Chapter Text
Aira knew it was a bad idea. Really, he did.
Well, he knew it was a bad idea now.
Earlier, it seemed like a pretty good decision. It’s not like his parents had stopped him either. He’d left, flinging the front door open on his way out, not looking back at his parent’s faces, hadn’t even bothered to put on a jacket or shoes - that was really coming back to bite him now.
The cold wasn’t easily dissuaded by his cotton shirt and shorts either. It pricked his skin. His cheeks were flushed, and his tongue was relentlessly dry. A coat really would have been nice, but Aira wouldn’t wish for one. No. If he had a wish, or magic, he’d wish for daylight to come.
He didn’t know when the sun had set, didn’t know when the light stopped filtering through the trees, didn’t know when the familiar forest of green twisted into brambles, thorns, and roots threatening to trip him at every step. One thing he did know was that he had made a grave mistake.
He flicked his eyes from direction to direction, fruitlessly scanning his surroundings. He hadn’t been walking very fast, and yet, his breathing was shaky, his stomach turned, and his heart pounded against his chest, rattling his ribcage.
Tapping his fingers against his legs, he forced himself forward. He thinks it’s the direction he came from. He has no clue. The dark was not his strong suit, it muddled his senses, it reminded him of the guardians. He shuddered.
Another step.
He could do it. All he had to do to be safe was make it back. That’s it.
It’s not difficult, he’d done it before. The forest surrounds their village. It was intended to keep it safe from outsiders. But it had other uses to the kids in the village - a playground mainly. Aira was not excluded from that group. Him and his friends would run through it, dashing under branches, climbing up trees, messing around in the river. It didn’t matter what they did, because he’d always make it back in time for tea, or at least before it got dark.
A rustle of leaves drew his attention. He continued walking, eyes locked in the sound’s direction. That was also not a good idea - really, he wasn’t having any good ideas lately, not that he normally had many. He hurtled to the ground, hissing as something cut into his hands and knees.
A twig snapped.
That wasn’t him.
He hadn’t moved yet.
Rushing to his feet, he ran.
Really, he hated the dark.
Stares zeroed in on him despite him being alone. The eyes bored into his body even though he can’t see, so how can they?
He winced as he ran.
Heat rushed through his body, though he still felt unbearably cold. Sweat matted his hair to his forehead, and his shirt to his back. He panted, but he knew he couldn’t stop.
If he stopped… if he stopped, maybe the eyes would grow a body, and hands, and they’d grab at him, pull at his clothes, his hair, prod at his skin.
His feet were bloody, but he continued.
Adrenaline pumped through his veins. He pushed low-hanging branches away from his head.
The roots tripped him up more; he couldn’t care less now. His hands and knees were a mottled red mess, if he could make it home, he could sort it out somehow.
Just had to make it home.
That’s all.
The thought spun through his head, ringing out in his ears, urging him, pushing him to go faster, and faster, faster still, and faster until… until he came crashing down, falling flat on his face.
He spat the dirt out of his mouth, brought himself to his knees.
Tears joined the mess of mud on his face, blood came along too as he used his hands to wipe his tears.
Really, what was he doing?
The forest hadn’t seemed to become thinner, he still couldn’t make out the familiar houses of the village. If anything, he had just gone deeper into the forest and come daytime, he still wouldn’t be able to find his way out.
He rolled against a tree, the traitorous root of which had just tripped him up.
The heat had left his body, leaving him to battle with the cold once more. He brought his knees to his chest. His head knocked against the tree, and his eyes fluttered open and closed. Maybe he’d just have to figure out how to get back tomorrow.
If he lived to see it.
That thought shot him awake and he stared into the darkness again.
Then again, surely a little sleep couldn’t hurt. If he slept he’d wake up and it would be light again, he could find his way out. It’s not like he could deal with a threat in his state anyway, right?
It’s not like he really had a choice.
His body forcibly shut his eyes, his weight leant against the tree, legs going lax, mind finally silent, he slept.
If only he had a good night’s rest yesterday, perhaps he could’ve stayed awake, could’ve stayed safe.
~~~
Hiiro had always been able to see it.
It was a gift, passed down in his bloodline. His brother could see them too.
The red strings connecting people, weaved together, webs of relationships. Hiiro thought it was amazing. The idea that souls could be intertwined forever in all sorts of ways, whether that be the romance between two people, or the hatred and rivalry between another pair.
He only realised when he got older that his own string, and his brother’s too, faded out into obscurity. Was his soulmate so far that he couldn’t see the thread connecting them?
Perhaps it was a good thing. What if he hated his soulmate? Or they hated him? Hiiro had always thought, even if soulmates didn’t have to be romantic, surely his own would be. Surely, fate knew him well enough to tie him with a person he’d be happy to love.
It hadn’t been long since his brother ran from the kingdom. Hiiro had been sent after him, not that he knew why. Hiiro firmly believed that he would return, firmly believed that he was looking for his soulmate, after all, isn’t it right for a king to have a queen? He firmly believed he would return once he found them. Nevertheless, it wasn’t up to Hiiro whether he went or not, it was under orders of his father, the current king, that he go.
And so he went, chasing after his brother, with nothing but a cape and some supplies to keep him company.
Currently, he finds himself in a dark forest.
Being a wolf and a divine one at that, had its perks. The dark wasn’t limiting his vision in any way and so he was perfectly in place to notice his string was no longer faded. The red was bright, compelling him.
He pinched himself, making sure it wasn’t another dream.
When he knew it wasn’t, he considered his options: he could continue his search for Rinne and hope that fate would bring him and his soulmate back together again; or he could follow the string (much easier than tracking) and meet his soulmate here. He weighed them up. On the one hand, looking for Rinne was much more important to the king, but Hiiro felt in his heart that Rinne would come back eventually. Not to mention, if he did go after his brother, how long would it be till he had a chance like this again? He didn’t know.
He stared down at the string, redder than ever, it was like he could touch it. He reached out his hand and immediately pulled it back when he felt the silk thread against his fingers. Well, he was not expecting that. Experimenting, he pulled it closer to him as if that would bring his soulmate to his side.
There was a hiss, a couple of metres from him.
A snake?
He walked towards the noise, breaking a branch as he went.
He saw the other clearly, the red jumping from his pale dirt-covered hands. He jumped quickly to his feet and immediately ran away. Huh, well, perhaps he should’ve said something, not that he was really given the chance.
It didn’t seem like his soulmate was a fast runner, or perhaps Hiiro’s eyes were simply better than others, he could see the retreating back of the blond without much difficulty. He walked along, giving enough distance where perhaps the other would slow down and he could say something without frightening him even more. Maybe not a good move, but really he thought it was the only one he had now. What if he’s able to run far enough that Hiiro’s string disappears again, and Hiiro could never find him again?
Perhaps fate had decided one meeting between them was enough, Hiiro had some controversy with that.
He’d stopped running now, well, not really by choice, but it was good enough for Hiiro.
As he was about to say something, an apology perhaps, he heard silent cries, faint. If Hiiro’s attention wasn’t honed on him, he wouldn’t have heard it.
His body knocked against the tree behind him, his heart rate began to slow and Hiiro saw his eyes close. Once he was sure the other wouldn’t wake ,Hiiro moved closer. He kneeled in front of the sleeping boy and stared down at his hand again, then back at the other. He picked it up from where it rested, small and softer than his own. And, sure enough, the red thread connected the two of them.
While Hiiro was overjoyed to find his soulmate, he didn’t know what he was. His soulmate isn't a beast hybrid, no ears, no tail. He tucked blonde hair behind his ears, not an elf either. Patted the top of his head, perhaps he was a demon with small horns, nope to that too. He furrowed his eyebrows, trying to think of other species he could possibly be. Perhaps he was an elemental mage? Certainly not light, he wasn’t glowing in any way - not even faintly like the weakest of them. Couldn’t be darkness, didn’t seem like he was manipulating his surroundings even though he was in an opportune place to do so. Even if he was an elemental, whether that be light, dark, water, fire, whatever, Hiiro, a divine beast, couldn’t feel any magic coming from him anywhere. Maybe a vampire? How would he check that now? He wiped his hands on his cloak, and, tentatively, pushed open the other’s mouth a little. He sighed, thankfully it seemed his soulmate wasn’t a light sleeper. Despite the occasional mumbles and wriggles, he didn’t seem to be awake.
Anyway, he had no fangs so that rules out that idea. Hiiro removed his finger and stared.
What on earth was this… this thing?
It couldn’t be… couldn’t possibly be a beast more powerful than him? So much more that he could hide his entire existence from Hiiro and the rest of the world.
He shook his head. Then why would he not run properly?
Why would he not escape?
Hiiro could not figure this out. No known species was fitting the brief. Did he discover something new?
He stared at the creature in front of him.
Really, he had no ideas.
Well, he had never been one to dwell too much on things, even less so if they didn’t concern his brother. It’s not like it mattered too much anyway. This was his soulmate, whether he liked it or not.
Right now, he was swaying in the direction of liking it.
He didn’t know if it was because they were destined to be, but, truly, Hiiro had never seen anything as pretty as his soulmate. He’d heard of sirens, nymphs, and elves, heard and seen how bewitching they were, how captivated one could become simply by looking at them. Now they all seemed relatively plain, mediocre at best. His soulmate was more perfect than a doll, the dirt and blood on his face doing nothing to hide it. Nonetheless, Hiiro brushed the dirt away with his fingers, taking care not to hurt him with his coarse hands. His eyelashes, fair and long, rested effortlessly, and Hiiro could only imagine what his eyes looked like.
Hiiro had been staring for a while before he realised, or rather, remembered that his soulmate had fallen over, several times.
He glanced at the scrapes on his knees, lifted his hands to look at the cuts there. Well, Hiiro was certainly grateful to have packed first aid supplies now. Slowly, he cleaned each cut and wrapped them in bandages. While he was treating him, Hiiro noticed how cold he was, which made sense since he was wearing nothing but a thin shirt and shorts. He took his cloak off and draped it over him.
Once he was done, Hiiro leant against a tree and attempted to make a decision: should he follow his brother, stay with his soulmate, or take his soulmate with him?
The best turn of events would be for both him and his soulmate to go looking for his brother. Perhaps his brother would also have met his soulmate, then they could all return to the kingdom together. That would be wonderful.
~~~
Aira won’t lie, he had not expected to wake to a person with wolf ears. He also hadn’t expected the tail. Despite being met with what he guesses is a wolf hybrid (he’d heard about them in whispered rumours), the most disconcerting thing was being met with blue eyes staring right into him.
Nobody spoke.
Aira, noticing both the cloak and his treated wounds, decided that this wolf, probably, wasn’t as scary as the horror stories told around campfires would suggest.
He spoke as he returned the cloak.
“Here. Thank you for helping me.” Should he ask his name? It’s only polite right? “I’m Shiratori Aira, what’s your name?”
Instead of answering him, the wolf took to repeating Aira’s name over and over again. Not even his last name, which certainly wouldn’t have been ideal, but he kept repeating Aira, over and over again, as if he was getting a feel for it. Now, Aira wasn’t one to be rude, well, not on a first meeting, and maybe not on purpose, but seriously what was this?
“Hey, could you stop that? You haven’t even told me your name and yet you’re using my first name. Just because you helped me doesn’t mean we’re friends.”
“No? But Aira and I are soulmates.”
Aira’s eyes widened, and he sputtered incoherent nonsense as he tried to take that in to no avail.
“What?!”
“Umu, AIra and I are soulmates.” He nodded as if anything got any clearer.
“Whatever, stop using my first name. We’re not friends, and we’re not soulmates or whatever. You still haven’t introduced yourself, you know?” Aira stood and took in his surroundings,
“I’m Amagi Hiiro. Nice to meet you Aira.” He smiled, baring sharp canines.
“Again with the first name?”
“Then Aira should call me Hiiro, we’ll be friends then.”
“That’s not really how the whole ‘friends’ thing works, but sure Hiro.” He looked confused.
“Not Hiro, Hiiro.”
“That’s what I said? Hiro?”
“Hiiro.”
“Hiro?”
“Hiiro.”
“Hiro?” Another shake of the head. “Look, let’s just say it's a nickname, we’re friends anyway I guess. So I’ll just call you Hiro-kun. Fine?”
Hiiro nodded.
“Anyway, it was nice meeting you Hiro-kun, but I’m going home now.” He had a better idea of his surroundings now that it was daylight, all he had to do now was get back before it got dark and he had no idea when that would be, so he’d rather not waste too much more time chatting with some wolf he met in the forest.
Just as he was about to begin his walk, Hiiro stood up and grabbed him by the shoulders. Aira hadn’t even blinked.
“Wait. Does Aira want to come with me?”
“What? No. We literally just met.”
He shook Hiiro off and started walking. Hiiro followed next to him. Aira didn’t say anything about it, he’d try and get rid of him when they were closer to the village - he doubted the other people in the village would be alright with a hybrid. The only other species Aira knew they were friendly with were the guardians, not that Aira knew for sure what species they were. Perhaps they were wolves? Aira doubted it, the guardians only ever came to the village to take their payment, they only came at night when the entire village was indoors and meant to be asleep. Aira thinks they’re vampires, but no one believes him.
“Aira.”
He hummed.
“What are you?”
He stopped in his tracks. Hiiro turned back to look at him.
“What?”
“What species is Aira? Are you a different sort of vampire without fangs, and that can go out in sunlight without suffering? Perhaps Aira is some sort of nymph, or elf?”
“I am none of those things. I’m a human. Haven’t you seen one before?” Aira had heard of most species at this point, all of them from stories told to scare children into misbehaving. Or stories his friends told to scare him.
“A human? But they don’t exist anymore.”
Or he heard about them when the mayor explained why they should thank the guardians and not fear them. Oh yeah. Aira took a couple of steps backwards.
“Hiro-kun, why were you in the forest?”
“I am on a mission. My nii-san ran away from our kingdom, and so I must bring him back. Oh, yes, Aira, would you like to come with me to find him? Or perhaps I should come back once I’ve found him and take you back to our kingdom.” He rested his chin in his hands, thinking out loud.
“So you weren’t there for our village?”
Hiiro shook his head.
“You weren’t there to…to…”Aira trailed off, deciding it best not to ask a wolf whether or not he’d be eaten, killed or taken away. If that was his intent, Hiiro probably would’ve done them before he woke up, or once he learned Aira was human.
“To what, Aira?”
“Nothing.”
Aira continued to lead the way back to the village, with tentative belief that Hiiro wasn’t there to destroy his home.
“Aira, are you going to come with me?”
“Why would I do that Hiro-kun? We just met.”
“We’re soulmates so one way or another, we will meet again. Even so, I would much rather take Aira with me.”
“Like I said, we’re not soulmates. Besides, I don’t even know you, why would I follow you?”
“I thought we were friends now? Aira even gave me a nickname?” For a wolf, his eyes sure were owlish as they blinked at him.
“Are we not friends Aira?”
“We are Hiro-kun,” he sighed.
“Then will Aira come with me?”
“We might be friends Hiro-kun, but I don’t know you well enough to follow you around while you look for your brother.”
“Then, if we know each other better, Aira might come?”
“Maybe,” Aira really wasn’t paying attention to what he was saying. He needs to unlearn that habit; it was making him end up in way too many uncomfortable situations.
“Then I will stay for a week!”
“What?” Aira turned to face him. Hiiro had a huge smile on his face, as if he had thought of an award-winning idea.
“I will stay and meet with Aira for a week, and then Aira can tell me if he will join me on my quest to find my brother. I think it is a good idea. Is a week enough? I can’t stay for much longer, the court elders may become angry with me.”
“If it’s going to make people angry, just continue with your ’quest’ on your own.”
“But I have a chance of having Aira come with me if I stay for a week. Since we are soulmates, we are destined to be together. I have wanted to meet Aira for a very long time, so I’d like to spend time with you.”
Well, how was he supposed to react to that? His cheeks flushed, and he began to walk faster - seriously, how far into the forest did he go? Were they not back yet?
“Do whatever you want.”
Hiiro cheered a little in the background.
Aira hastened his pace, wishing he could just teleport home. That would save him time, and would have prevented all of this from happening in the first place. That might’ve been nice. Aira could have slept in his warm bed, his legs wouldn’t be killing him, and he could’ve eaten breakfast in the morning. However, now he was here trying to deal with whatever Hiiro was on about, soulmates and whatever, on an empty stomach. Truly, a tragedy.
But wait!
He ran the last few steps, recognising the sounds and scenery.
At last, his tragedy was over.
“Hiro-kun should go now. I don’t think there’s room for you to stay. Go on your quest without me.”
“So this is where Aira lives.” He’s being ignored.
“Hiro-kun, you have to go.”
“Why?”
Aira rubbed his temples together.
“Well, my village doesn’t take too kindly to strangers.”
“But I’m Aira’s friend, not a stranger.”
“You’re not the whole village’s friend - you’re a stranger so you have to go. Okay? Just go.”
“Then I suppose I can stay in the forest, I will see Aira later.”
He looked a little dejected, Aira thought he imagined his ears and tail drooping a little, as he walked back into the forest.
Well, it seems Aira’s solved that problem, all he has to do is avoid Hiiro for a week. And even if he can’t do that, he can just tell him no by the end of day 7.
~~~ Day 1~~~
By the time evening came, Aira had almost forgotten about the promise.
He definitely would have come morning. Thankfully for him, Hiiro was a very reliable alarm or something of the sort. Just as he was about to get into bed, Hiiro knocked on his window.
It was rather loud and Aira wasn’t planning on getting into another scuffle with his parents so he quickly opened it and shushed him.
“Hiro-kun, what are you doing here? How do you even know I live here? I only told you about the village, not my house.”
Before answering, Hiiro clambered through his window and fell to the floor.
“I followed our thread.”
“What thread?”
“Aira and I are connected with a red thread. Aira can’t see it, but it’s how I know we are soulmates.” He grabbed Aira’s right hand and pulled at the air underneath it. “Here, here is our thread. Do you want to try pulling it Aira?”
He sighed but moved to pull at some imaginary string, hoping it would get Hiiro to move on from this topic. Seriously, all this soulmate stuff would get to his head if Hiiro kept talking about it.
“So it does move when Aira touches it. That’s good. That means Aira can call me if he needs to. I’ll try and come quickly. I’m very fast.”
“Sure, thanks Hiro-kun. I won’t use it though. Nothing could hurt me here.”
“Aira might get lost in the forest again.”
He ignored the possibility. If he was in the forest, alone and late at night, again, he should just accept it as fate at that point.
“Hiro-kun didn’t tell me what he was doing here.”
“I said I would stay for a week so Aira and I can get to know each other, but that is impossible if I don’t stay with Aira, so here I am.” He smiled.
“Aira, who are you talking to?” Shit, he forgot he had parents…parents that were just about okay with him right now, especially after the stunt he pulled..
“No one! Myself, yeah, just myself. No one else. Who would be here at this time?”
Just as Hiiro was about to speak, Aira covered his mouth. Once again he was met with owlish eyes asking him why?
“You should go. I’m not trying to upset my parents again, okay. I’ll see you tomorrow, outside.”
He pushed him to the window, and Hiiro, thankfully, left.
Shit, did he say he’d meet him outside?
What, in the forest?
If it was daylight that’s fine, but Aira doesn’t even know where he’s staying, not to mention if it was in daylight, someone would surely spot him going in alone and ask him why? Then what was he supposed to say? Oh yeah, don’t worry about it, just going to chill on a rock or something, definitely not with a wolf hybrid, the thing parents tell naughty kids to be afraid of.
He rested his head in his hands as he slumped against his bed.
Honestly, if someone saw him, he could probably give some sort of excuse, although he wasn’t the best lair. It should work for one day and hopefully the rest of the village would just remember this is as the time Aira was just a little weird for a week. And who hasn’t a week where they aren’t a little weird? Perhaps they would think nothing of it, Aira would probably be classed as a little strange every week, so maybe it would be just a normal occurrence.
He crawled into his bed. Staring at the ceiling, he decided to deal with it in the morning. He’d go see Hiiro, he’d probably come and find him if Aira didn’t go to him. That would cause more problems than Aira could be bothered to solve.
~~~ Day 2~~~
And it was because of those reasons, that Aira finds himself wandering through the forest, thankful that no one noticed or cared he was going in.
When he thought he was far enough away from the village, he called out for Hiiro. He didn’t shout very loudly, reason being he didn’t want to attract anyone else’s attention and, well, those wolf ears on Hiiro’s head surely had to be useful for something. They were.
“Aira, you really came to see me!”
“I said I would. Do you think I’m a liar?” He shook his head.
“What does Aira want to do today?”
Aira shrugged his shoulders. Hiiro looked deep in thought.
“How about Aira shows me around his village? I could learn a lot about Aira that way.”
“Absolutely not.”
He was answered with a head tilt.
“Do you not remember? I told you you’re a stranger and I’m not bringing a stranger into the village, especially one that’s not human.”
“Does Aira not like me because I’m not human?”
“I don’t not like you.” Aira sat, leaning against a tree, hoping that it would deter Hiiro from wanting to go closer to the village.
Hiiro hummed, as he sat next to him.
“But the people in the village won’t like me? I understand. Some of the people back home don’t like strangers either. Nii-san wants to open the borders, and welcome foreigners, but the elders don’t like that.”
“What do you think?”
“I’ll support whatever decision Nii-san makes, but he isn’t king yet, so I can’t do anything to help him, except bring him back to fulfil his duty.”
“If the elders don’t like your brother’s idea, why not just choose a new king? Your brother’s gone anyway and it’s not like he wants to come back.”
Hiiro shook his head.
“Nii-san has to be king. There is no other way.”
A lull in the conversation, Aira fiddled with his hair as Hiiro stared into the distance.
“Then you really should find him.”
“Mhm.”
Hiiro wasn’t saying anything anymore, and Aira didn’t know what to do. His eyes were vacant and unblinking, but somehow he looked as if he was aware of everything going on around him, like even if Aira made the smallest movement, Hiiro would pick up on it. He shuffled, drawing Hiiro’s gaze to him, yet he still didn’t say anything. Aira really couldn’t show Hiiro around the village, it was simply not possible. He has no doubt in his mind that if the mayor was to find out, he would notify the guardians immediately and Hiiro would be detained as soon as possible, and then after that? Aira doesn’t know. It’s never happened before.
Well, all he had to do was make sure the mayor never finds out.
He shook his head, aware of the eyes fixated on him. Why on earth was he doing so much for someone he met a couple of days ago? He owes nothing more to Hiiro. He just has to keep him hidden for a week and then that’s it, they will never see each other again.
Aira could bring him at night.
No, that would be breaking curfew. He’d have to hide both himself and Hiiro from the night guards. And while that would certainly be easier than hiding just Hiiro from an entire village during the day, it’s still not a good idea. He stared up at the eyes burning into him.
Why not do something a little outrageous?
“Hiro-kun, I’ll show you around my village tomorrow night.” He stood up, “Meet me at the edge of the forest when it’s dark, stay hidden until I get there though. Okay?”
Once he received a nod, he bid Hiiro goodbye and went on his way back home.
~~~ Day 3~~~
He stared at his open window. Was he really about to sneak out? In the dark? And also try to evade security measures put in place to protect him?
He really was in a rebellious teenage phase, that’s all it could be chalked up to, all it should be chalked up to.
Aira pulled himself out of the window, tumbled to the floor and was thankful that his home was made up of one story, it saved his legs from breaking by hitting the ground too hard with his ungraceful landing. He ran to the back of his house, grateful for the slivers of light sneaking past closed curtains as he made his way to the edge of the forest. No way he was going back in there, not at this time of day.
“Aira!”
Immediately, he shushed the boy.
“Why are you sneaking around Aira? Don’t you live here?” It had no effect.
“Who’s there?”
He covered Hiiro’s mouth with his hand, and dragged them both into some nearby bushes.
“Hold still,” he whispered, “and don't say anything.”
He didn’t remove his hand until Hiiro nodded.
They sat in silence for a while.
Hiiro was rather confused by a lot of Aira’s village, he simply shrugged off his questions. All places are different, and there’s a reason for that, Aira will tell him in time. While he was slightly disappointed that he wasn’t getting to see Aira’s village, he will admit, he is grateful for the opportunity to see Aira up close again. Aira truly was like nothing he’d ever seen before, and not just because of his humanness. Aira had his head down, huddled to his knees, his breath shaky, as his fingers tapped some unknown rhythm on his legs.
Aira, meanwhile, was lost in his thoughts. He really shouldn’t have done this. Sneaking out was truly a bad idea, especially if he was in town. It’s impossible. Truly. What was he thinking? He really should think through his actions more. They were almost caught. If they were, Aira dreaded thinking about what would happen but his brain was already in a whirlwind. If they were caught, Aira would be sent out of the village. He’d have to fend for himself and he doubted every other species was as indifferent to him being human as Hiiro. There’s a reason Aira’s village is so secluded, why he and every other human there, owes so much to their guardians.
There was a tap against his leg. He looked up to see Hiiro.
Hiiro. If they were caught, Hiiro would probably be killed. Aira doesn’t want that.
“I think they’re gone,” he hesitantly whispered. “Aira?”
Aira stared up at him. His fingers hadn’t stopped tapping. Perhaps, they shouldn’t be doing this. Perhaps, Hiiro had gone against fate, and now he and Aira were destined for tragedy. He shook his head.
“Aira? Do you want to go home?” He gently pulled Aira’s hands from his legs, holding them in his own, it seemed to get Aira’s attention.
“I said I would show you around.”
“You don’t have to.”
“Hiro-kun won’t be mad?” Hiiro shook his head. He guided them out of the bush, and kept his attention divided between Aira, and the humans Aira seemed to be avoiding. Aira was on high alert. His eyes flicked from area to area, every sound drew his attention. His grip on Hiiro’s hand tightened. Hiiro sped up the pace, and despite wanting to spend time with Aira, he was relieved that the distance to Aira’s house wasn’t very far.
Aira’s window was open, just a little, enough to open from the outside, but not enough to notice it was open unless you were looking closely. With his free hand, Hiiro pushed it open, and guided Aira to the window. Reluctantly, he let go of Aira’s hand.
Aira nodded in thanks, as he turned to pull himself back into the safety of his room.
“Aira doesn’t need to come see me again.” He turned to face Hiiro, confused. “I won’t leave yet. If Aira needs me, he can call me with this.”
Aira sighed, a small smile forming as Hiiro gestured to that string he was always talking about. Hiiro stared at him expectantly. Aira nodded and he smiled, before turning and leaving quickly.
Gently, Aira closed his windows, silently thankful for Hiiro’s presence.
~~~Day 4~~~
Despite his gratefulness, Aira hadn’t intended on calling Hiiro again. What could he possibly need Hiiro for? He was safe here, in their village, guarded.
Nothing could hurt him here, nothing was supposed to find them here. And yet Hiiro had. Except that was a mistake, that was Aira’s fault. He was outside, at night no less, after curfew. It was a wonder the night guards hadn’t caught him, perhaps they had gotten lax. And then the next day, they were scolded for letting someone escape into the forests. Aira had figured that was what had happened, especially since there was really only one reason the night guards ever truly needed to be on guard, and that was when their guardians came.
And, well, they were coming, and soon at that too.
Tomorrow in fact.
Now, Aira knew eavesdropping was bad.
He was raised well enough to know that. It’s just difficult to ignore a conversation when your name is brought up repeatedly.
Aira hadn’t intended to eavesdrop either. He wanted to get a snack from the kitchen, and just so happened to see the mayor and his parents sitting at the dining table amidst conversation. Now, he wasn’t afraid of the mayor… okay, he was a little afraid… more than a little, but that’s not the only reason he didn’t go in.
Okay, yeah, that’s the only reason.
“Have they truly requested Aira? What an honour!” His mother.
“We are truly grateful for the opportunity.” His father nodded. “I’m sure Aira will be delighted when he hears of this. He talks about the guardians quite a bit.”
Aira’s eyes widened as the realisation hit him.
It happens seemingly randomly, the guardians choose someone to be sent to them - a payment. And now, now it was Aira’s turn.
He hadn’t expected to be chosen, hadn’t even expected they would need to send someone again, not in his lifetime. The first time it happened his parent’s behaved as if it was a once in a blue moon honour, like it would happen once in their lifetimes and they’d never live to see another one. Aira assumed the next time he had to witness someone leaving their village would be when he was older, with grey hair, sitting in a rocking chair or something.
“They will come for him tonight, please make sure your son is prepared, he should bring a few belongings.” The mayor.
“Of course, I will do my utmost best to make sure Aira is perfect for our guardians,” his mother and father were annoyingly excited about sending their only child away.
Perhaps they had truly never gotten over their argument that week, or perhaps Aira really was that much of a headache to deal with. Whatever it was, he wouldn’t be here long enough to find out anyway.
He was about to be sent away.
Now, there were many ideas tossed about among the village kids, and even some adults, about what happened when people were sent away. Some thought they were given a lavish life but that never made any sense to Aira - why take someone from the village as payment and then proceed to give the payment gifts? Others suggested the people became workers doing all sorts to repay the guardians for their kind service of protecting them. Aira hated that idea. The teenagers would scare the little kids by saying the payments were killed as soon as they left the village to be eaten. Considering all the other things Aira had heard about non-human species, he wouldn’t be surprised if that was the case.
He slumped down in the corridor, thoughts spiralling, fingers tapping away on his legs.
Aira didn’t believe he would be killed. He more-so believed the idea that he’d be put to work. But, thinking about it further, that doesn’t make sense either. The last time someone was taken, Aira was 5 and the person they took was a kid not much older than him. Was a guardians’ lifespan so different to that of a human, that a child was able to be put to work and not much thought was given to it? Aira shook his head, no that doesn’t make sense.
Then, does that mean they really did want him solely to kill him?
Aira bit his lip.
The chairs in the kitchen creaked.
Aira’s parents were moving, probably to tell him the ‘good’ news.
Aira shot up from the ground and threw himself on his bed, trying his best to act like he had no thoughts, head empty. He stared out the window, would he see Hiiro again?
There was a knock at the door.
“Come in.”
His parents sat on his bedside.
“Aira! We have news.” His mother clapped her hands. “The guardians have chosen you!”
“You should pack a few belongings. We’ll be heading to the town hall later, before it gets dark. Aira? Are you alright?”
He turned to face his parents, a smile etched onto his face.
“Yes! I’ll pack right away!”
His parents nodded and left him.
As if he was about to pack. He was going to be sent to his doom. He stared at his hand.
Call me if you need me.
Well, Aira supposes his sneaking out hadn’t stopped yet, only difference was now he was about to sneak out in plain delight.
He slipped on some shoes, and brought a jacket this time. Also, no, he was not wearing shorts, but some longer pants that would hopefully protect his knees from knocking together in the cold.
He pushed the window open, before looking out of it.
No one seemed to be around his house.
Now, the shortest path to the forest was around the front of his house and round the back of the village but he wasn’t about to risk his parents spotting him out of the front windows.
Long way it is then - not that it’s really much longer.
He gently lifted himself out of his room and to the ground.
Sneaking around the back of the house, Aira desperately tried to remain looking normal as he made his way to the forest, no one would know he was the payment until tomorrow - tradition was both helping him and fucking him over.
Sighing as he entered, Aira decided it would be best if he went a bit further before calling Hiiro. Daylight streamed through the trees and Aira took his chance, while he could still see clearly, to run deeper and deeper into the forest.
He stopped once he was out of breath.
Staring at his right hand, he whispered, “this better work.”
He pulled at the air, and waited.
And waited.
And waited.
The leaves rustled. Aira turned to face them, eyes wide, they couldn’t know, surely they hadn’t found him yet.
“Aira! You called me!”
Aira approached Hiiro, the air around him heavy. Hiiro stared at him, smiling.
“Hiro-kun, will you take me away from here?”