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The oceanic breeze moved through his hair while he stepped tenderly on the warm sand. The weather was kind; the waking sun considerately beaming onto his skin, a soft zephyr roaming the atmosphere, a clear sky as blue as the sea. He leisurely spotted a comfortable rock heated by the sun that granted him a view of the ocean. Occasional maple leaves descended from the few trees nearby. Kunikuzushi always admired the beautiful escapes of Inazuma. The less populated areas, although that may be because he had never truly ventured outside of the territory he awoke in. He enjoyed Tatarasuna, therefore finding no reason to leave. It was peaceful and quiet, something he appreciated wholeheartedly. He dangled his feet over the edge of the rock, sporadically feeling the cool water that moved with the wind. The muscles in his cheeks gingerly flexed and the corners of his mouth upturned ever so slightly. A mellow fluttering noise sparked his interest, causing his eyes to wander to the origin of the sound. His ears had surprisingly become keen due to the constant observing he performed.
A crystal fly. Its elegant wings flit as it soared towards a curious Kunikuzushi. It shimmered, infused with electro power, generating small purple particles that aimlessly trailed behind the creature. Unexpectedly, the crystal butterfly settled directly on the finger Kunikuzushi held up towards it. He furrowed his eyebrows and tilted his head in bewilderment.
“How interesting..” He whispered to the unreceptive creature. “Usually these things fly away from humans, don’t they?” He pondered this rhetorical question, instinctively accepting that there would be no one to answer it. Kunikuzushi raised the crystal fly to level with his bright, mystifying eyes. “You are…” He thought hard. A word for this peculiar entity was on the very tip of his tongue. “Chou.” He said, shocked at a word he had no memory of learning. The crystal fly experimentally flapped its wings, emitting more captivating electro flecks. He was entirely enthralled in this being, watching its every move.
Kunikuzushi was curled up into her lap, staring up at her youthful face. She effortlessly brushed through his glowing hair with her slender fingers, giving him simple praises about his violet locks. She hummed a beautiful song while doing so.
“Miko, will you tell me a story?” He asked, peering up at her with his big, bright eyes.
“But of course, darling.” She exclaimed, smiling delicately. “Ah, how should I begin?” She cleared her throat. “There once was a young caterpillar; innocent, naive, but sweet and harmless. Though, this individual was quite fragile, for they hadn't grown yet. They were one of many others, but just so happened to be the feeble of the group; the weaker one, the smaller one. But that made them no less beautiful.”
Kunikuzushi gaped in awe as the story had only just begun. Miko continued to lovingly stroke his hair.
“Every caterpillar undergoes stages; originating as a larva, then inhabiting and hibernating in their own chrysalis, and finally awakening, hatching, gaining freedom and soaring with their brilliant wings. They obtain the name chou, or butterfly. The small individual was told that unlike the rest, they’d never become an alluring butterfly. They were seen as a fragile, worthless entity.” Miko benevolently cupped Kunikuzushi’s cheek, caressing his smooth skin. He had a befuddled expression displayed on his face.
“Why were they so mean to the butterfly, Miko?” A saddened whine rang in his voice.
“Ah ah ah, keep listening, my dear Kuni. The story is not complete.” Her reassurance soothed his worry, and he motioned for her to continue. “Once they reached the eclosion phase, they hatched into a lovely, purple-winged butterfly. They took off to capture their freedom and fulfill their own great ambition. As a larva, they had been seen as an impurity, a mistake, a runt. But they spread their bewitching wings and proved them all wrong.” Miko clapped her hands once and gave the boy a mellow smile. “And that is the end.”
Kunikuzushi gasped and sat up in her lap.
“You know, Kunikuzushi…” Miko began. He nodded in response. “You remind me of a butterfly.” His eyebrows knitted as he opened and closed his mouth multiple times, unsure of how to reply.
“How so?”
“I cannot say, but you’ve got the beauty.” She giggled, pinching his cheeks. He whimpered before joining her amusement. Miko quickly patted his head before starting towards the door of his room. “She shall not abandon you like this butterfly though. Goodnight, my dreaming little chou.” She said, closing the door and leaving him with countless unanswered questions.
At last, the crystal fly released from his finger. His eyes were glued to its opulent glides through the air.
“Freedom, you say…” He mumbled to himself. “Do I have freedom? Did I emerge from my sleep and expand my wings?” As if to reply, a modest gust of wind blew his hair from his forehead and replenished his lungs with a rejuvenating sum of oxygen.
He was free.
But where was his ambition?
His purpose?
His will to achieve?
His dream?
He grasped a fallen maple leaf from the rock he was situated upon. He held it to his heart, to his temple, to his lips. He crumpled it in the palm of his hand before casting it into the vast water.
He had wished for a heart, hoping the ocean would carry his request into his destiny.