sound of what he thought to be approval , confirming to him it wasn't tensed by his actions and that they could actually work together for the end goal. Though the thing was still evidently distressed , his hand went out to slowly pet the head of the creature , feeling it's soft and dishevelled fur smooth by his fingers and causing the animal some comfort , though that was only to get it's mind off from what was truly of concern.
'Now for the leg…'
It's leg wasn't wedged too deep , but there was blood being brought out which of course was never something good. He tried to think if maybe he was to put his hand in and free it manually , would that work? Though it's possible he would hurt himself in the process trying to free it as there did seem to be a lot of sharp things there that were more capable of catching onto him than the animal.
But given there wasn't really anything else he could do , nor was there anything he could use to his advantage that would help otherwise , that would have to be the solution.
'Hopefully it doesn't hurt too much.'
He took a small breath , giving a few more rakes through with his fingers across the creature's fur before using his other hand to dive deep into the thorny and tangled mass. With his eyes and touch helping him navigate to where the problem rooted from , a hiss left his lips from feeling his own skin being nipped at from the dangers of nature , though thankfully it wasn't anything too apparent.
Yowl
The bluenet heard the creature cry out as his slightly bloodied fingers touched up against it's trapped leg , feeling stress take over it with it's other hand and already wanting to move in apprehension which caused the boy to panic a bit before he commenced with trying to soothe it again along with himself.
"Shhhh…"
"It's okay…"
He continued with his gentle tone , simultaneously wriggling his own fingers against the enclosure that trapped the animal's limb , digging deeper into the growth and grabbing a firm hold of it's leg , using his fingers to rub against the tensed skin as he slid the appendage out of danger.
YOWL
A grimace crossed his features , both from the heightened voice of the creature and the more injuries he incurred with his efforts. But slowly and surely , he could feel the limb finally becoming free from the hold of the thorns and allowed the animal to finally escape the restrictions that had distressed it.
"There!"
He watched as the four legged creature hobbled out of the green and intertwined confines , making sure that it didn't get caught on anything else before finally retracting his own hand from the thorny depth , tearing away at his own skin a bit as he did so , but thankfully when he inspected the damage done , it wasn't anything too worrisome or unable to be managed.
Just a decent amount of scratches and tears across the skin of his hand and fingers , but nothing that was too shocking. At least definitely not compared to what he had been inflicted with before.
However…
That couldn't be said the same with the small fluffy thing.
His attention turned to the animal , lips pursed in pity for the animal as he watched as it could barely stand on it's own , both from being tired from exerting from struggle and the wound that had been incurred. Blood dripped down it's hind leg , though nothing in a surplus , he could tell that amount did cause a lot of pain to the poor thing and it needed attention quickly.
'I can't just leave it like that…'
Biting his bottom lip whilst in thought , when his mind was finally made up he decided to approach the young creature once again , this time with intent to grab a hold of it. Of course the intention wasn't as well received as he thought , the animal had become incredibly tense and it's claws had appeared again in defence.
Yet still he scooped up the small fur ball and cradled it against his chest , making sure to keep it's injured limbs away from any stressful tension as it's blood leaked onto the material of his cloak along with some dirt it picked up in it's struggle. Though he didn't want to get anything filthy and it was a bit of annoyance this was the case now , he'd just have to wash it off after tending to the animal and before one of the stone faced ladies caught notice to question him.
Besides the clothing affected was of a quite dark tone so if anything , the dirt and blood was obscured from plain sight.
"Let's get you cleaned up."
He told the small animal as he set out for the stream that wasn't too far of a walk from where they were. Since the little creature had gotten quite roughed up from it's troubles , he needed to take care of all the dust and dirt clinging to it and make sure it didn't enter it's wound as he had heard that would make things more painful.
During his walk to the serene stream that was running softly , he noticed the creature's eyes had once again gone from it's irritated slit-like look to something softer. And to his surprise it was beginning to nuzzle deeper into him , like how those birds had done with it's parent as if searching for warmth. The action made his heart swell out of endearment , making him pet it's soft hair with tender strokes until he had finally reached the side of the stream.
Bending down with the creature cradled in the crook of his left arm , he started to take small droplets of water that moved with the current and sprinkle it against the wounded leg. The thickness of the blood started to dissipate because of such and the whiteness of it's surrounding fur was soon to be restored as he continued to wash it's leg.
Though of course , the creature didn't take a liking to the water at first , in fact even becoming scared of the substance as he saw it's claws start to appear and felt it tense again , to which he decided he would just wash it down with slight amounts as too much didn't seem to sit well with it.
Eventually the child had cleaned the wound enough that blood didn't seep through as thickly. And alongside having brushed a wet and clean hand through it's ruffled fur to make it less dusty , he felt content with the level of cleanliness he had gotten before deciding it was time for the next step.
'I should bandage it…'
Well that was what he was thinking , but on second thought , he wondered if something like that would be needed for something that wasn't human. As he didn't know exactly how animals healed themselves or if they would even do so.
But then , remembering the level of distress that the creature felt just from that amount of pain , regardless of how little it looked to him , it must have meant that it was probably really sensitive or more likely to hurt , especially now with gashes littered over it's leg like that.
Human or not , it was in pain at the end of the day and because of that it needed to be taken care of even if it felt excessive.
As he didn't want to risk it getting hurt again.
Especially now since it was more vulnerable than ever.
A sigh left his lips as he looked at the endearing furball that was nestled up against him with it's puffy fur sticking down a bit because of the water. The washed fingers on his left hand started to unravel the bandage he had on his right hand , delicately removing the gauze from wounds in the midst of healing and keeping the fabric intact before getting it ready to be adorned elsewhere.
"You need it more than me, I believe."
He told the creature in confidence , quickly wrapping the fabric around the remnants of it's wounds. Being careful to wrap it around snugly so there was no chance of it slipping off before tying the ends of it in a firm knot as he finally let the animal out of his hold and see what support it had now he had tried to take care of it.
'Ah , it can stand!'
A contented smile came across his face , seeing that the creature could hold itself more firmly compared to before he watched it move towards him strangely , making him puzzled by it's actions before feeling it brush against his legs firmly as it's face nuzzled into him to his surprise.
'What's it doing?'
He was a bit startled by the motion , not sure what to make of it and simply watched the small furball begin to circle his being , brushing up against his legs here and there before falling at his feet and creating some kind of humming sound which made him even more baffled.
'Is this something good?'
Though before he could observe the behaviours of the small creature any longer , the sound of a piercing cry sounded through the serenity that had accompanied the both of them , causing his ears to prick up as he registered where the voice had emanated from and what it was in demand of.
"JELLAAAAAAAAAAAAL!"
One of them was calling him. Though he wasn't sure who exactly it was with how much of the voice dissipated against the distance it sounded in , it all pledged to the fact that this was his cue for the day to come to an end.
'I need to get going!'
Not wanting to give anything for his good day to end on a bad note , he immediately decided he needed to rush back to where he would have been expected , but first having to go to collect the bag he had been given from the top of the hill that he had been seated on and that he had met the fluffy creature at.
He was about to turn his attention away from the animal , who for some reason didn't seem so pleased about doing so and started rubbing against the bluenet's ankles with more passion to try and get his attention as it mewled softly near him.
Though of course the sensation was ticklish and he didn't mind it , and he could tell that the thing didn't really want to depart with him (nor did he with it) , their time together sadly did have to cut short for now until the next time when they would meet.
'I can't stay with it now…'
"I'm going to get in trouble , I'm sorry…"
Disheartened , he told the fluffy thing those bare words before giving it a glance of frustration , his heart feeling impacted from it's sheer cuteness and seeing it also realising their inevitable departure as it's paws tried to reach out to him and in a way beg him to stay , to which he wish he could consider but with what he heard next.
"WHERE ARE YOU?!"
He knew he just couldn't.
"I TOLD YOU TO BE BACK THE MINUTE YOU WERE CALLED!"
'Ah she's getting angry…'
Though he didn't want to leave the small furry thing , there was no choice and that couldn't be argued. Before he would depart from it though , he gave it another thorough pet through it's fur , hearing it once again make sounds of contentment before he left it with his final words to it.
"I have to go now , just don't get stuck anywhere else okay?"
After having done enough not to leave the creature lingering in dejection , he rushed quickly to collect his belongings from the hill before another warning could be issued. One that hopefully he would avoid since he was urgent to get back before they could get angrier.
Having packed up his items , the bluenet started to make his way up the slope which his house resided on , whilst doing so his mind simply being filled with all that he got to experience and that he would be able to experience again when the next day would come.
His little heart was bubbling with excitement , despite the fact it was time for his enjoyment to come to an end , the fact that something like this was finally not forbidden to him and would remain so as long as he followed the rules obediently , that alone was something he couldn't have ever believed to become a reality after what he lived.
'I need to thank them.'
That thought stood out to him the most when the excitement and bliss from what he enjoyed throughout the day came to settle. The fact that the gods made this capable for him , he needed to show his appreciation.
He should have never doubted them and been impatient with his prayers , that was wrong of him and he knew that. If anything for that sort of mentality they could have easily decided not to answer anything , but out of their mercy they did and he couldn't be more thankful.
That's why when he would get to his room , he would make sure to say his prayers for the day as desired and try to strengthen his relationship with them like they wanted from the people of the land.
It was the least he could do considering what they gave him.
A warmth spread through him as he was already anticipating the next day to come. Already wishing that nightfall should pass so he will commence with finding out even more and meeting more things , filling his life with the colours it had been devoid of and finally letting him live the way he should rather than being kept behind walls for years on end.
As he approached the stony confines which he knew as his home , watching those same dull walls come back into his vision after being exposed to a world of life and vividity , dread did not fill his being for once as he didn't see them as something harrowing anymore , nor as an obstruction.
Because they wouldn't hold him back anymore.
They couldn't hold him back anymore. They couldn't keep him from meeting his deepest desires. Not when fate had finally turned in his favour. Not when he was finally being heard and his heart's wishes were slowly being granted.
And because of that…
He was sure ,
That the days that were to come from now on would be something alike to no other.
And nothing would be able to change that.
Author's Note:
This chapter (and a few of the upcoming ones) is meant to highlight Jellal's level of innocence , hope and humanity (even with how horrid his life has been up until now) , which may seem a bit unnecessary but I really want to create the contrast of what he could have been...And what he will be-
Also I just wanted to give the precious little blueberry a break after all that madness and pain he's endured and prove i'm not a complete sadist with my writing lol.
(I promise it's all done with reason! .)
Though it does seem rather boring I do agree , once the darkness comes to really settle in this story , you won't be seeing such purity from him again.
And you'll truly know why he is the one named 'The Devil' in the title.
So enjoy it whilst it lasts...
Because once he's gone ,
He's not coming back.
(Did not mean to make that sound threatening! x.x)
Until the next update I wish you well!
Thank you for taking the time to read this story! ^_^