Poll is open for this story, simply click my name vola!
Are we beholden to a destiny, or are we to forge our own? Life itself has it strange happenings. One moment you could be walking the path in the woods that's clear cut. Only to suddenly trip, and find yourself covered in the visage of leaves in an unknown bush. Childlike wonder, fear, and amazement flooding your mind. Things like these happen to people daily, and most of the nudges come from minor things.
A young was currently finishing pouring tea into a small coffee cup. Reflecting on these swirling thoughts in his head. He wore a nightcap, which was dark blue in color. His clothing consisting off a yellow nightshirt with range sweatpants to match. If one squinted, they'd think him a walking flame.
Turning off the oven, his main reflection today was how one perceived life. The forces that made things fall into place. He had a friend long ago say that it was fate, or destiny that led people into situations. For the longest time, that very same young man believed the opposite. Yet, he'd have to admit that things were lining up to somewhat be totally random. He figured that maybe people are meant to be somewhere, but they get to choose how they get there. Sometimes, however, to get on the right road sometimes required a little bit of a hard nudge.
For him, that nudge was a totally life altering. Carrying a tray of warm tea upstairs. This blonde-haired young man observed his small kingdom from the balcony of his second story. Drinking in the various pictures on the wall, his duty to them mattered more than his own woes in life.
No matter how much it broke him, and how tired he got, his duty was to his family above all else. Those he came to have in his life, share it, and forge it into something worth having. It was his fire within that made him walk forward. Stepping upon the hot coals of a challenge was nothing new to him, he had done it all of his life. All of it, leading up to the faithful moment that shattered it into thousands of pieces.
Taking a deep breath, he smiles before walking down the hallway of his house. The azure eyes of the blonde fell upon a pink heart covered door. Opening it up slowly, he saw her, and she beamed as her dark gray eyes fell upon him. The little girl had white hair, and wore an orange onesie that hid her pale skin under its warmth. She was currently snuggling up to the family pet, a fox named Inari. It yipped at it's master's presence before snuggling closer to her.
"Papa." The little girl with dark gray eyes greeted him meekly, her white hair unkempt from not brushing it at all today. "My tummy hearts."
He pulls up a small chair, crouching down to sit it in it with a sigh. Placing the back of his hand on her forehead, feeling her fever. "It's gone down a little bit, but still a little high." He observed in his thoughts before smiling. "You're going to be okay, Lune, I got you some tea."
Lune, the little girl leaned forward. Two bunny ears flopped down to droop at her face where they had been slicked back. She coughed a little, covering her mouth as she was taught by pressing her cough into the crook of her arm. She snivels as her father handed her a small coffee mug filled with tea. She sipped at the rim, taking in the turmeric-based leaf juice.
It opened up her throat, loosening the sore muscles from the constant coughing. The mixture of chamomile inside of it also helped sooth her stomach. It took a little bit, but slowly she finished the cup. Giving a hearty, contented, sigh as she handed the cup back to her father. The young father took her cup, placing it on the tray he had carried it up in.
"Can you tell me a bedtime story, papa?" She requested one of his famous bedtime stories. "I'm sorry if…you're tired too."
"Oh, stop it, Lune." He lightly chided her before smiling. "I can tell my little girl a bedtime story, which one would you like to hear?"
"C-Can I hear the story about The Fox Who Fell Through The Den?" She asked whilst noting the slight decline of his smile. "Húlí said that it's a true story."
"Did she now?" He acted in surprise for her sake, and rubbing his chin. "Hmm, I suppose that you're old enough to hear about it."
"Yay!" She lightly cheered before going into a small coughing fit, but finishing with another excited chirp. "Storytime!
He lightly chuckles before lightly pushing onto the pillows, shutting off her lamp allowing a small rose shaped nightlight to come on. "Okay, settle down, Lune." He lightly curbed her excitement before smiling softly as his azure eyes gazed into hers. "You nice and comfy, daughter of mine?"
"Mmhmm!" She hummed whilst nodding vigorously. "Yep-yep-yep!"
Wetting his lips, the young man took a deep breath before starting the story. "Once in a village hidden by mighty trees, there existed a fox." He started her off on her imagination before rubbing her forehead gently.
"This young fox was not so well liked by his peers. He was mischievous, and prankster, but that was because he grew up without a mama and papa. The little fox would come to make friends with a dog, a sheep, and a raven." Lune's eyes widened at the mention of the poor fox not having parents, but focused on the grouping of his friends. "The fox, and the raven both were young children without families."
"So, they were like Húlí, Bjorn, and Fluss?" The young girl asked, naming off her brothers and sister. "They took each other as family?"
The blonde held his hand up, "easy there, Lune. I'm getting there." He promised her before continuing.
"As they grew up, the raven grew to become rivals with the fox. While the fox was jealous that the raven could swore easily, having been given the natural talent of flight, the raven was also jealous over the fox's ability to dig underground to make a home where the raven could not." Her father switched the tone of the story slightly before she frowned.
"The raven sounds like a jerk."
That made him chuckle, "oh, indeed he was my little rabbit princess. The raven chided, jeered, and played upon the insecurities of the fox. He wanted their bond to remain, but the raven didn't, believing himself superior because he could fly." He finished that portion of the story, though it weighed heavy on his heart doing so.
"See, total jerk!"
"Keep interrupting me, and I'll start calling raven, ya know." Her father lightly teased her before noting her flushed face. "Okay, back to the matter at hand!"
"Ahem!" He coughed into his hand to get her attention. "Anyway, because the raven could fly, he'd tease the fox. Saying that the fox would always be forced to stay on the ground, whilst he'd nest high in the trees. The raven could be contented in knowing that the fox would never see the sun and moon like he could."
"The fox would tell the raven that he was comfortable upon the dirt. The raven egged at him, eroding his nerve. Finally, the fox asked him what would make them equals." Her father's gaze hardened a little bit at the last part. "The raven said that the fox needed to build a next in the trees."
"Bu-but wouldn't he fall?"
"Lune…"
"I'm sorry!"
"It's okay," he chuckled a little bit before getting back to it. "So, the fox found a fallen and climbed up. Each time carrying mouthfuls of sticks and mud. Slowly, but surely, the fox found that he was able to build a small den upon a seemingly sturdy branch of a large tree full of leaves."
Her father pauses for a moment, and then stared away from her briefly. Turning back to her, he gave her a warm smile. "The fox bragged to the raven, saying that the raven should try to build a den. The raven in his rage took the challenge, and tried but found that his feet and wings were poor choices for digging."
"In a rage, the raven demanded the fox go back to the ground whilst he took the fox's tree den. Obliging, the fox took to his victory. The raven seeing that he had lost flew into a rage, and formulated an evil plan. Faking cries of help, the fox ran to his best friend, only for his created den to fall out from under him. The fox was stunned, bamboozled, and shocked. He saw the raven at the end of the branch, deftly stepping over to him." He closed his eyes before sighing. "The raven told the fox that he trusted too easily, and he revealed that he had taken sticks from under the mud he had used to hold the makeshift den. With a flap of his wings…the den broke apart."
Lune's eyes widened as her father concluded the story, "and then the fox fell down." He finished before seeing her slightly whimper. "Lune?"
"That's such a sad story, why is the raven such a jerk!" Lune yelled out, tears brimming at her eyes. "It's not fair, the fox just wanted to be his friend!"
"I know sweetheart, but sometimes there are just some people no matter how much kindness you show them, they'll never reciprocate. The lesson in this story, and something I want you to learn, is that you never rely on someone else to make you feel complete. If the fox had loved himself, then the fox wouldn't have fallen prey to his need to stand equal to something that flew in the skies." He held his daughter close, rubbing her head. "Shh it's okay, sweetheart. Because, here's the ending to that story…the fox fell down from it's den into a river, where it washed up to a new world where it could build a new home…and in doing so he found his true family."
The girl smiles slightly, rubbing her eyes of the small tears, "really?"
"Really-really, ya know. C'mon now, it's bedtime little one. You have school tomorrow, and I expect you to listen to the tutor when she comes by in the morning. Daddy has to work, and you'll be listening to big brother Fluss. Have you been practicing your sign language skills for him?" He questioned her, watching smile brightly before contorting her fingers.
"I have been, papa!" She signed perfectly before he smiled.
He signs back to her, "goodnight my little rabbit." Bending down before lightly pecking the top of her head and closing the door as she snuggled deeper into the blankets.
He stood there outside of her door, yawning before stretching. The bathroom light on the righthand side next to the brothers' room turned off as a young tween girl walked out of it. She had burnt red hair, and dark complexion.
She had fox ears on top of her head, the same color as her hair. "Yo bro, what's got you up so late at night?" She questioned him.
"Húlí, you know Lune is sick." Her brother stated before looking her in her golden yellow eyes. "I got a job I have to go do for the next several days. As much as Bjorn, and Fluss like to think they run the show I'm putting you in charge of caretaking Lune."
"Leave it to me! I got my baby sis!" She declared before looking at him. "You crying, or something? Sheesh, must've been The Fox And The Den story…I remember when you first told us that story, you used to bawl like a baby!"
A vein popped out the blonde's forehead as he held a fist up. "You wiseass, you're lucky I love ya." He stated before lowering his fist. "Seriously though, Húlí, I'm technically leaving Fluss in charge of the house whilst leaving you in charge of caretaking Lune. If she starts getting sicker, you're to phone me."
"Where will you be going, Naruto?" She asked him, slightly concerned at the seriousness in his voice. "You know, one of these days, you're gonna have to take one of us with you for practical experience."
"I know, Húlí, I know. I'll know more about where I'm going tomorrow. It kind of came up as a last minute thing. Apparently, some type of Grimm has been running amuck around the countryside. Shouldn't be no more than three days at most, ya know." Naruto, her brother, told her before holding out his fist. "I'm heading in for the night, sleep tight, ya hear?"
She giggles a little before bumping his fist, a little hard. "I'll be catching Zs then, night! Oh, and Naruto, is it okay I do some chakra control training to one of the trees out back?" She asked permission, "I'm trying to do that tree walking thingy you do."
"Knock yourself out."
"I really hope you don't mean literally." She deadpanned before watching him chuckle. "What so funny?"
"Oh, nothing, it's just that I feel like someone I used to know. Just remember to keep the chakra balanced, and not to go all HAM on it. I ain't gonna be around to heal you if you crack a knuckle." He reminded her before moving towards his door. "Besides, one of these days I'll be teaching you some actual jutsu!"
"Can't wait until I'm able to kick Fluss's butt!"
"yeah, good luck with that, Húlí. Night girly," Naruto waived her off before opening his door and walking through it. Closing he leaned back on it for a brief moment, taking in a deep breath. "It gets harder telling the story, and seeing her cry over it."
A silence prevailed across the room, but slowly a guttural rumble filled his head. None of the kids in the house would hear it, but as Naruto walked towards his queen-sized bed, the voice echoed in his mindscape. The deep, primordial being within him finally waking from his month-long naps.
"Fatherhood suites you, brat." It told him, with no attempt to hide his contempt with still being sealed within the young man.
He flops down right onto the mattress, groaning as he buried his head into the buckwheat pillows. Taking in their earthy scene. "Who'd thought it, ya know? It's almost like I resonate with orphans." Naruto jabbed at the monster in his head before turning to lay flatly on his back.
"Heh," he heard the beast chuckle, "Maybe if you ever get the chance to see that Uchiha brat again…you should thank him?"
"Pfft, sure, right after kick him in his nuts for essentially screwing me over. He could've pulled me up, but he let me fall in that…well what did you call it?" Naruto snapped his fingers while thinking, biting his lip before a final snap made him remember. "Rift!"
"It's what happens when you take extremely negative chakra, couple it with extremely positive chakra. Then, as if it wasn't enough, pour in a bootlegged version of a Sage Mode and vola…we're on a one-way ticket through a tear in Space-Time. A Rift indeed." Kurama jokingly, maybe even mockingly, reminded Naruto who just shifted in the bed uncomfortably.
"That was nearly seven years ago, Kurama. By now Sasuke is probably either dead, or living it up. There really is no point to holding hatred, it's a pipe dream that I'll be able to get my own payback. However, it doesn't mean we haven't built ourselves a pretty good life here. Be honest, you like it when I spin stories of you being some heroic fox." The blonde reasoned with the beast inside of him, a foxlike grin spread across his face. "Especially with Húlí."
He heard the giant kitsune inside of him huff. "Not my fault that her being excited over you riding atop me as a war machine. I actually like the cut of the girl's jib, she's outspoken and responsible despite her young age…plus she yearns for power." Kurama darkly hinted at, which made Naruto shift uncomfortably a little bit.
"I'm trying to temper her from the taste of it. Not going to lie, the first time I was able to use your power without the drawbacks it was addicting. I get where Sasuke is coming from about power being the ultimate high. It's so easy to squash things that oppose, but like we both agreed…that's the wrong way of going about this life of ours." Naruto reminded him before smiling softly as he looked into the mirror, knowing Kurama would perceive it in real time.