Beginnings II-An important day...
The day began bright and early for Aiba who always rose on the rooster's first crow. Aiba opened his eyes and experimentally stretched long, slender arms over his head as he yawned widely. Deciding that it was still too cold to get up, Aiba turned to his side and tucked both arms back under the blanket. On the bed beside his, Sho slumbered --his closed eyes peeped from under a nest of unruly hair that was covered by a thick woolen blanket pulled all the way up to his chin. Sho's long limbs tried to squeeze themselves under the rectangular cloth which had grown an inch too short and showed the tips of his toes from underneath. A soft grunt and a few incoherent mumbles later, Sho turned and swung a long leg that landed on a big fluffy pillow which his frail, lanky arms snuggled closer. Aiba watched entranced, mentally debating if he should rouse the sleeping boy, or if he should just sit still and watch the steady rise and fall of Sho's chest as he lay peacefully in his sleep. As the morning sun slowly crept up the sky, its amber light was filtered through the stained glass windows and illuminated the small room with the soft glow of multicolored lights, caressing Sho's face and giving him the illusion of a cherub in sleep.
From inside Aiba's bag, the little squirrel stirred, dislodging leaves and fragments of half nibbled nuts and fruits as he climbed out of the bag's pocket. Shimuken groggily groomed himself, running his small paws through his disheveled fur and combing it into a neat, shiny coat before scampering on to Aiba's blanket-covered legs. Shimuken was mildly intrigued by how Aiba didn't seem to notice his presence. As he went closer and looked at Aiba's face, he noticed that Aiba's eyes were transfixed on the face of the boy that lay sleeping on the bed opposite his. With a knowing smirk, (as much as squirrels can smirk...) Shimuken made his way up to Aiba's shoulder and tugged on Aiba's earlobe with one tiny paw.
"Waah!" Aiba exclaimed, the spell suddenly broken
*Squeak*
"Ehh.. oh, good morning, Shimuken. You surprised me!"
"mmff... berries..." Sho stirred, mumbling in his sleep...
"Look what you made me do! I could have woken him up!" Aiba said in an exaggerated whisper.
*Squeak* (you like him, don't you? You've been staring at him for a while...)
"Well, Yes. He's a really nice person and he looks cute, he reminds me of a little hamster with very messy fur... Kind of like you, when you've just woken up" Aiba replied smiling unconsciously, his eyes never leaving Sho.
*Squeak* (are you going to marry him?)
"Marry?! No, what are you talking about?!" Aiba stammered, blushing "I just think he's a very good person!"
Shimuken paused for a while, looking at Aiba's flustered face and then with a knowing squeak, told Aiba that he'd be going back to his small pocket to eat a good breakfast of nuts and berries...
Minutes later, the temple's bell tolled, waking up the little city, signaling the start of a new day, and the time to start the morning prayers for the temple's inhabitants. Sho, as if by clockwork, opened a pair of bleary eyes upon the bell's 5th toll. A hand went up to rub his eyes, while the other was stretched out over his head. The tips of his toes curled as he stretched long legs and arched his back, groaning loudly, while the rest of his limbs settled down once more as his mind slowly caught up with the rest of his body. To Sho's left were a pair of bright and eager eyes staring at him... what was his name? Oh, right Aiba... Sho's fuzzy mind was slowly piecing things together, he's kind of cute...
"Good Morning!" came Aiba's cheerful greeting.
"Good Morning, Aiba" Sho replied amiably as he pushed himself up with his lanky arms and got off the bed, one leg after another.
"Where are we going?" Aiba asked, getting out of his own bed and following Sho who was mechanically maneuvering his way towards the washroom, his brown robe in hand.
"Ohh... um. I guess you don't have to join us if you don't want to, but every morning we start our day with prayers. After that we'll prepare food for breakfast. You can go back to sleep if you want to." Sho said.
"That's perfectly okay." Said Aiba "I've been awake for some time now. I was just waiting for you to get up... What are morning prayers like? Can I join?"
"Well... um. It's a quiet time where each of us prays and thanks the goddess for her blessings. Our head priest leads the prayers and we usually follow his lead"
"Oh. Well, we pray too. So I guess I can join."
"Sure, you can pray your own way if you want."
"Um. Sho...Well make breakfast after prayers, right?"
"Of course."
"Yay! I'll make breakfast too! I'm quite good at cooking!"
"That's great! It's my turn to cook today and I could use a helping hand" Sho smiled, as they both made for the washroom and prepared themselves.
With their morning rituals out of the way, Aiba made his way to the prayer room alongside Sho, who now donned his usual brown caftan. It was Aiba's first time in a temple, and his first time to participate in such a solemn ritual. The prayer room glowed with the soft, yellowish light of the candles, while the heady smell of jasmine-scented incense permeated the air as the head priest recited the sacred words to honor the goddess and give thanks for her blessings. With his head bowed in reverence, like the other monks who knelt beside him, Aiba prayed for the health and the safety of his family, and sent his deepest thanks to the goddess for the blessings he received, and most importantly, for leading him to a person as kind as Sho. A few minutes later, the head priest rang his small bell three times, signaling the end of prayers. Each monk turned to the person beside him and fondly exchanged morning greetings with one another. True to his promise, Aiba went with Sho to the kitchen where Sho laid out the ingredients for the morning's feast.
"Wow. You cook this much everyday? There seems to be a lot, even for the number of monks here" Aiba asked, eyeing all the ingredients laid out before him
"Well, not everyday. We each take turns at cooking... I don't normally need to cook this much, but today's a special day, it's not everyday we have a guest you know." Sho smiled at Aiba, tying the apron strings around his waist.
"You mean, me??" Aiba asked, incredulous "That's too much! I mean, you didn't need to! I'm only---"
"It's okay, we do it every time we have a guest. You are no exception. Besides, you're helping me prepare these." Sho once more smiled reassuringly at Aiba who was busy fumbling about with his own apron strings.
"Well, if you put it that way, then I guess it's okay." Aiba replied a bit uncertainly, as he started peeling some carrots...
The two hours in the kitchen passed by easily, with both boys learning more about each other as they exchanged more stories and misadventures while they busily cooked breakfast. Aiba learned that Sho had been orphaned at a very young age. The monks told him that he had been found inside a basket, on a cold autumn night, wrapped tightly in a white blanket with only a few clothes and a stuffed doll to his name. His blanket, which he still kept beside him when he slept, had his name embroidered in blue and gold threads; his stuffed doll, which resembled a small cat, had been patched and stitched so many times that it was virtually unrecognizable. Sho still kept his small toy inside his closet, buried under his clothes which hid a secret compartment that had his baby clothes and the basket that he had been found in. Sho admitted, that at times, it saddened him to know that he had been left behind, and from time to time, he would still wonder why his parents had chosen to abandon him. Still, he was grateful to the monks who had been kind enough to raise him as though he was their own son.
Aiba also learned, that like him, Sho had an unusual gift. Sho's hands were always pleasantly warm. If Aiba were to describe it, he would probably tell you that Sho's hands were like hot chocolate on a cold winter's night. It was a comforting kind of warmth that healed, in more ways than one. Aiba discovered this the moment he had accidentally cut his finger while slicing the onions that would go into the broth. The knife had been quite sharp, and the cut had been painless, but deep. Aiba panicked as his finger started dripping blood all over the floor and stuttered apologies for his clumsiness as he tried looking for anything that would stop its flow. Sho, however, asked him to calm down and went on to rinse his finger with some clean water. After tearing out a scrap of cloth from his robes, Sho wrapped it around Aiba's finger and held it tightly...
"Aiba.." Sho whispered "Don't be afraid, okay... "
Aiba could only give a puzzled look in return...
Sho closed his eyes, and little by little, Aiba felt the heat seep through the makeshift bandage that Sho wrapped around his finger. After a few minutes the bleeding stopped, and Sho unwrapped the blood-soaked bandage to reveal Aiba's finger, unblemished, as though it had never been cut. Sho stood back and looked at him with uncertain eyes as though he were expecting Aiba to run screaming, or reject their newfound friendship at any moment. Aiba, in the meantime, examined his finger, and gasped in awe: Despite the deep cut, not even the tiniest scratch remained to indicate that there had been a wound at all.
"Wow... You're amazing! Thank you!" Aiba exclaimed, still quite mesmerized with his finger, "I wish I had a useful talent like yours!"
"Oh... um. Thanks, I guess" Sho replied, greatly relieved that Aiba didn't run away, or scream like the others did, the first time he revealed his powers.
"You really are a good person!" Aiba looked up and smiled at Sho, pulling him in once more for a very tight hug, which Sho wholeheartedly returned.
Over breakfast, Aiba also learned that Sho visits the city once a week to help those who need healing and could not afford a doctor or the medication to cure their ills. Sho, it seemed, had rather mixed emotions about his abilities. On the one hand, he was very happy that he could help people in need, but on the other, he felt like he was being used, especially when the people he healed left with hardly a word of thanks or a show of gratitude; there were also those who called him a freak behind his back. Sho, on the other hand, learned that Aiba could be distracted by almost anything, and that he had an uncanny ability to bounce back from almost any disappointment thrown his way. Aiba's ability with animals also made for reliable weather prediction.
****
Aiba and Sho walked together towards the big castle, under the clear blue sky, amongst the vast meadows and fields of flowers. Sho, like Aiba, had also received a summons from the King and was also supposed to be in the castle on the same day. As they approached the gates, the guards requested to see the parchment containing the King's message, which Sho and Aiba readily showed (although Aiba's invitation was horribly rumpled due to the careless way he had crammed it into his bag...) Once past the gates, they were led to a large room with a large table. The room had several shelves of tomes, and was surrounded different paintings that lined the walls. Around the table, three other people sat. On the farthest corner to the left was a boy who had wavy jet black hair neatly combed and tucked behind his ears. The boy wore a sullen expression, but seemed anxious for some reason. His brows were furrowed, wrinkling his pretty face while he sat hugging both knees to his chest, as though he wanted to shrink away from the world. In the middle was a boy who sat with head slightly tilted to the right; his shoulders were slouched and both of his hands laid upon his lap. The boy emitted an aura of calmness with his relaxed composure and his eyes which stared vacantly into space. Finally, to the right was a young boy, who seemed bored and annoyed; his fingers drummed anxiously on the table, as though he couldn't wait for the whole affair to be done and over with.
Sho recognized the fidgety young boy to be the prince. His name was Nino and he was rumored to possess powers which surpassed the king's own. He had a sister named Yuki who was equally powerful and was chosen by the key of time to be its rightful wielder. Sho and Aiba made their way to the table. Sho sat beside Aiba who chose to take his place beside the sullen boy who refused to make eye contact even as Aiba cheerily greeted him good morning.
"Ne, what's your name? I'm Aiba. This is my friend Sho, he's really amazing, he hea-- mmph!"
"Aiba, keep quiet for now, okay? I don't think he wants to talk." Sho said, covering Aiba's mouth with his hand. " I'm sorry about my friend, he's really very excitable." Sho explained...
"Jun."
"Eh?"
"My name is Jun" the young boy whispered, looking up...
Previous: Beginnings: Aiba Next: Beginnings: Movement
From inside Aiba's bag, the little squirrel stirred, dislodging leaves and fragments of half nibbled nuts and fruits as he climbed out of the bag's pocket. Shimuken groggily groomed himself, running his small paws through his disheveled fur and combing it into a neat, shiny coat before scampering on to Aiba's blanket-covered legs. Shimuken was mildly intrigued by how Aiba didn't seem to notice his presence. As he went closer and looked at Aiba's face, he noticed that Aiba's eyes were transfixed on the face of the boy that lay sleeping on the bed opposite his. With a knowing smirk, (as much as squirrels can smirk...) Shimuken made his way up to Aiba's shoulder and tugged on Aiba's earlobe with one tiny paw.
"Waah!" Aiba exclaimed, the spell suddenly broken
*Squeak*
"Ehh.. oh, good morning, Shimuken. You surprised me!"
"mmff... berries..." Sho stirred, mumbling in his sleep...
"Look what you made me do! I could have woken him up!" Aiba said in an exaggerated whisper.
*Squeak* (you like him, don't you? You've been staring at him for a while...)
"Well, Yes. He's a really nice person and he looks cute, he reminds me of a little hamster with very messy fur... Kind of like you, when you've just woken up" Aiba replied smiling unconsciously, his eyes never leaving Sho.
*Squeak* (are you going to marry him?)
"Marry?! No, what are you talking about?!" Aiba stammered, blushing "I just think he's a very good person!"
Shimuken paused for a while, looking at Aiba's flustered face and then with a knowing squeak, told Aiba that he'd be going back to his small pocket to eat a good breakfast of nuts and berries...
Minutes later, the temple's bell tolled, waking up the little city, signaling the start of a new day, and the time to start the morning prayers for the temple's inhabitants. Sho, as if by clockwork, opened a pair of bleary eyes upon the bell's 5th toll. A hand went up to rub his eyes, while the other was stretched out over his head. The tips of his toes curled as he stretched long legs and arched his back, groaning loudly, while the rest of his limbs settled down once more as his mind slowly caught up with the rest of his body. To Sho's left were a pair of bright and eager eyes staring at him... what was his name? Oh, right Aiba... Sho's fuzzy mind was slowly piecing things together, he's kind of cute...
"Good Morning!" came Aiba's cheerful greeting.
"Good Morning, Aiba" Sho replied amiably as he pushed himself up with his lanky arms and got off the bed, one leg after another.
"Where are we going?" Aiba asked, getting out of his own bed and following Sho who was mechanically maneuvering his way towards the washroom, his brown robe in hand.
"Ohh... um. I guess you don't have to join us if you don't want to, but every morning we start our day with prayers. After that we'll prepare food for breakfast. You can go back to sleep if you want to." Sho said.
"That's perfectly okay." Said Aiba "I've been awake for some time now. I was just waiting for you to get up... What are morning prayers like? Can I join?"
"Well... um. It's a quiet time where each of us prays and thanks the goddess for her blessings. Our head priest leads the prayers and we usually follow his lead"
"Oh. Well, we pray too. So I guess I can join."
"Sure, you can pray your own way if you want."
"Um. Sho...Well make breakfast after prayers, right?"
"Of course."
"Yay! I'll make breakfast too! I'm quite good at cooking!"
"That's great! It's my turn to cook today and I could use a helping hand" Sho smiled, as they both made for the washroom and prepared themselves.
With their morning rituals out of the way, Aiba made his way to the prayer room alongside Sho, who now donned his usual brown caftan. It was Aiba's first time in a temple, and his first time to participate in such a solemn ritual. The prayer room glowed with the soft, yellowish light of the candles, while the heady smell of jasmine-scented incense permeated the air as the head priest recited the sacred words to honor the goddess and give thanks for her blessings. With his head bowed in reverence, like the other monks who knelt beside him, Aiba prayed for the health and the safety of his family, and sent his deepest thanks to the goddess for the blessings he received, and most importantly, for leading him to a person as kind as Sho. A few minutes later, the head priest rang his small bell three times, signaling the end of prayers. Each monk turned to the person beside him and fondly exchanged morning greetings with one another. True to his promise, Aiba went with Sho to the kitchen where Sho laid out the ingredients for the morning's feast.
"Wow. You cook this much everyday? There seems to be a lot, even for the number of monks here" Aiba asked, eyeing all the ingredients laid out before him
"Well, not everyday. We each take turns at cooking... I don't normally need to cook this much, but today's a special day, it's not everyday we have a guest you know." Sho smiled at Aiba, tying the apron strings around his waist.
"You mean, me??" Aiba asked, incredulous "That's too much! I mean, you didn't need to! I'm only---"
"It's okay, we do it every time we have a guest. You are no exception. Besides, you're helping me prepare these." Sho once more smiled reassuringly at Aiba who was busy fumbling about with his own apron strings.
"Well, if you put it that way, then I guess it's okay." Aiba replied a bit uncertainly, as he started peeling some carrots...
The two hours in the kitchen passed by easily, with both boys learning more about each other as they exchanged more stories and misadventures while they busily cooked breakfast. Aiba learned that Sho had been orphaned at a very young age. The monks told him that he had been found inside a basket, on a cold autumn night, wrapped tightly in a white blanket with only a few clothes and a stuffed doll to his name. His blanket, which he still kept beside him when he slept, had his name embroidered in blue and gold threads; his stuffed doll, which resembled a small cat, had been patched and stitched so many times that it was virtually unrecognizable. Sho still kept his small toy inside his closet, buried under his clothes which hid a secret compartment that had his baby clothes and the basket that he had been found in. Sho admitted, that at times, it saddened him to know that he had been left behind, and from time to time, he would still wonder why his parents had chosen to abandon him. Still, he was grateful to the monks who had been kind enough to raise him as though he was their own son.
Aiba also learned, that like him, Sho had an unusual gift. Sho's hands were always pleasantly warm. If Aiba were to describe it, he would probably tell you that Sho's hands were like hot chocolate on a cold winter's night. It was a comforting kind of warmth that healed, in more ways than one. Aiba discovered this the moment he had accidentally cut his finger while slicing the onions that would go into the broth. The knife had been quite sharp, and the cut had been painless, but deep. Aiba panicked as his finger started dripping blood all over the floor and stuttered apologies for his clumsiness as he tried looking for anything that would stop its flow. Sho, however, asked him to calm down and went on to rinse his finger with some clean water. After tearing out a scrap of cloth from his robes, Sho wrapped it around Aiba's finger and held it tightly...
"Aiba.." Sho whispered "Don't be afraid, okay... "
Aiba could only give a puzzled look in return...
Sho closed his eyes, and little by little, Aiba felt the heat seep through the makeshift bandage that Sho wrapped around his finger. After a few minutes the bleeding stopped, and Sho unwrapped the blood-soaked bandage to reveal Aiba's finger, unblemished, as though it had never been cut. Sho stood back and looked at him with uncertain eyes as though he were expecting Aiba to run screaming, or reject their newfound friendship at any moment. Aiba, in the meantime, examined his finger, and gasped in awe: Despite the deep cut, not even the tiniest scratch remained to indicate that there had been a wound at all.
"Wow... You're amazing! Thank you!" Aiba exclaimed, still quite mesmerized with his finger, "I wish I had a useful talent like yours!"
"Oh... um. Thanks, I guess" Sho replied, greatly relieved that Aiba didn't run away, or scream like the others did, the first time he revealed his powers.
"You really are a good person!" Aiba looked up and smiled at Sho, pulling him in once more for a very tight hug, which Sho wholeheartedly returned.
Over breakfast, Aiba also learned that Sho visits the city once a week to help those who need healing and could not afford a doctor or the medication to cure their ills. Sho, it seemed, had rather mixed emotions about his abilities. On the one hand, he was very happy that he could help people in need, but on the other, he felt like he was being used, especially when the people he healed left with hardly a word of thanks or a show of gratitude; there were also those who called him a freak behind his back. Sho, on the other hand, learned that Aiba could be distracted by almost anything, and that he had an uncanny ability to bounce back from almost any disappointment thrown his way. Aiba's ability with animals also made for reliable weather prediction.
****
Aiba and Sho walked together towards the big castle, under the clear blue sky, amongst the vast meadows and fields of flowers. Sho, like Aiba, had also received a summons from the King and was also supposed to be in the castle on the same day. As they approached the gates, the guards requested to see the parchment containing the King's message, which Sho and Aiba readily showed (although Aiba's invitation was horribly rumpled due to the careless way he had crammed it into his bag...) Once past the gates, they were led to a large room with a large table. The room had several shelves of tomes, and was surrounded different paintings that lined the walls. Around the table, three other people sat. On the farthest corner to the left was a boy who had wavy jet black hair neatly combed and tucked behind his ears. The boy wore a sullen expression, but seemed anxious for some reason. His brows were furrowed, wrinkling his pretty face while he sat hugging both knees to his chest, as though he wanted to shrink away from the world. In the middle was a boy who sat with head slightly tilted to the right; his shoulders were slouched and both of his hands laid upon his lap. The boy emitted an aura of calmness with his relaxed composure and his eyes which stared vacantly into space. Finally, to the right was a young boy, who seemed bored and annoyed; his fingers drummed anxiously on the table, as though he couldn't wait for the whole affair to be done and over with.
Sho recognized the fidgety young boy to be the prince. His name was Nino and he was rumored to possess powers which surpassed the king's own. He had a sister named Yuki who was equally powerful and was chosen by the key of time to be its rightful wielder. Sho and Aiba made their way to the table. Sho sat beside Aiba who chose to take his place beside the sullen boy who refused to make eye contact even as Aiba cheerily greeted him good morning.
"Ne, what's your name? I'm Aiba. This is my friend Sho, he's really amazing, he hea-- mmph!"
"Aiba, keep quiet for now, okay? I don't think he wants to talk." Sho said, covering Aiba's mouth with his hand. " I'm sorry about my friend, he's really very excitable." Sho explained...
"Jun."
"Eh?"
"My name is Jun" the young boy whispered, looking up...
Previous: Beginnings: Aiba Next: Beginnings: Movement