OUR TIME
OF FLYING HIGH
And one more time, our dream would fly high in the sky of my soul…
…-…-…-…
I open my eyes to see the cold, cruel world in front of me once again. Another new day I'm living. I'm waiting… for a call… high above…
…-…-…-…
He had always been like that. He had always been playful and messy. He had always been full of vitality, full of energy. He didn't usually think much. He lived for today. He tried his best to make every single moment of his life filled with joy.
He loved his life. He also loved to run on empty fields of wild, screaming and yelling his lungs out. He also loved to hope in a step- by- step rhythm on the stones in a rocky area. He loved to dance to the beat of his heart in a bamboo forest. He loved to play with my hair, pull my ears and twist my tail.
" Kurama."
"…"
" Kuraamaaa Yooouukoo."
He pulled my eyelids open.
" Kurama! Are you deaf?"
" Arg!" I snapped. " Leave me alone!"
" Go swimming in the river with me! I suddenly feel like it, but it's no fun going alone."
" It's 3:00 a.m." I replied in a calm, I- doubt- you- have- a- proper- sanity tone. Nah, I was too sleepy to shout at him or to hit him on the head.
" Does anyone set rules about not going swimming at 3:00 a.m? And if there was a rule why should we follow it? Hey Youko, are you listening to me? Don't tell me that you're asleep already! Youko, are you still there? Hey Youko! Youko! Oh, damn."
He would never change.
And I would never stop lecturing him the next morning.
" You know Kuronue, if you want to be alive in this Demon world you must think carefully before you do anything. Were you aware about the fact that I might have killed you last night, I mean, this morning. You never use your brain, no matter how many times I tell you to. When you do a thing, you can get a habit. When you get a habit, you can get your personality. When you get your personality then you get your destiny, do you understand? We're thieves, you know, thieves are not allowed to make mistakes. If we do then we're toast. What if you and I were on a mission and then"
" Well thank you, Professor Kurama, for the very interesting lecture. NOW WOULD YOU STOP BABBLING ABOUT STUPID STUFFS AND LET MY EARS REST CAUSE YOU KNOW I DON'T CARE ABOUT ONE SINGLE WORD!"
He blew my hair with that yelling. Then he started twisting my ears.
" But I'll give you my mercy if you let me tight your cute tail to your hair."
He got himself tied upside down to a tree with that.
" Hey Kurama, I just want you to live a happy life!"
…-…-…-…
That big kid, annoying, yes, but also very loving and very, very nice.
…-…-…-…
" Hey, what if… I just want to ask… what if… one of us… ever die before another?"
" Well… Kuronue… I think that… then the survive one must… be strong… and hold on to live… no matter what… for the one who dies…"
" So… you've got to live for me if I ever die, promise?"
" You must live for me, too. OK, we have a promise between greatest and craziest thieves in Makai here, don't we?"
" Right!"
…-…-…-…
" That was great, Kuronue. You did your job perfectly well."
" Thanks to that plan of yours. The craziest one I've heard of, but it actually worked."
" Kuronue…?"
" Yes…?"
" When I finish counting gems… do you feel like going out for a drink tonight?"
" Hai! Just exactly what I've been waiting for!"
That was it. That was all he needed. That was all he needed for risking his neck. That was all he needed for trusting me with his life. Just a little. Joy.
…-…-…-…
" K'rama they're after us! They've found out!"
" Damn it! Those scum bastards! OK, plan B activating. We're going to get that mirror for sure!"
" Right!"
" Kuronue… I have to warn you. This thing may not work. You can just leave it and go away. Following me this time is quite… dangerous for you."
" You baka kitsune! If I don't follow you moron where can I go!"
Did you know where I was going, Kuronue?
…-…-…-…
Kuronue was a big drinker. He didn't mind being off guard and he always got completely intoxicated whenever we drank.
" Tikka- takka- tikka- tak! Da- da- da! Tikka- tokka- tikka- tok!"
He madly hoped and jumped, then started singing silly Makai songs for kids. I was also a bit drunk, so I clapped hands with him, laughing and jumping. We then fell onto the grass, breathing rapidly. The grass filled my lungs with the purest smell of earth and wild flowers after rain, giving me a fresh feeling running through my veins.
" I feel… weird, Kurama. I don't want to steal anymore. No more fighting. I just wish I could lie here with you just like this and stay drunken for the rest of my life."
" Nah, it's not weird at all. You have always been like that."
" Oh really? You knew. And you Youko? Do you like… staying like this?"
The summer wind was blowing, tearing some wild daisy petals flying to the sky. A star had just fallen down as I started to dream…
" No."
Dreams ended soon.
" Go home with me Kuronue?"
" Hai! Let's go home!"
…-…-…-…
He had always been like that. Been a kid chasing the summer wind. Loved to watch the stars on summer nights. Loved to go swimming on spring morning. Loved to jump into leaves on autumn afternoons. Loved to hear the sound of foot stepping on the thick white snow on winter midnights.
His hands were bloody and he was like that…?
My Kuronue…
...-…-…-…
Wild flowers wither fast. New ones are born from the earth more beautiful than before. But no one would find the flowers that have already withered ever again…
…-…-…-…
I run through the prairie of our old days, our time of flying high. It is now nothing more than a barren field of dirt. My grass couldn't make it without him…
The heavy sound of footsteps was getting louder fast. One of my legs was broken and one was dislocated. A fox can't run very fast with only two proper legs.
The Reikai hunter is charging his rei gun, I can feel it. I know I won't make it.
I suddenly miss the old prairie deeply like never before…
The hunter shouts something. I continue running.
" Save yourself, Kurama! Forget about me!"
" I just want you to live a happy life."
" You've got to live for me if I ever die, promise?"
A ball of reiki hit me from behind. But I already promised him…
Dust taps my face, bringing the horrible coughing smell, blends with the disgusting smell of my blood. But inside of me I smell the odor of earth and wild flowers after rain; my ears are filled with the rhythm of some silly Makai songs for kids. Deeply miss someone's laughter. Deeply miss someone's smiling face. Deeply miss the twinkling stars on the sky. Deeply miss the wind of those drunken summer nights.
I'm still waiting… for his call from high above…
………
" Go home with me Kuronue?"
" Hai! Let's go home!"
The stars were still twinkling high above the sky. A star has just fallen. Down.
…