Chapter Text
There was a time when the sun god and moon goddess were close that they rose and set together. They shone their bright light, illuminating everything around them. The people who populated the young earth were the most grateful for their light. They looked up in delight at the exhibition of two heavenly bodies, side by side.
For centuries all was well and the universe was a happy place.
But unfortunately, what the people didn’t know was that their lives were on the verge of changing forever.
It is one of the unwritten rules of the universe that all good things must come to an end.
And it did.
It is often said that two entities of unequal caliber can never be friends. Sooner or later arrogance, ego, and jealousy raise their ugly head, and dirty the pure waters of friendship.
The sun is many times bigger and many times brighter than the moon. In fact, the moon does not even generate its own light but reflects the light given by the sun. It is the sun that is at the center of the universe with the planets circling around it.
Whatever the moon could do, the sun could do it brighter. Because of this, the moon began to foster feelings of envy.
"People adore you," the goddess complained.
"They adore you, too," consoled the other god.
"I doubt it. Every time we rise and set together, I see the eyes of millions staring at you. I'm only the mere shadow of the sun."
The sun only responds with a sigh. “One day you’ll see that they adore you as much as they do me.”
With that, the two of them continued their daily routine. Until, one day, the moon saw the sun yawning.
"I’m tired," he said. "We might have to set earlier today."
The moon felt an idea stirring beneath its smooth, chalk-like surface, for its scars didn’t come until much later.
"Why don’t you go rest over there in the west?’ said the moon.
"Are you sure?" yawned the sun, stretching his arms, pointing out its sunrays of deep amber.
"Of course, love. You shine so brightly all the time. You deserve a break."
"But what about our people?"
The moon smiled. "I’ll look after them until you rise, and then I’ll take a rest."
He nods and plodded slowly over to the west to lay his head down to rest. The moon shone proudly and watched over the people as they slept.
On that clear night, the moon noticed a small child pointing in its direction. It had been spotted!
She almost went and woke up the sun with utter excitement. Then the child yelled,
"Mother! Father! Come and look how big and bright the moon is!"
The moon puffed itself up and lit up the night sky like never before. It was full of itself.
People couldn’t help but notice it. Poems were written about it. Songs were sung. Paintings were painted. The seas and lakes chose to reflect on it. The tides began to listen to it. People would take late-night walks and thank it for its guidance along their path.
"I no longer envy the sun,’ uttered the goddess, one night as she sat reflecting. "All this time I thought the sun and I should share the same purpose, but I was wrong. I am happy for the sun to shine so brightly during the day because I’m able to shine so brightly at night."
But what the goddess didn’t know was that the sun had noticed the people’s adoration for the night growing over time. The new feeling was growing inside him.
Jealousy.
It was inevitable that the feelings of jealousy would one day penetrate the thoughts of the sun. It caused him to act in a manner unbecoming of his stature.
Much of the life on earth had been made possible because of him. Yet the prayers of the humans were divided equally between the sun god and the moon.
The sun still remembered the day when the moon was just a barren rock, with no soul and no purpose. The moon came to the sun, questioning its place in the universe, and why the unseen gods had chosen to play such a cruel trick on it. The sun took pity on the moon.
The sun decided to help out its young friend. He decided to impart half its power to the moon. He told the moon that henceforth it would shine brightly on it and whatever light it gave, the moon could deflect to the earth.
The moon was happy. She now had a purpose.
As the people prayed to the moon more over the years, the wrath of the sun grew even more. The stupidity of this race and their ignorance in all matters scientific enraged the sun.
So on one day, the sun god stopped sending its light to the moon. The moon goddess was shocked. Initially, the moon thought that maybe a mistake had been made so she decided to pay the sun a visit.
As the moon approached, the sun god turned his back on her. The goddess was hurt.
It dawned on the sky god that this was a battle of egos and the sun god was establishing its claim as the superior one. It called a meeting of the other gods and the moon goddess, where it explained to her that she had to bow before the sun god and surrender its claim over the light.
She was shocked. By depending too much on the sun god, it had allowed herself to be bullied. The sun god could now do what it pleased and she would always be at the receiving end.
The sun god needed to be put in place, decided by the goddess. She went to visit the sun god in his realm. Seeing the goddess there, he burned with fury. He was the ruler of the galaxy so how dare one enter his realm without permission?
They both got into an argumen. The god’s wrath burned bright, enough to burn those around him. The moon’s irritation only grew, causing tides on earth to drastically affect the people.
To the people, an eclipse was projected onto the earth. The moon was in the sun’s way.
The sun god was at his limit. It shone even harder and unleashed its full fury and extreme heat onto her, scarring her beautiful pale skin.
But the moon goddess held firm.
Exhausted, the sun god finally relented and asked her what she wanted. The moon replied that it wanted its fair share of light onto the earth. The sun would shine over earth for longer hours. But for a few hours each day, she would be responsible for light on the earth. During that time he would simply withdraw and not interfere with the moon.
Angrily, the sun god accepted the terms of the deal. Both parties retreated to their respective corners, but not without a final word from the god.
“How dare the people place you on the same pedestal as me? Two entities of unequal caliber can never be friends. You’ll regret going against me, moon.”
----------
Centuries later, the sun god would be married to the sky goddess. She would bear him a child with bright, fiery red hair that belonged to one Chuuya Nakahara. He was to be the heir to the sun realm.
But what no one expected was the moon goddess falling in love with a mere mortal.
Hearing this, no god could believe it. Why would the moon goddess go down to earth for a simple mortal being? The council of the gods was astounded.
But what left them in utter shock was that she bore a child with him. A dark, brown-haired child named Osamu Dazai.
When the news of the moon’s lover and son reached the sun god, his laughter shook the galaxy.
‘What a foolish goddess,’ he thought.
5 years later, the child, Chuuya, had grown into a young vigorous boy who was confident and ambitious in every way. Though he was well known mostly for his short temper, taking after his father. Despite his age, the sun god was sure that his son would become a great ruler of his realm. He was determined to make Chuuya into a strong emperor that no one dared to defy.
Across the realms, the young boy, Dazai, was also well known. But, alas, not for the same reason as Chuuya. Although the two young boys were the same age, Dazai acted in a completely different way. He was reserved, sincere, and the witty type. He preferred to read books and learn new things instead of playing outside, resulting in him being far too intelligent for his age.
However, he was also the mischievous type, a trait that would ruin him later in life.
At first, no other gods wanted to be near Dazai. They watched him at a distance. He was the son of a mortal after all. But throughout the years, Dazai’s charismatic personality would change their minds.
Unfortunately, the council of great gods was still wary of him. The ruler of gods wasn’t pleased in the slightest. He was the least to be inclined to accept a half-god, half-mortal. A demi-god, they would name his type. This was the first occurrence of a goddess having a child with a mortal. He doubts that the boy would be able to wield the power of the gods.
The moon goddess knew what the council of great gods was saying about her son, but she paid them no mind. She loved her son dearly, and nothing will change that. She was happy with her lover and overjoyed with her son.
----------
Both Chuuya and Dazai’s sixth birthdays were coming up. For the gods, the sixth birthday was of importance, as it represented the union. It was the year that the gods would choose which child they desire to be the heir of the throne.
The child would then be united to their realms, as a symbol of loyalty and devotion, to bring the people as a whole. They would be named the official heir until they are the age of becoming the next ruler of their realm.
The sun god was certain that Chuuya would be his heir. He had no doubt that Chuuya was born for the position. He knew Chuuya was right for his people
Since Chuuya was older than Dazai by a few weeks, Chuuya was the first to celebrate his birthday.
Mount Olympus was preparing a festival for Chuuya’s unity. Every olympian was sent out an invitation. Including the moon goddess, which was a surprise to her. She accepted the invitation, of course. She didn’t want to anger her old friend anymore.
She hoped to be able to settle things between them at the festival.
----------
“Osamu,” the moon goddess calls out to her son, who is reading a book under the jacaranda tree in their garden, basking in the late afternoon sunlight.
Dazai looks up from his book and smiles brightly. He sets his book down and runs towards her.
“Mother!” He jumps onto her and hugs her legs. “Have you come to play with me?” The moon goddess looks down at him and smiles.
His brown eyes melted her. His dark, brown hair was slightly long, covering his eyes just a bit. He looked exactly like his father. But he did get her pale skin and her smile. She softly chuckles and kneels down to his eye level.
“Osamu, what do you think about attending a festival being thrown for the sun prince?” She asks, patting his hair down. Dazai's eyes light up with joy.
“A festival?” He excitedly asks before he furrows his brows, frowning. “But the other gods don’t want me there right?”
The goddess was taken back. She always made sure to avoid places where she knew there would be goddesses who would whisper about them. She didn’t want Dazai to hear about the terrible things they said.
Unfortunately, she had failed.
“Where did you hear that, my prince?” She gets up and grabs his hand. They start walking towards the jacaranda tree.
“Everywhere mother. I know they do not see me as one of them.” She looks down at her side. He was looking at the moonflower bush beside them. Dazai reaches out and plucks one.
Once they reach the tree, the moon goddess takes a seat on the bench under it. She pats the empty place beside her, motioning Dazai to sit with her. He takes a seat and she turns to face him.
“Those who are intimidated by you will talk bad about you with hopes that others won’t find you so appealing. They will always talk about you, especially when they envy you and the life you live. Let them. As long as you don’t take their words to heart, you’ll always be above them.” She takes the moonflower from Dazai and places it behind his ear.
“No matter what, I’ll always be by your side, Osamu.” Kissing his forehead, Dazai smiles.
----------
Chuuya’s birthday arrives and he is more than thrilled to celebrate it.
“Chuuya, calm down. I need to fix your hair before you head out.” Chuuya’s sister lightly hits his shoulder.
“But ane-sannnn! I need to leave so I can see the fireworks!” Chuuya whines as his older sister, Kouyou, starts to tie his long hair into a ponytail.
“The fireworks don’t start until the evening.” Chuuya huffs.
Growing up, he wasn’t allowed to go out of the palace walls, always watching the fireworks from afar in his chamber’s balcony. Now, for the first time, he gets to see them up close at the festival that’s being thrown for his birthday.
“There, you’re all set. Mother is waiting for you by the fountain. Be careful, lest you dirty yourself.” Kouyou clips on a hairpin with a sun design in his hair.
Chuuya hops off the chair he was sitting on and rushes to the door, ready to leave when Kouyou calls out to him. He looks at her.
“Happy birthday Chuuya.” Kouyou smiles softly. Chuuya’s face lights up.
“Thank you ane-san!”
Chuuya rushes out to find his mother. The faster he leaves, the more time he’ll get to spend at the festival.
He finds his mother sitting on the fountain located in front of their palace. She doesn’t hear him as she is stirring her hand in the water. Chuuya slowly walks up behind her, careful not to make any noise.
“Mother?” Chuuya calls out. She stops stirring her hand in the water and turns to face him.
“Ah, there he is.” She stands up and walks towards him. She grabs his hand and they start walking towards the gates of their palace. Chuuya doesn’t say anything. He learned that his mother is one of few words, so when she grabs his hand, he knows she’s content.
“Chuuya.” Her voice was soft, angelic even. It was soothing and it always made Chuuya feel safe and protected. Her voice was the only thing that could calm down his short temper. He looks up at her. She’s staring right ahead.
“Today is a very important day,” She looks down at him. “It’s your first time seeing what’s outside these walls.” She pauses.
“Everyone you meet will be wanting to befriend you but,” She stops and grabs both of Chuuya’s hands. “There will also be those who want to harm you. I just want you to be careful and not leave my sight.”
Chuuya nods. “I’ll always be by your side mother.” He smiles at her and she returns it. They start walking again and once they reach the gates, his mother’s chariot is waiting.
It was golden, engraved with designs of sunflowers and sun flames that were pointed out back behind the chariot. Three white horses with white hair were in front, each of their harnesses was golden with flowers covering it all around. Red rubies were engraved into the harness and the chariot. On the side of the horses were golden flames, resembling the sun’s, making it look like wings on the horses. At the very top of the chariot's roof-like structure, was a red flag with the sun symbol in the middle. It truly looked majestic.
Chuuya excitedly gets on and waits for his mother to get on. Once they were ready, they rode the chariot down the hill, their guards following close behind. The wind blew through Chuuya’s silky hair, pushing his loose bangs out of his face. Closing his eyes, he enjoyed every moment of the ride. The feeling as if he was flying through the sky, made him feel free.
Not long after, they arrived at the entrance of Mount Olympus's central. It takes Chuuya a second or two for the view to sink, even though it is right before his eyes, he couldn't believe he was outside. He then feels his lips stretch wider into a gaping grin and his eyebrows arch for the sky.
The view alone left Chuuya speechless.
Colorful tents were set up all over the place, each with a different purpose. Some were food stands, others were tents filled with games and prizes. Children were running, pinwheels in hand, and music flowing through the wind.
The atmosphere was filled with joy and happiness, Chuuya couldn’t help but smile. Everything screamed fun at Chuuya. But what he noticed most was the sun designs on every tent, decoration, and flags hanging on the lantern poles.
Of course, Chuuya couldn’t forget everything was being thrown in honor of his birthday, but he felt a bit of disappointment. That would mean he wouldn’t get the chance of having fun like every other kid here. Instead, he would have to be by his mother’s side, greeting other gods and hearing them congratulate him every now and then.
Not that he minded, but he was hoping for a bit of freedom to himself. At least he’ll be able to see the fireworks up close.
“Mother,” Chuuya turns to look at her, who was patting one of the horses' hair. “Can we buy one of those masks?” Chuuya points towards a tent selling kitsune masks of many beautiful designs.
“Maybe after we present you to the gods. Now we must make our much-awaited entrance,” She places her arms inside the sleeves of her red kimono and starts to gracefully walk towards the entrance. Chuuya mimics her.
With their guards walking in front of them and some behind them, Chuuya can’t help but feel somewhat nervous. He knew all eyes were on him as they walked down the path. A new experience since this was his first time out of the palace.
But he held his head up high. This is something he had to get used to if he was going to be named heir of the sun realm.
Gods and goddesses around them were whispering about the young prince. How confident he is, fitting for the next king. He sure does take after his father.
They reached a stage, decorated with banners and many flowers, that was right in the middle of the festival. On the stage was a golden pedestal with the crown caged by a glass box showcase. Others started to gather around, curious eyes looking at Chuuya.
This is where Chuuya is to be presented to the people. Of course, no one knew his name. His father made sure no one outside the palace did. It was unknown why he kept it in secrecy, but today the people will know.
A deep, rough, and familiar voice spoke through the speakers. It was his father, the sun king. He was to announce Chuuya’s presence. Chuuya took a deep breath.
“Chuuya,” His mother called out to him. Her voice helped calm his nerves, but his hand kept on fidgeting the hem of his sleeve.
“Don’t fret. All you’re going to need to do is say your name and the small speech you’ve been practicing these past few days. You’ll do just great up there, alright?” She places her hand on his shoulder. Chuuya nods. Looking back at his father, he studied him.
He had a stern, yet commanding voice, speaking with confidence. He was loud enough to be easily heard, but no louder to sound like shouting. Although he had the look of seriousness, you could hear the gentleness in his voice when he announced his son would now be walking on stage.
“Chuuya, it is time.” With a small pat on his shoulder, Chuuya walks up onto the stage, careful not to trip on the stairs. With his head held up high, he strode with confidence, mimicking the steps of his father. Reaching his father, he turns his body towards the crowd and bows towards them.
Standing back up, he takes a quick glance around before his father speaks.
“My son, who turns 6 years old as of today, is named the rightful heir to the throne of the sun realm. From here on out, he is to be placed under the title of nobility as a ruler.” The sun king turns towards Chuuya and nods. It’s time for Chuuya to speak.
“I must give my thanks for attending my union to the sun realm as named the rightful heir.” Chuuya pauses and takes a deep breath. “It is now my rightful duty to protect and serve the sun realm and aid the deities of Mount Olympus. I hope you will be good to me as I will be good to each and every one of you.”
Chuuya places his hand to his heart and bows towards the people. From behind, the sun king had taken the crown from the glass showcase and now is lifting it high above Chuuya’s head. Standing straight once more, Chuuya closes his eyes as he feels the heavy crown placed on his head.
“Please kneel for the prince of the sun realm, Chuuya Nakahara!”
Chuuya opens his eyes and looks around at everyone kneeling for him. A few seconds pass and his father allows them to stand. Then all Chuuya hears is clapping from the gods and goddess of Olympus. Chuuya smiles and lifts his head high in confidence. He must have done well, he thought.
Something catches the corner of his eye and Chuuya turns to the side of the stage. A man, around his thirties, looks straight at him. A fairly tall and slender physique with chin-length black hair slicked back, leaving bangs on each side of his face. Although he had purple-reddish hues of eyes, what had unsettled Chuuya most was the smile on his face.
Chuuya quickly turned away towards the crowd, smiling as if the man’s smile didn’t run chills down his back.
----------
“Osamu, wherein the heavens were you?”
Dazai looks up from the book he was reading and looks into his mother’s eyes.
“One second you were beside me, and the next? Gone. You missed the sun prince’s welcoming speech, Osamu.” She crouches down to Dazai’s eyes level. “What happened, my prince?” she asks as she softly caresses his cheek. Dazai frowns.
“I don’t like being surrounded by so many people. It makes me feel… trapped.” He looks away from his mother’s gaze. “I’m sorry for running off.”
The moon goddess softly smiles at him. “Next time, tell me so we can both leave.” She stands up, pulling Dazai with him. “Now, are you feeling hungry? We can go try different kinds of food they sell here.”
Dazai’s eyes light up. The moon goddess giggles, “I’ll take that as a yes then.” She grabs his hand and they walk towards the food stands.
----------
The day passes and soon, stars start to cover up the sky. Chuuya was tired, but he couldn’t show it. A day-long of walking and conversing with so many people has got him aching for his bed.
“Mother, when will the fireworks start?” Chuuya looks up at his mother but she doesn’t respond. Instead, he follows her line of sight, towards a woman with a lavender kimono.
By the type of kimono she’s dressed in, she must be an empress, Chuuya guessed. But what caught his attention most were the scars covering her face and neck. It was quite noticeable in contrast to her pale skin. Curious of what realm she must rule, he lightly tugs on his mother's kimono.
“Who is she, mother? She looks troubled.”
“She is someone who I must speak with….alone. Chuuya, find your father and make your way towards the fireworks, I’ll be with you after I speak with her.” He watches as his mother leaves his side and towards the white-haired woman.
Turning away, he makes his way through the festival. Waving and smiling at the people passing by, he mindlessly walks towards the last place he has seen his father.
Achoo!
Chuuya stops in his tracks and looks around. No one had sneezed. Confused, he takes another step when he hears someone sneeze again. This time, he knows it came from behind one of the stone walls beside him.
‘Why would someone be behind that wall when there’s a festival right behind it?’ Chuuya thought.
Looking behind to see if his mother was looking at him, he finds her still talking with the mysterious woman. So he decides to investigate behind the wall.
Checking around to see if anyone was looking at him, he starts to climb the wall by using the vines to help lift himself over the wall. It was a good thing the wall wasn’t very high, maybe around 6ft high.
Once he got to the top, he jumped over and landed softly on the ground below. Chuuya smiles at himself as the sword sparring he does daily helped him become physically active to easily jump over the wall.
“You’re stepping on my book.” Chuuya jumps at the sound of a voice below him. He looks down and notices a boy sitting against the wall. He had his knees against his chest with his arms around them. It was getting dark so Chuuya couldn’t tell if his hair was dark brown or black.
His head was resting sideways on his knees, looking down at Chuuya’s shoes. He was staring at the boy’s hair, trying to get a good look at his face from what he could due to his hair covering most of it when he finally registered what he said.
“Oh!” Chuuya tries to carefully get off the open book he didn’t realize he landed on, but the bottom of his shoe must’ve stuck onto the page, causing it to rip out the book. Chuuya winces at the sound.
The boy reaches out with one hand and dusts off the book.
“You destroyed my book.”
Chuuya looks down at the book now covered in dirt. He lifts up his foot and takes the page from under his shoe.
“I’m sorry. I can buy you a new one!” He says as he holds out the page towards the boy. He scoffs and takes it from him, sliding it in the book before closing it.
“You can’t replace the one thing I received from my father.” Now Chuuya felt really guilty.
“I am truly sorry, please forgive me!” Chuuya apologetically bows.
Achoo!
Chuuya looks at the boy with concern.
“Are you sick?” The boy shakes his head.
“These flowers are making my nose itch.” Chuuya looked to his side where a patch of daisies was growing. He looks around and notices the large field of sunflowers behind him. Then Chuuya gets an idea.
“Come with me! I want to show you something.” The boy huffs out a breath.
“I must find my mother-”
“Please? I feel extremely guilty for ruining your book.” Chuuya says as he nervously scratches his arm. The boy looks at him up and down before standing up. Dusting himself off, he grabs his book.
“Well, if the chibi insists.” The boy walks past Chuuya. Turning around with a sheepish smile, Chuuya lets his words sink in.
“Hey! I’m still growing!” Chuuya angrily yells at the boy’s back. But instead, the boy waves him off with a hum. Annoyed, Chuuya runs after him, maybe to smack the smug look off his face. The boy must have liked his reaction as he set off running before Chuuya had a chance to smack him.
Both of them were now running through the sunflower field, laughing as Dazai dodged Chuuya’s hits. Although Chuuya usually would have easily been set off by not being able to catch him, he can’t help but feel nothing but pure joy.
What made Chuuya burst out laughing was when the boy had tripped on a pebble and landed right in the middle of a puddle of last night’s drizzle.
“My mother is sure to be angry at me now,” says the boy as he stands up. He looks at Chuuya and puts his hand under his chin. “I’ll just blame it on chibikko!”
“That’s not fair-”
“Shush, do you hear that?” Chuuya stops and listens. But he doesn’t hear anything. “Huh, guess chibi can’t hear it from down here.”
Chuuya swings at him but the boy moves out of the way and puts his leg out, causing Chuuya to trip over it and fall in the same puddle the boy did.
Chuuya looks down at his clothes, now covered in mud. His parents were sure to kill him. But does he care? At the moment, he doesn’t.
He hears the boy laughing from above. Chuuya grabs a handful of mud and throws it at the boy’s face. The expression on his face makes Chuuya break into a fit of laughter. Wiping the mud off his face, he turns around and cuts off a sunflower. Chuuya stares, mortified, as the boy swiftly swings it and smacks it across Chuuya’s face, sunflower seeds flying everywhere.
They stand there, staring at each other with wide eyes when suddenly they burst into laughter.
“Really? A sunflower? I can’t believe you!” Chuuya snorts.
“You deserved it,” the boy chuckles. Then he reaches out his hand and Chuuya takes it. Thanking him for his help off the ground, Chuuya asks “What’s your name?”
The boy momentarily freezes before he nervously laughs.
“No one really cared to ask my name before,” the boy mumbles out, making it hard for Chuuya to hear clearly.
“What did you say?”
He looks up and shyly smiles at Chuuya. “Dazai. My name is Dazai Osamu.”
Chuuya ponders for a second. ‘Where have I heard that name before?’
Chuuya shakes the thought off and smiles, “Mines Nakahara! But you can call me by my first name, Chuuya!” He beams at Dazai. Chuuys extends his hand out to Dazai for a handshake. But before Dazai could take it, someone pulls away Dazai’s hand harshly.
“You dare lay a hand on my son?” It was Chuuya’s father. He pulls Dazai's hand high above Dazai’s head. The sun king looks at Dazai with disgust as Dazai tries to pull away. Dazai, with fear in his eyes, realizes how bad it looked for him.
Dazai didn’t know Chuuya was the sun king’s son, let alone the one that was presented to Olympus earlier. Dazai looks at Chuuya in distress.
“F-Father, he wasn’t hurting me! He’s my friend-”
“You have no friends son! Especially a friend that is an abomination to us gods!” his father shouted. Dazai lets out a cry. Chuuya looks at him and could see tears threatening to fall out.
“M-Mother says you are all wrong! I’m not! I’m the same as you-”
Slap!
Chuuya's blood runs cold. He has never seen his father lose his temper. His whole life, he’s seen his father calm, collected, even at times, tenderness. Although he has a hostile tone in his voice, his actions were the opposite. Yet, in front of him, was a completely different man. A man whose eyes were red, filled with wrath, hatred, and disgust towards a child. A child who is the same age as Chuuya. A child who is now cradling his cheek in pain from the slap the man, his father, had done just before his very eyes.
He couldn’t grasp that the man before him was his father. His father hit an innocent child.
“That woman who calls herself the moon goddess? Don’t make me laugh. You’re not the same as us with mortal blood running in your veins.”
Chuuya lets out a gasp. Mortal blood? With eyebrows furrowing, he takes another step back as Dazai looks at him again with wide eyes.
Chuuya has heard it plenty of times. The demi-god prince living in the moon realm. A child, born with the blood of a mortal, being the firstborn of the moon goddess. Meaning that child will be the heir to the throne of the moon realm. Hearing the rumors, Chuuya, of course, didn’t believe it.
“Who would even be near that child”
“That child should’ve been dead the day it was born. For the sake of the moon realm!”
“She is too young to be burdened by that abomination.”
“Why would she ever think of falling in love with a mortal? Let alone have a child?!”
“Get rid of the child, I say! She can always have another one but with a god this time.”
Listening to the maids gossiping, Chuuya had come to a conclusion. He wouldn’t dare judge someone he hadn’t met. But he quickly changed his mind when he heard what his father had said.
“That child is nothing but a disgrace to us gods. Anyone who accepts him must have gone mad.”
Not wanting to disappoint his father and his expectations, he decided to hate that child. To hate the demi-god who dared walk among them.
But never had he expected Dazai to be that demi-god he was supposed to despise.
The demi-god who had become his very first friend.
“C-Chuuya, please help m-me!” Dazai cried out to him.
“No!” Chuuya shouts. Mortified he said his thoughts out loud, he quickly covered his mouth. He didn’t mean to say it. Dazai’s expression makes Chuuya’s stomach turn.
“See child? Once everyone knows what you are, no one wants to be around you.” The sun god says as he harshly pulls on Dazai’s hand while walking away from Chuuya.
‘L-Let go!” Dazai protests as he kicks the sun king in the knee. Furious that the child kicked him, he looks into Dazai’s eyes while grabbing his neck. His hands were big enough to wrap around his whole neck.
“You should have never been born.”
“Ack-....y-you’re just… afraid I’ll be a better….ruler than you ever c-could” Dazai manages to say while gasping for air.
Hearing this, his hands burned with fire, causing Dazai to scream out in pain. He lets go of Dazai, letting him fall to the ground.
The sun god was burning with rage. How dare the child of a mere mortal lay his hands on his son? How dare he hit the king of one of the most influential realms of the gods? How dare he question how fitting he is for the title of a king?
Long ago, he told the moon goddess she will pay for going against him. Now she will.
Her disgraceful son is the price.
The sun god stretched his hand high up in the air, palm facing towards the sky, when suddenly in the quick of light, a katana appeared on his hand. Yet it wasn’t a normal katana. The sword’s blade wasn’t metal. It was a glowing yellow, making it look like a sunray. A sword made entirely of sunlight. It was bright. So bright, it could blind anyone.
Grabbing it, he swings the blade across Dazai’s face. It was quick, quick as the light that Dazai was incapable of moving out of the way.
Boom!
A firework.
One second, Dazai was looking into the king’s eyes, the next? Red. Then a bright white. So bright, it burned his eyes to the core. Shrieking in pain, he clutches his eyes as he falls face-first to the ground. Then a sudden pain in his stomach. He’d been kicked and is now coughing out blood.
The sun god watches as the boy cries out in pain on the muddy ground.
“You will never be the god you wished to be. Know your place.”
Boom!
More fireworks.
Chuuya was on his knees. Eyes wide open, staring at his father’s back. He slowly looks down at Dazai who was rolling in pain. His face was dripping with crimson red of his blood.
Gods are immortal. They aren't supposed to bleed that thick crimson red mortals call blood.
But Dazai isn't fully a god.
Chuuya’s ears start to ring. The only thing he hears is Dazai’s shrieks of pain.
“IT BURNS! IT BURNS! STOP, IT BURNS! MY EYES ARE ON FIRE!!”
Chuuya slowly brings his hands to cover his ears. “I don’t want to hear it. No. I don’t want to hear him anymore.” Chuuya mumbles.
“DAZAI!”
Chuuya feels someone run past him and towards Dazai. Suddenly, someone pulls Chuuya into a hug.
“Shh, it’s okay Chuuya, you’re safe now.” Chuuya’s eyes start to water at the sound of his mother’s voice. He shuts his eyes tightly. Listening only to his mother’s voice, he starts to sob.
Boom!
Fireworks now filled the sky.
“DAZAI! DAZAI!” the moon goddess cried as she held her son in her arms.
“IT BURNS, IT BURNS MOTHER!!” Dazai continues to scream out in pain.
The moon goddess looked up towards the sun king, who was hovering over them. His eyes were filled with emptiness. No remorse. No regret. Nothing. They were empty. She opens her mouth and yells,
“HOW COULD YOU? HE’S JUST A CHILD!” Angry tears were now streaming down her face. “YOU MONSTER!”
Chuuya couldn’t bear to hear it anymore. Opening his eyes and turning back to face them, he sees the woman from earlier. The one with white hair and scars. Chuuya starts to feel lightheaded.
‘I guessed right. She is an empress. The moon realm’s empress ....’
His vision starts to blur for a few seconds before darkness starts to consume him. The last thing he saw before passing out was the fireworks lighting up the sky with different colors.